Jim Gelcer

History

Jim Gelcer, originally from Cape Town, South Africa, relocated to Toronto in 1968. He pursued studies in drums, vibraphone, arranging, and improvisation at the Eastman School of Music in 1980, learning from Ray Ricker, Bill Dobbins, Dave Ratajczak, and Lee Musiker. In 1984, he studied jazz under David Mott at York University before launching his professional music career. Gelcer has performed, recorded, and toured with a wide range of artists, including Lee Aaron, the Flying Bulgar Klezmer Band, Lorne Lofsky, Paul Hoffert, Don Thompson, Russ Little, Terry Clarke, Pat LaBarbera, Guido Basso, Steve Wallace, John Sherwood, Nancy Walker, Richard Underhill, George Koller, Reg Schwager, Dave Young, and Bratty and the Babysitters.

Early on, he composed for film and television, contributing to Price of Vengeance (1985), The Journal on CBC (1985–89), and My Happy Days in Hell (1994). More recently, he partnered with Donald Quan to create Gopher Lunch, a film music recording house and library.

Kirtan Music

Jim Gelcer’s path in yoga began with Sivananda Yoga, and his commitment to Kirtan deepened after a trip to the Sivananda Ashram in the Laurentian Mountains, where he was asked to chant in the temple. He earned his yoga teacher certification at the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat in Paradise Island, Bahamas in March 2006, and soon after started guiding Kirtan sessions. His first Kirtan album, Bhagavan, came out in 2010 and was named one of the year’s best by WRPI FM and the Full Lotus Kirtan Show on WCOM FM.

Yoga Chicago magazine described him as “the perfect bhakti singer.” In 2013, he released Bhakti Groove Machine, produced by Grammy-nominated Ben Leinbach. Gelcer leads regular performances at yoga studios, temples, and festivals like Bhaktifest. He also offers a daily yoga class on the Insight Timer meditation app.

From 2012 to 2017, he served as musical director for Shri Fest, a yoga, music, and art festival in Blue Mountain, Ontario.

Digital media

At Noank Media Inc., a Harvard-linked digital media startup, Jim Gelcer first served as Vice President of Content Acquisition and Business Development before becoming Chief Operating Officer. The company focused on licensing and distributing digital content worldwide with fair compensation for owners. Noank demonstrated its proprietary digital media exchange platform and formed a partnership with CERNET, the China Education and Research Network.

Did You Know?

• Gelcer served on the board of the Glenn Gould Foundation from 2010 to 2013 as Fundraising Chair.
• He also served on the boards of Toronto Summer Music Festival, Via Salzburg Chamber Orchestra, and Mariposa in the Schools.