Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian virtuoso jazz pianist and composer. Considered one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards, as well as a lifetime achievement award from the

Recording Academy The Recording Academy (formally the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences; abbreviated NARAS) is an American learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is famous for its Grammy Aw ...

, and received numerous other awards and honours. He played thousands of concerts worldwide in a career lasting more than 60 years. He was called the "

Maharaja Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king". A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, a ...

of the keyboard" by Duke Ellington, simply "O.P." by his friends, and informally in the jazz community as "the King of inside swing".

Biography

Early years

Peterson was born in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, to immigrants from the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...

(

Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Kitts and Nevis (), officially the Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis, is an island country and microstate consisting of the two islands of Saint Kitts and Nevis, both located in the West Indies, in the Leeward Islands chain ...

and the

British Virgin Islands ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = Territorial song , song = " Oh, Beautiful Virgin Islands" , image_map = File:British Virgin Islands on the globe (Americas centered).svg , map_caption = , mapsize = 290px , image_map2 = Bri ...

); His mother, Kathleen, was a domestic worker and his father, Daniel, worked as a porter for Canadian Pacific Railway and was an amateur musician who taught himself to play the organ,

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

and

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

. Peterson grew up in the neighbourhood of

Little Burgundy Little Burgundy (french: La Petite-Bourgogne) is a neighbourhood in the South West borough of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Geography Its approximate boundaries are Atwater Avenue to the west, Saint-Antoine to the north, Guy Street ...

in Montreal. It was in this predominantly

black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...

neighbourhood that he encountered the jazz culture. At the age of five, Peterson began honing his skills on trumpet and piano, but a bout of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...

when he was seven prevented him from playing the trumpet again, so he directed all his attention to the piano. His father was one of his first music teachers, and his sister Daisy taught him classical piano. Peterson was persistent at practising scales and classical études. As a child, Peterson studied with Hungarian-born pianist Paul de Marky, a student of István Thomán, who was himself a pupil of Franz Liszt, so his early training was predominantly based on classical piano. But he was captivated by traditional jazz and

boogie-woogie Boogie-woogie is a genre of blues music that became popular during the late 1920s, developed in African-American communities since 1870s.Paul, Elliot, ''That Crazy American Music'' (1957), Chapter 10, p. 229. It was eventually extended from pi ...

and learned several

ragtime Ragtime, also spelled rag-time or rag time, is a musical style that flourished from the 1890s to 1910s. Its cardinal trait is its syncopated or "ragged" rhythm. Ragtime was popularized during the early 20th century by composers such as Scott J ...

pieces. He was called "the Brown Bomber of the Boogie-Woogie". At the age of nine, Peterson played piano with a degree of control that impressed professional musicians. For many years his piano studies included four to six hours of daily practice. Only in his later years did he decrease his practice to one or two hours daily. In 1940, at fourteen years of age, he won the national music competition organized by the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

. After that victory, he dropped out of the

High School of Montreal The High School of Montreal was an English-language high school founded in 1843, serving Montreal, Quebec, Canada, in the area eventually known as the Golden Square Mile. It was less formally known as Montreal High School and from 1853 to 1870 was ...

, where he played in a band with Maynard Ferguson.Maynard Ferguson
(obituary) dated August 26, 2006, at ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...

'' online, accessed December 30, 2017 He became a professional pianist, starring in a weekly radio show and playing at hotels and music halls. In his teens he was a member of the Johnny Holmes Orchestra. From 1945 to 1949 he worked in a trio and recorded for

Victor Records The Victor Talking Machine Company was an American recording company and phonograph manufacturer that operated independently from 1901 until 1929, when it was acquired by the Radio Corporation of America and subsequently operated as a subsidi ...

. He gravitated toward boogie-woogie and swing with a particular fondness for

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

and

Teddy Wilson Theodore Shaw Wilson (November 24, 1912 – July 31, 1986) was an American jazz pianist. Described by critic Scott Yanow as "the definitive swing pianist", Wilson had a sophisticated, elegant style. His work was featured on the records of many ...

