Pianist, jazz great Oscar Peterson dies at 82

Oscar Peterson waves to fans during a concert at Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto Tuesday, April 11, 2000. Peterson, whose early talent and speedy fingers made him one of the world's best known jazz pianists, died at age 82.
Photo by Associated Press

By Rob Gillies

TORONTO (AP) _ Oscar Peterson, whose speedy fingers, propulsive swing and melodic inventiveness made him one of the world's best known and influential jazz pianists, has died. He was 82.

Peterson died at his home in the Toronto suburb of Mississauga on Sunday, said Oliver Jones, a family friend and jazz musician. He said Peterson's wife and daughter were with him during his final moments. The cause of death was kidney failure, said Mississauga's mayor, Hazel McCallion.

"He's been going downhill in the last few months," McCallion said, calling Peterson a "very close friend."

During an illustrious career spanning seven decades, Peterson played with some of the biggest names in jazz, including Ella Fitzgerald, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. He is also remembered for the trio he led with Ray Brown on bass and Herb Ellis on guitar in the 1950s.

Peterson's impressive collection of awards include all of Canada's highest honors, such as the Order of Canada, as well as seven Grammys and a Grammy for lifetime achievement in 1997.

"I've always thought of him as Canada's national treasure. All of Canada mourns for him and his family," said Jones.

"A jazz player is an instant composer," Peterson once said in a CBC interview. "You have to think about it, it's an intellectual form."

Peterson's stature was reflected in the admiration of his peers. Duke Ellington referred to him as the "Maharajah of the keyboard," while Count Basie once said "Oscar Peterson plays the best ivory box I've ever heard."

Peterson's keyboard virtuosity, propulsive sense of swing, and melodic inventiveness influenced generations of jazz pianists who followed him.

Herbie Hancock, another legendary jazz pianist, said Peterson's impact was profound.

"Oscar Peterson redefined swing for modern jazz pianists for the latter half of the 20th century up until today," Hancock said in an e-mail message. "I consider him the major influence that formed my roots in jazz piano playing. He mastered the balance between technique, hard blues grooving, and tenderness. ... No one will ever be able to take his place."

Jazz pianist and educator Billy Taylor said Peterson "set the pace for just about everybody that followed him. He really was just a special player."

The 20-year-old jazz pianist, Eldar Djangirov, said he wouldn't have become a jazz musician if he hadn't heard Peterson's records as a boy growing up in the former Soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan.

"He was the first I ever heard and my main artistic influence," said Djangirov, who included the fast-tempo Peterson tune "Place St. Henri" on his Grammy-nominated album "re-imagination."

Peterson's death also brought tributes from notable figures outside the jazz world.

In a statement, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said he was adored by the French. "One of the bright lights of jazz has gone out."

Former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien, a fan and friend of the pianist for decades, reminisced about inviting Peterson to a 2001 Ottawa event honoring South African leader Nelson Mandela.

Chretien recalled that Mandela glowed upon meeting the piano great.

"It was very emotional," said Chretien. "They were both moved to meet each other. These were two men with humble beginnings who rose to very illustrious levels."

Born on Aug. 15, 1925, in a poor neighborhood of Montreal, Peterson got his passion for music from his father. Daniel Peterson, a railway porter and self-taught pianist, bestowed his love of music to his five children, offering them a means to escape from poverty.

At 5 years old, Oscar Peterson learned to play trumpet and piano, but after a bout with tuberculosis, he chose to concentrate on the keyboards. During his high school years, he studied with an accomplished Hungarian-born classical pianist, Paul de Marky, who helped develop his technique and "speedy fingers."

He became a teen sensation in his native Canada, playing in dance bands and recording in the late 1930s and 1940s.

He quickly made a name for himself as a jazz virtuoso, often earning comparisons to jazz piano great Art Tatum, his childhood idol, for his speed and technical skill. He was also influenced by Nat "King" Cole, whose piano trio recordings he considered "a complete musical thesaurus for any aspiring Jazz pianist."

Jazz pianist Marian McPartland, who called Peterson "the finest technician that I have seen," recalled first meeting Peterson when she and her husband, jazz cornetist Jimmy McPartland, opened for him at the Colonial Tavern in Toronto in the 1940s.

