A native of the Netherlands, Ben van Gelder moved to New York at age 17 and spent a decade collaborating and studying with some of the most progressive artists in the world. His teachers included Guillermo Klein, Jason Moran and Lee Konitz. He formed a quintet of forward thinking peers and recorded three critically acclaimed albums under his name. He received a much sought-after commission from the Jazz Gallery in New York, which resulted in, Among Verticals. The record, inspired by a painting of abstractionist Frantisek Kupka, received 5-star reviews in press publications word wide. Van Gelder won multiple awards such as the Deloitte Jazz Award and the Gold Award granted by the National Endowment for Advancement in the Arts. Most recently Ben van Gelder was commissioned by the BIMHUIS, Het Orgelpark and the Jazz Orchestra of the Concertgebouw. His compositions have been performed by the Grammy award winning Metropole Orchestra, The Swiss Jazz Orchestra and the Keio Light Music Society. Van Gelder is currently based in Amsterdam where he is on faculty at the Conservatory.