. By the time he was in his 20s, he had developed a reputation as a technically brilliant and melodically inventive pianist. Oscar Peterson Standing

Duos, trios, and quartets

According to an interview with

Norman Granz Norman Granz (August 6, 1918 – November 22, 2001) was an American jazz record producer and concert promoter. He founded the record labels Clef, Norgran, Down Home, Verve, and Pablo. Granz was acknowledged as "the most successful impres ...

in the 2021 documentary '' Oscar Peterson: Black + White'', he heard a radio program broadcasting from a local club while taking a cab to the Montreal airport. He was so impressed that he told the driver to take him to the club so he could meet the pianist. Granz had seen Peterson before this but was underwhelmed. In 1949 he introduced Peterson in New York City at a

Jazz at the Philharmonic Jazz at the Philharmonic, or JATP (1944–1983), was the title of a series of jazz concerts, tours and recordings produced by Norman Granz. Over the years, "Jazz at the Philharmonic" featured many of the era's preeminent musicians, including Lou ...

concert at Carnegie Hall. He remained Peterson's manager for most of his career. This was more than a managerial relationship; Peterson praised Granz for standing up for him and other black jazz musicians in the segregationist south US of the 1950s and 1960s. In the documentary video ''Music in the Key of Oscar'', Peterson tells how Granz stood up to a gun-toting Southern policeman who wanted to stop the trio from using "whites-only" taxis. In 1950, Peterson worked in a duo with double bassist Ray Brown. Two years later they added guitarist Barney Kessel. Then Herb Ellis stepped in after Kessel grew weary of touring. The trio remained together from 1953 to 1958, often touring with Jazz at the Philharmonic. Peterson also worked in duos with Sam Jones,

Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen (, 27 May 1946 – 19 April 2005), also known by his abbreviated nickname NHØP, was a Danish jazz double bassist. Biography Pedersen was born in Osted, near Roskilde, on the Danish island of Zealand, the son of ...

, Joe Pass, Irving Ashby,

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...

, and Herbie Hancock. He considered the trio with Brown and Ellis "the most stimulating" and productive setting for public performances and studio recordings. In the early 1950s, he began performing with Brown and drummer Charlie Smith as the Oscar Peterson Trio. Shortly afterward Smith was replaced by guitarist Irving Ashby, who had been a member of the Nat King Cole Trio. Ashby, who was a swing guitarist, was soon replaced by Kessel. Their last recording, '' On the Town with the Oscar Peterson Trio'', recorded live at the

Town Tavern {{Short description, Jazz club in Toronto, Ontario, Canada The Town Tavern was a jazz club located at 16 Queen Street East in Toronto, Ontario. Operating between 1949 and 1971, it was one of Toronto's preeminent jazz clubs and a regular performanc ...

in Toronto, captured a remarkable degree of emotional as well as musical understanding between three players. When Ellis departed in 1958, they hired drummer

Ed Thigpen Edmund Leonard Thigpen (December 28, 1930 – January 13, 2010) was an American jazz drummer, best known for his work with the Oscar Peterson trio from 1959 to 1965. Thigpen also performed with the Billy Taylor trio from 1956 to 1959. Biograp ...

because they felt no guitarist could compare to Ellis. Brown and Thigpen worked with Peterson on his albums '' Night Train'' and '' Canadiana Suite''. Both left in 1965 and were replaced by bassist Sam Jones and drummer

Louis Hayes Louis Hayes (born May 31, 1937) is an American jazz drummer and band leader. He was with McCoy Tyner's trio for more than three years. Since 1989 he has led his own band, and together with Vincent Herring formed the Cannonball Legacy Band. He ...

(and later, drummer Bobby Durham). The trio performed together until 1970. In 1969 Peterson recorded '' Motions and Emotions'' with orchestral arrangements of " Yesterday" and "

Eleanor Rigby "Eleanor Rigby" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1966 album ''Revolver''. It was also issued on a double A-side single, paired with " Yellow Submarine". The song was written primarily by Paul McCartney and credited to L ...

