Patrick Gleeson is a pioneer of electronic music who taught himself synthesis on the world's first Buchla Box. In 1971, he introduced synthesizers to jazz in the ground-breaking Herbie Hancock album "Crossings", afterward touring and recording in Hancock's Mwandishi band. He's produced and/or played on over 100 albums by artists as varied as Sammy Hagar, Michael Shrieve Jefferson Starship, Devo and Kronos Quartet; released nine solo albums, scored nine network television series; and is credited as the "master synthesist" of Francis Coppola's Apocolypse Now. Gleeson's scores for artist Bruce Conner are in the permanent collections of the Walker Art Center, The San Francisco Museum of Modern Arts and The Museum of Modern Art.

In 2018, Gleeson returned to live performance with music reflecting his history, with influences of American minimalism, jazz and ambient techno. He's currently presenting solo performances of his work at Moogfest and other electronic festivals in quadraphonic form or in 14.2 surround mixed live by Steve Ellison of Meyer Sound.