Patrick Gleeson has died — the man who taught the synthesiser to play live
The American composer and synthesiser pioneer was 91. He produced Herbie Hancock, worked with Brian Eno and David Byrne, and wrote music for Apocalypse Now.
American synthesist and composer Patrick Gleeson has died aged 91. He passed away on 19 July; the Bob Moog Foundation confirmed it on behalf of the musician’s estate. No cause of death has been given. He is survived by his wife of 34 years, Charmaine McClarie.
Mixmag reported the death.
In the 1960s Gleeson taught English at San Francisco State University while experimenting on an early Buchla at the San Francisco Tape Music Center. In 1968 he took on a Moog III modular and founded the Different Fur recording studio with John Viera.
He rose to prominence through his work with jazz musician Herbie Hancock, producing ‘Crossings’ (1972) and ‘Sextant’ (1973) and then touring alongside him — the moment the synthesiser stopped being a studio curiosity and started sounding on stage.
Then came Devo’s ‘Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!’ (1978) and the Brian Eno and David Byrne collaboration ‘My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts’ (1980). Gleeson’s own debut, ‘Beyond the Sun’ (1976), earned him a GRAMMY nomination for Best Engineered Classical Recording.
Through the ’70s and ’80s he wrote for film and television, including Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now. He retired from screen work in 2017 but kept touring as a live musician.
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