Website review
This review may include AI-generated content and is not individually verified. Domain, certificate and other facts come from the observed data on this page.
What is Peter Buffett?
Peter Buffett is an American musician, composer, author and philanthropist. The site presents him primarily through his creative career: recording and producing in 1980s San Francisco, a run of albums with Narada Productions beginning with The Waiting in 1987, and film and television scoring that included the Fire Dance scene in Dances With Wolves and the CBS mini-series 500 Nations. Later work moved between theatrical productions such as Spirit – The Seventh Fire, the 2010 book Life Is What You Make It, and a touring "Concert and Conversation" format with cellist Michael Kott.
If you are trying to place him, the quickest route is to decide which Peter Buffett you need:
- As a composer: ambient and instrumental albums, film and TV scores, and theatrical music.
- As a performer: solo piano and collaborative touring shows rather than a conventional pop act.
- As a writer and speaker: essays and a book on life choices, money and philanthropy, tied to his work with the NoVo Foundation.
- As a public figure: someone known as much for philanthropy and commentary as for music.
A practical next step: if you arrived looking for a particular album or score, search the site for that title first; if you are interested in his writing or speaking, start with the book and the essays, since those represent a distinct side of his public work.
What albums did Peter Buffett release in the 1980s and 1990s?
Peter Buffett's recording career began in the 1980s and continued through the 1990s, with most of his early releases tied to Narada Productions and later to Epic and Hollywood Records.
1980s
- The Waiting (1987) — his first album, released with Narada Productions. During the same period he was recording and producing albums for local talent in San Francisco and composing for commercials.
- Three further records with Narada followed over the next several years, though the page evidence does not name them individually.
1990s
- Albums on Epic and Hollywood Records, which grew out of his score work for the CBS mini-series 500 Nations. The page evidence does not list individual titles or release years for these.
If you want to pin down exact titles, years and track listings, the most reliable next step is to check a music database or the Narada/Epic catalog entries directly, since the source page only names The Waiting and describes the later releases in general terms.
What film scores did Peter Buffett compose, such as for Dances With Wolves?
Peter Buffett's film-scoring work centers on two projects documented on his site: he scored the Fire Dance scene in Dances With Wolves, and he scored the CBS eight-hour mini-series 500 Nations.
The distinction matters if you are trying to find his music:
- Dances With Wolves — a single scene, not the full score. The film's main score is by John Barry, so Buffett's contribution sits inside a larger soundtrack rather than defining it.
- 500 Nations — a full mini-series score. This is the more substantial example of his dramatic writing for screen, and it led to album releases on Epic and Hollywood Records.
For context on where this fits, his site describes a career that began in early-1980s San Francisco writing for commercials and local artists, followed by albums with Narada Productions starting with The Waiting in 1987. Film and television work sits alongside that recorded output rather than replacing it.
If you are looking for the music: start with the 500 Nations score for the fullest example of his screen composing, and treat the Dances With Wolves Fire Dance as a single scene to listen for rather than a separate soundtrack. If your interest is his broader catalog, his Narada-era albums and later theatrical work such as Spirit – The Seventh Fire, which premiered on the National Mall in 2004, are the other main threads.
What is Peter Buffett's book Life Is What You Make It about?
Peter Buffett’s Life Is What You Make It is a personal reflection on building a meaningful life on your own terms, drawing on his experiences as a musician, composer, author and philanthropist. The book’s central argument is that inherited advantage—whether money, connections or expectations—matters less than the values, curiosity and work you bring to your own path. It combines memoir-style stories from his career and travels with broader lessons about identity, purpose and giving back.
What readers can expect
- A values-first approach to success: Rather than treating achievement as a scoreboard, the book asks what kind of life you want and what you are willing to do to create it.
- Personal narrative over prescriptive formula: Buffett uses his own turns—composing for film and television, touring with a small ensemble, writing essays—as illustrations rather than as a step-by-step program.
- Philanthropy and social responsibility: His work with the NoVo Foundation and his critical writing about charity shape the book’s discussion of how money and influence can be used well or badly.
- Accessible, conversational tone: It is aimed at general readers interested in life direction, not specialists in music or finance.
Who it suits
The book tends to appeal to readers who enjoy memoir-inflected advice, especially people navigating career changes, questions of privilege, or the gap between external expectations and personal satisfaction. If you want a tactical career manual or a detailed music-industry guide, this is not that; if you want a reflective argument about agency and values, it fits.
A useful next step is to sample a chapter or two before committing: check whether the balance of personal anecdote and general reflection matches how you like to read advice. Pairing it with a more practical book on a specific decision you face—changing fields, starting a project, or rethinking how you give—will get more out of it than reading it as a standalone blueprint.
What is Peter Buffett's theatrical show Spirit - The Seventh Fire?
Spirit – The Seventh Fire is the theatrical show Peter Buffett premiered in 2004 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., as part of the opening of the National Museum of the American Indian. It is a live stage production rather than a concert tour or album: music, storytelling and staging combined around a Native American theme, with the title referencing the Seventh Fire, a prophecy in Anishinaabe tradition about a coming era of renewal and choice.
Why it matters in his career. The show sits at the point where Buffett's work shifted from scoring and instrumental albums toward performance pieces with a message. Before it came film and television scoring, including the Fire Dance scene in Dances With Wolves and the CBS mini-series 500 Nations; after it came the Concert and Conversation touring format and his essays and songs on philanthropy and social change. Spirit – The Seventh Fire is the clearest example of him putting a large-scale, historically grounded subject on a national stage.
What to expect if you are curious about it. It is a period piece tied to a specific commission and venue, so there is no standing production to buy a ticket for today. If you want the closest living equivalent, look for his Concert and Conversation appearances, where he performs and talks about the ideas behind the music. If you want the thematic background, his book Life Is What You Make It and his essays carry the same concerns in written form.
A practical next step. Decide which you want:
- The show itself – treat it as a historical production; look for archival coverage of the 2004 National Museum of the American Indian opening rather than current listings.
- Buffett live now – check his official site, Peter Buffett, for current performance dates and formats.
- The ideas – read his essays and book if the theme of the Seventh Fire interests you more than the staging.
What is the NoVo Foundation and how is Peter Buffett involved?
The NoVo Foundation is a philanthropic organization referenced on Peter Buffett's site as part of the wider world exposure that shaped his later music and writing. Peter Buffett is involved with the foundation's work, and that involvement, along with his time on the road, influenced his creative output according to his official site Peter Buffett.
H3 Practical takeaway If you're researching Peter Buffett, treat the foundation as a context clue rather than the main subject of his music pages. For a clear picture of his role and the foundation's mission, look for the foundation's own materials and Peter Buffett's essays, which his site notes he began writing after his New York Times op-ed "The Charitable Industrial Complex."
User reviews (0)