" by

The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

. In the fall of 1970, Peterson's trio released the album '' Tristeza on Piano''. Jones and Durham left in 1970. In the 1970s Peterson formed a trio with guitarist Joe Pass and bassist

. This trio emulated the success of the 1950s trio with Brown and Ellis and gave acclaimed performances at festivals. Their album ''The Trio'' won the 1974 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance by a Group. On April 22, 1978, Peterson performed in the interval act for the

Eurovision Song Contest 1978 The Eurovision Song Contest 1978 was the 23rd edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Paris, France, following the country's victory at the with the song " L'Oiseau et l'Enfant" by Marie Myriam. Organised by the Europea ...

that was broadcast live from the

Palais des congrès de Paris The Palais des congrès de Paris is a concert venue, convention centre and shopping mall at the Porte Maillot in the 17th arrondissement of Paris, France. The venue was built by French architect Guillaume Gillet, and was inaugurated in 1974. Nea ...

. In 1974 he added British drummer Martin Drew. This quartet toured and recorded extensively worldwide. Pass said in a 1976 interview, "The only guys I've heard who come close to total mastery of their instruments are Art Tatum and Peterson". Peterson was open to experimental collaborations with jazz musicians such as saxophonist

Ben Webster Benjamin Francis Webster (March 27, 1909 – September 20, 1973) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Career Early life and career A native of Kansas City, Missouri, he studied violin, learned how to play blues on the piano from ...

, trumpeter Clark Terry, and vibraphonist Milt Jackson. In 1961, the Peterson trio with Jackson recorded the album '' Very Tall''. His solo recordings were rare until '' Exclusively for My Friends'' ( MPS), a series of albums that were his response to pianists such as Bill Evans and

McCoy Tyner Alfred McCoy Tyner (December 11, 1938March 6, 2020) was an American jazz pianist and composer known for his work with the John Coltrane Quartet (from 1960 to 1965) and his long solo career afterwards. He was an NEA Jazz Master and five-time Gram ...

. He recorded for

Pablo Pablo is a Spanish form of the name Paul. People *Pablo Alborán, Spanish singer *Pablo Aimar, Argentine footballer * Pablo Armero, Colombian footballer * Pablo Bartholomew, Indian photojournalist * Pablo Brandán, Argentine footballer * Pablo Br ...

, led by Norman Granz, after the label was founded in 1973, including the

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack ...

for the 1978 thriller ''

The Silent Partner ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

''. In the 1980s he played in a duo with pianist Herbie Hancock. In the late 1980s and 1990s, after a stroke, he made performances and recordings with his protégé Benny Green. In the 1990s and 2000s he recorded several albums accompanied by a combo for

Telarc Telarc International Corporation is an American audiophile independent record label founded in 1977 by two classically trained musicians and former teachers, Jack Renner (recording engineer), Jack Renner and Robert Woods (producer), Robert Woods. ...

Ill health and later years

Peterson had arthritis from his youth, and in later years he had trouble buttoning his shirt. Never slender, his weight increased to , hindering his mobility. He had hip replacement surgery in the early 1990s. Although the surgery was successful, his mobility was still hampered. In 1993, a stroke weakened his left side and removed him from work for two years. During the same year, incoming prime minister Jean Chrétien, his friend and fan, offered him the position of Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario. According to Chrétien, Peterson declined the job due to ill health related to the stroke. Although he recovered some dexterity in his left hand, his piano playing was diminished, and his style relied principally on his right hand. In 1995 he returned to occasional public performances and recorded for Telarc. In 1997 he received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and an International Jazz Hall of Fame Award. His friend, Canadian politician and amateur pianist Bob Rae, said, "a one-handed Oscar was better than just about anyone with two hands." In 2003, Peterson recorded the DVD ''A Night in Vienna'' for Verve with Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen, Ulf Wakenius, and Martin Drew. He continued to tour the U.S. and Europe, though at most one month a year, with rest between concerts. In 2007, his health declined. He canceled his plans to perform at the Toronto Jazz Festival and a Carnegie Hall all-star concert that was to be given in his honour. Peterson died on December 23, 2007, of kidney failure at his home in Mississauga, Ontario. In 2021, Barry Avrich produced a documentary on Peterson's life titled '' Oscar Peterson: Black + White'' that had its world premiere at the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the largest publicly attended film festivals in the world, attracting over 480,000 people annually. Since its founding in 1976, TIFF has grown to become a perman ...

Personal life

Peterson was married four times. He had seven children with three of his wives. He smoked cigarettes and a pipe and often tried to break the habit, but he gained weight every time he stopped. He loved to cook and remained overweight throughout his life.

