Oscar Peterson



Born Oscar Emmanuel Peterson was born on August 15, 1925 in Montreal, Québec. He was first introduced to music at the age of five, starting on the trumpet, then switched to the piano at the age of seven with the help of his father being an amateur trumpeter and pianist. His father, a sailor, would give him tasks to accomplish, in which he had to master, before his father came home possibly a week later. At first he did not exceed to his father's expectations since he was more focused on having fun than practicing. But with the help of his older sister, Daisy, he was able to excel. He was then taught by Hungarian-born pianist Paul de Marky, mainly learning classical pieces practicing six hours daily and then lowering to on hour in his later years. He was influenced by many jazz artists at that time which included Teddy Wilson, Nat King Cole, James P. Johnson, and Art Tatum which he would try to replicate and learn their style if he were to play or accompany them at a later time.