Oscar+Peterson



When Oscar was fourteen, his sister convinced him to audition for a CBC national amateur contest. Oscar won the competition and this launched his performance career. Oscar played on a weekly radio program called “Fifteen Minutes' Piano Rambling”. He also performed on a national broadcast called “The Happy Gang”. By this time, Oscar left high school to work fulltime as a musician. His father told him that he couldn't "let him leave high school to be a jazz piano player. You have to be the best, there is no second best." __
 * __Oscar Peterson__**, born in 1925 in Montreal, entertained the world for more than 40 years as a jazz pianist. The five Peterson children - Fred, Daisy, Charles, Oscar and May were introduced to music by their father who was a porter with Canadian Pacific Railways. Their father, who learned to play the piano on his own, also taught each one of his children to play. In high school Oscar studied with a teacher who helped him realize what a special gift he had.

Interesting Facts __
 * Oscar went on to be awarded the Order of Canada in 1972.
 * A street was named after him.
 * His picture also appears on a Canadian stamp.

__HYMN TO FREEDOM__ Listen to a children's choir sing "Hymn to Freedom". media type="custom" key="541975" width="238" height="164"

Listen to the piano version of "Hymn to Freedom".

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Listen to the Oscar Peterson Trio. media type="custom" key="542035" width="274" height="142"