Composer and teacher

Peterson taught piano and improvisation in Canada, mainly in Toronto. With associates, he started and headed the Advanced School of Contemporary Music in Toronto for five years during the 1960s, but it closed because touring called him and his associates away, and it did not have government funding. Later, he mentored the

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...

jazz program and was the Chancellor of the university for several years in the early 1990s. He published jazz piano etudes for practice. He asked his students to study the music of

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

, especially '' The Well-Tempered Clavier'', the ''

Goldberg Variations The ''Goldberg Variations'', BWV 988, is a musical composition for keyboard by Johann Sebastian Bach, consisting of an aria and a set of 30 variations. First published in 1741, it is named after Johann Gottlieb Goldberg, who may also hav ...

'', and ''

The Art of Fugue ''The Art of Fugue'', or ''The Art of the Fugue'' (german: Die Kunst der Fuge, links=no), BWV 1080, is an incomplete musical work of unspecified instrumentation by Johann Sebastian Bach. Written in the last decade of his life, ''The Art of Fug ...

'', considering these piano pieces essential for every serious pianist. Among his students were pianists Benny Green and Oliver Jones.

Influences

Peterson was influenced by

, James P. Johnson, and

Art Tatum Arthur Tatum Jr. (, October 13, 1909 – November 5, 1956) was an American jazz pianist who is widely regarded as one of the greatest in his field. From early in his career, Tatum's technical ability was regarded by fellow musicians as extraord ...

, to whom many compared Peterson in later years. After his father played a record of Tatum's "

Tiger Rag "Tiger Rag" is a jazz standard that was recorded and copyrighted by the Original Dixieland Jass Band in 1917. It is one of the most recorded jazz compositions. In 2003, the 1918 recording of "Tiger Rag" was entered into the U.S. Library of Cong ...

", he was intimidated and disillusioned, quitting the piano for several weeks. "Tatum scared me to death," said Peterson, adding that he was "never cocky again" about his ability at the piano. Tatum was a model for Peterson's musicianship during the 1940s and 1950s. Tatum and Peterson became good friends, although Peterson was always shy about being compared to Tatum and rarely played the piano in Tatum's presence. Peterson also credited his sister—a piano teacher in Montreal who also taught several other Canadian jazz musicians—with being an important teacher and influence on his career. Under his sister's tutelage, Peterson expanded into classical piano training and broadened his range while mastering the core classical pianism from scales to preludes and fugues by

. Building on Tatum's pianism and aesthetics, Peterson also absorbed Tatum's musical influences, notably from piano concertos by Sergei Rachmaninoff. Rachmaninoff's harmonizations, as well as direct quotations from his 2nd Piano Concerto, are scattered throughout many recordings by Peterson, including his work with the most familiar formulation of the Oscar Peterson Trio, with bassist Ray Brown and guitarist Herb Ellis. During the 1960s and 1970s Peterson made numerous trio recordings highlighting his piano performances; they reveal more of his eclectic style, absorbing influences from various genres of jazz, popular, and classical music. According to pianist and educator Mark Eisenman, some of Peterson's best playing was as an understated accompanist to singer

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, in ...

and trumpeter

Roy Eldridge David Roy Eldridge (January 30, 1911 – February 26, 1989), nicknamed "Little Jazz", was an American jazz trumpeter. His sophisticated use of harmony, including the use of tritone substitutions, his virtuosic solos exhibiting a departure from ...

. Peterson is considered one of history's great jazz pianists. With typical modesty, Peterson hailed

as the greatest jazz pianist, declaring: "He was and is my musical God, and I feel honoured to remain one of his humbly developed disciples." ''Journal'', Oscar Peterson, March 7, 2004; Jazz Professional, 1962, He was called the "

of the keyboard" by Duke Ellington, simply "O.P." by his friends, and informally in the jazz community as "the King of inside swing".

Awards and honours

Grammy Awards

*1975 Best Jazz Performance by a Group '' The Trio'' *1977 Best Jazz Performance by a Soloist '' The Giants'' *1978 Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Soloist ''

Oscar Peterson Jam – Montreux '77 ''Oscar Peterson Jam – Montreux '77'' is a 1977 live album featuring a jam session led by Oscar Peterson. At the Grammy Awards of 1979, Peterson won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Solo, Grammy Award for Best Jazz Performance by a S ...

