One of five sons to oilman J. Paul Getty, Gordon Getty was born with considerable lore attached to his name. Yet, he has carved out his own legacy, distinguishing himself as one of America’s outstanding classical composers and devoting himself to improving the visual arts, education, and scientific research with an uncommon generosity as a leading philanthropist.
Growing up in San Francisco, Getty attended St. Ignatius College Preparatory high school before earning a bachelor of science degree in English from the University of San Francisco in 1956. He later studied music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and soon after launched a professional music career, composing operas, choral arrangements, and chamber music.
Getty’s compositions include “Poor Peter” (2005), “Young America” (2001), “Three Welsh Songs” (1999), “Joan and the Bells” (1998), “Annabel Lee” (1990), “Victorian Scenes” (1989), “Plump Jack” (1984), “The White Election,” (1981), and others. The recipient of the American Symphony Orchestra League’s Gold Baton in 2003, Getty was honored as an Outstanding American Composer by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in 1986. His music has been performed at Carnegie Hall, London’s Royal Festival Hall, Vienna’s Brahms-Saal, and Moscow’s Tchaikovsky Concert Hall.
The Getty name is also synonymous with philanthropy, of course. After inheriting the family fortune when his father passed away in 1976, Getty sold Getty Oil to Texaco and poured the money into the J. Paul Getty Trust, doubling the trust’s assets and laying the foundation for the well-known institutions we have today: the Getty Foundation, Getty Images, the Getty Conservation Institute, the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Getty Research Institute, and more.
In addition to these iconic institutions, Getty and his wife, Ann, through the Ann and Gordon Getty Foundation, support the visual arts, education, and research with grants that are often designed to promote innovation and long-term collaborations between orchestras and after school programs, health and wellness organizations, and criminal justice programs. The couple’s foundation also supports local arts organizations, such as the San Francisco Opera and the San Francisco Symphony.
Beyond the arts and philanthropy, Getty has proved himself a savvy venture capitalist, with successful stakes in the innovative investment firms ReFlow and Forward Management. Getty was also an early investor in the hospitality management company PlumpJack Group, founded by Gavin Newsom, lieutenant governor of California. PlumpJack owns and manages resorts, wineries, and restaurants throughout Northern California.
