Peter J. Griggs ’74 died on March 9, 2026, in Suffern, New York.

(The following was provided by the Katonah-Lewisboro Times on April 24, 2026:)

Peter J. Griggs, 73, passed away at Good Samaritan Hospital in Suffern, NY, on March 9, 2026, after a brief illness. Peter was born in New York City on April 6, 1952, to George E. Griggs, Jr. and Vera Johnson Griggs. He was raised in Katonah, NY, where he attended John Jay High School. He went on to graduate Summa cum laude from Bowdoin College and thereafter began his musical career as a composer and instrumentalist best known for his guitar playing (classical and electric). He also performed on a variety of other instruments including, but not limited to, the lute, French Horn, Indonesian gamelan instruments, Indian table, nagaras, acoustic and electric keyboard, zithers, etc. Performing hundreds of concerts took him on voyages near and far throughout Europe, South America, Canada, and the United States. He could be heard playing in concert halls in Egypt and Iceland, clubs in Germany and Belgium, at an artist residency in Estonia, in England for the theater, on a flatbed truck in Maine, art galleries and museums in New York, and churches all along the eastern seaboard, as well as for dance performances with contemporary choreographers.

His original compositions and repertoire defied categorization of genre but were influenced by classical, jazz, traditional music of the British Isles, flamenco, and Brazilian music. His Carnegie Hall concert of his original music was performed with his trio, Iris Brooks (flute) and Glen Velez (percussion). His solo guitar concerts spanned works from five hundred years. Many of his recordings are available on his BandCamp page at (www.musicbypetergriggs.bandcamp.com)

His brother, George E. Griggs, III, predeceased him in 2019. Peter leaves his sister, Christine Griggs Narcisse, and nieces Anna Griggs, Daisy Griggs, and Lizzi Narcisse, and nephew Ian Griggs and his wife, Kelly.