'' *1979 Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Soloist '' Oscar Peterson and The Trumpet Kings – Jousts'' *1990 Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Group '' Live at the Blue Note'' *1990 Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Soloist ''The Legendary Oscar Peterson Trio Live at the Blue Note'' *1991 Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Group '' Saturday Night at the Blue Note'' *1997 Lifetime Achievement Award Instrumental Soloist Lifetime Achievement

Other awards

* Pianist of the year, ''DownBeat'' magazine, 1950, and won again for the next 12 years *

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the cen ...

, Officer, 1972; Companion, 1984 * Canadian Version of the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal, 1977 *

Canadian Music Hall of Fame The Canadian Music Hall of Fame was established in 1978 by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) to honour Canadian musicians for their lifetime achievements in music. The award presentation is held each year as part of the ...

, 1978 * Martin Luther King Jr. Achievement Award, Black Theatre Workshop, 1986 * Roy Thomson Award, 1987 * Toronto Arts Award for lifetime achievement, 1991 *

Governor General's Performing Arts Award A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, 1992 *

Order of Ontario The Order of Ontario () is the most prestigious official Award, honour in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the A ...

, member 1992 *

125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal The 125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal (french: Médaille commémorative du 125e anniversaire de la Confédération du Canada) is a commemorative medal struck by the Royal Canadian Mint to commemorate the 125th anniversary of ...

, 1992 * Glenn Gould Prize, 1993 * International Society for Performing Artists award, 1995 * Loyola Medal of Concordia University, 1997 *

Praemium Imperiale Prince Takamatsu The Praemium Imperiale ( ja, 高松宮殿下記念世界文化賞, Takamatsu-no-miya Denka Kinen Sekai Bunka-shō, World Culture Prize in Memory of His Imperial Highness Prince Takamatsu) is an international art prize inaugur ...

World Art Award, 1999 * Oscar Peterson Concert Hall named at Concordia University, 1999 *

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

Music Prize, 2000 * Toronto Musicians' Association Musician of the Year, 2001 *

SOCAN The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN) is a Canadian performance rights organization that represents the performing rights of more than 135,000 songwriters, composers and music publishers. The organization collects ...

Special Achievement Award, 2008 * Canadian Version of the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal, 2002 *

Canada's Walk of Fame Canada's Walk of Fame (french: link=no, Allée des célébrités canadiennes) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, is a walk of fame that acknowledges the achievements and accomplishments of Canadians who have excelled in their respective fields. It is a ...

, 2013 * Canadian Jazz and Blues Hall of Fame * Juno Award Hall of Fame * BBC Radio Lifetime Achievement Award *

National Order of Quebec The National Order of Quebec, termed officially in French as ''l'Ordre national du Québec'', and in English abbreviation as the Order of Quebec, is an order of merit in the Canadian province of Quebec. Instituted in 1984 when Lieutenant Governo ...

, Chevalier * Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, France * Civic Award of Merit, City of Mississauga, 2003 * Oscar Peterson Theatre, Canadian Embassy, Tokyo, Japan, 2007 * Oscar Peterson Hall,

University of Toronto Mississauga The University of Toronto Mississauga (UTM), also known as U of T Mississauga, is one of the three campuses that make up the tri-campus system of the University of Toronto. Located in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, the campus opened in 1967 as Eri ...

, 2008 * Oscar Peterson Public School, Stouffville, 2009 * Parc Oscar-Peterson,

, Montreal, renamed in Peterson's honour 2009 *

Statue of Oscar Peterson A statue of the Canadian jazz pianist Oscar Peterson is located at the corner of Elgin Street (Ottawa), Elgin and Albert Street (Ottawa), Albert streets in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, outside Canada's National Arts Centre. Description The life siz ...

unveiled in Ottawa by Queen Elizabeth II, 2010 * ''Jazz Born Here'', mural by Gene Pendon depicting Oscar Peterson, at Rue Saint-Jacques and Rue des Seigneurs in Montreal * Historica Canada

Heritage Minute ''The Heritage Minutes'' is a series of sixty-second short films, each illustrating an important moment in Canadian history. The ''Minutes'' integrate Canadian history, folklore and myths into dramatic storylines. Like the Canada Vignettes of t ...

, 2021 *Honorary degrees from Berklee College of Music,

Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to serve returning Wo ...

, Queen's University, Concordia University,

Université Laval Université Laval is a public research university in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The university was founded by royal charter issued by Queen Victoria in 1852, with roots in the founding of the Séminaire de Québec in 1663 by François de Montm ...

McMaster University McMaster University (McMaster or Mac) is a public research university in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main McMaster campus is on of land near the residential neighbourhoods of Ainslie Wood and Westdale, adjacent to the Royal Botanical Ga ...

, Mount Allison University, Niagara, Northwestern, University of Toronto, University of the West Indies,

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods and the Thames R ...

University of Victoria The University of Victoria (UVic or Victoria) is a public research university located in the municipalities of Oak Bay and Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. The university traces its roots to Victoria College, the first post-secondary insti ...

, and

* (Announced) Public square to be named in honour of Oscar Peterson,

, 2021

Instruments

Bösendorfer Bösendorfer (L. Bösendorfer Klavierfabrik GmbH) is an Austrian piano manufacturer and, since 2008, a wholly owned subsidiary of Yamaha Corporation. Bösendorfer is unusual in that it produces 97- and 92- key models in addition to instrum ...

pianos – 1980s and 2000s, some performances from the 70s onward. *

Yamaha Yamaha may refer to: * Yamaha Corporation, a Japanese company with a wide range of products and services, established in 1887. The company is the largest shareholder of Yamaha Motor Company (below). ** Yamaha Music Foundation, an organization estab ...

– Acoustic and

Disklavier Disklavier is a brand of reproducing pianos manufactured by Yamaha Corporation. The first Disklavier was introduced in the United States in 1987. The typical Disklavier is a real acoustic piano outfitted with electronic sensors for recording and ...

; used from 1998–2006 in Canada (Touring and Recording) * Steinway & Sons Model A (which currently resides at Village Studios in Los Angeles) – most performances from the 1940s through the 1980s, some recordings. * Baldwin pianos – some performances in the US, some recordings. * C. Bechstein Pianofortefabrik pianos – some performances and recordings in Europe. * Petrof pianos – some performances in Europe. *

Clavichord The clavichord is a stringed rectangular keyboard instrument that was used largely in the Late Middle Ages, through the Renaissance, Baroque and Classical eras. Historically, it was mostly used as a practice instrument and as an aid to compositi ...

– on album ''Porgy and Bess'' with Joe Pass * Fender Rhodes electric piano – several recordings. *Synthesizer – several recordings. * Hammond organ – some live performances and several recordings. *Vocals – some live performances and several recordings.

Discography

References

External links

*
Obituary at Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
December 24, 2007

December 24, 2007

December 25, 2007

December 26, 2007
With Marian McPartland on ''Piano Jazz''

Video interview
in which his passion for photography is discussed
"Oscar Peterson, A Portrait", essay from 2002

At Jazz Police

Entry at the Jazz Discography Project

Oscar Peterson postage stamp

Oscar Peterson's Concert Hall

Piano transcriptions
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Peterson, Oscar 1925 births 2007 deaths 20th-century Canadian keyboardists 20th-century Canadian pianists 20th-century jazz composers 20th-century Canadian male musicians Anglophone Quebec people Bebop pianists Black Canadian musicians Canadian jazz bandleaders Canadian jazz composers Canadian jazz pianists Canadian male pianists Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductees Canadian organists Canadian people of Saint Kitts and Nevis descent Chancellors of York University Companions of the Order of Canada Composers awarded knighthoods Deaths from kidney failure Fellows of the Royal Conservatory of Music Glenn Gould Prize winners Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners High School of Montreal alumni Juno Award for Best Jazz Album winners Knights of the National Order of Quebec Mack Avenue Records artists Mainstream jazz pianists Male jazz composers Members of the Order of Ontario Members of the United Church of Canada Mercury Records artists MPS Records artists Musicians awarded knighthoods Musicians from Montreal Oscar Peterson Trio members Pablo Records artists People from Le Sud-Ouest People of British Virgin Islands descent RCA Victor artists Recipients of the Praemium Imperiale Telarc Records artists The Royal Conservatory of Music alumni Verve Records artists York University