"From that point on, we became such good friends, and he was always wonderful to me and I have always felt very close to him," she said.

American jazz impresario Norman Granz was so impressed after hearing him play at a Montreal club that he invited Peterson to come to New York for a concert at Carnegie Hall in 1949.

Jazz impresario and record producer Quincy Jones said it was a blessing to have worked with Peterson.

"He was one of the last of the giants, but his music and contributions will be eternal," Jones said.

In 1951, the pianist formed the Oscar Peterson Trio with a guitarist and bassist. When Ellis left the group in 1958, he replaced the guitarist with a series of drummers.

Peterson never stopped calling Canada home despite his growing international reputation, and probably his best known major composition is the "Canadiana Suite" with jazz themes inspired by the cities and regions of his native country.

But at times he felt slighted in Canada, where he was occasionally mistaken for a football player, at 6 foot 3 inches and weighing more than 250 pounds.

In 2005 he became the first living person other than a reigning monarch to be honored with a commemorative stamp in Canada, where streets, squares, concert halls and schools have been named after him.

Peterson suffered a stroke in 1993 that weakened his left hand, but not his passion or drive for music. After a two-year recuperation, he gradually resumed performances, and made a series of recordings for the U.S. Telarc label.

He kept playing and touring, despite worsening arthritis and difficulties walking, saying in a 2001 interview that "the love I have of the instrument and my group and the medium itself works as a sort of a rejuvenating factor for me."

"Until the end, Oscar Peterson could tour the world and fill concert halls everywhere," said Andre Menard, artistic director and co-founder of the Montreal International Jazz Festival where Peterson often performed.

"This is something that never diminished. His drawing power, his mystique as a musician, was so big that he remained at the top of his game until the end."

Peterson is survived by his wife, Kelly, and daughter, Celine.

———

AP writers Charles J. Gans and Lily Hindy in New York contributed to this story.

First published at Statesboro Herald, January 8, 2008

From a brush with death to back on stage!

REPRISE - from Heart Failure to Artistic Success

Teatro Vivaldi

ANU Arts Precinct

October 28, 2007

by Ian McLean

Stephen Pike. Photo: Nathaniel de Hoog

CARDIO-VASCULAR disease may seem an unusual subject for cabaret but the story of Stephen Pike’s encounter with the affliction made for a fascinating, inspirational and uplifting evening of entertainment at Canberra’s home off cabaret, Teatro Vivaldi.

Stephen is a much loved and respected figure in the entertainment industry with his contribution to theatre spanning performing, directing, writing and producing. A near death experience in 2005 inspired him to write “Reprise - from Heart Failure to Artistic Success” and it was a capacity audience of family, friends, colleagues and admirers who journeyed with him as he recounted his fears and shared his thoughts.

The evening commenced somewhat nervously and it was not until Stephen told a wonderfully funny Irish joke that the audience and cast fully settled and the show began to move along at a relaxed and suitably informal pace. Whilst medical stories were insightful and very scary, I felt additional information about the relativity between songs (A Slow Boat to China seemed somewhat random without an explanation for its inclusion) and stories was required.

Stephen is renowned for passion and emotion in his voice (a primary reason for the success of Les Misérables in 1994 and 1996) and this was most evident in his interpretation of Anthem from Chess and later in the night, the beautiful You Raise Me Up.

Stephen had gathered some of Canberra’s finest theatre talent to share his stage with each singing individually as well as providing backing harmonies.

With clarity and a deep sense of understanding, Adrian Flor sang Empty Chairs at Empty Tables, Tim dal Cortivo demonstrated his purity of sound with This is the Moment and a Stephen discovery, 13 year old Bill Bourchier, was commanding in stage presence with his Close Every Door from Joseph.

Dave Evans, who also directed, was at his character portrayal best with True Love Ways from Buddy and he and musical director Tony Magee concocted an amusing set of “heart” songs. Tony was somewhat of a highlight for me providing subtle and delicate piano accompaniment throughout the show as well as solid vocal support.

Stephen has come through his medical worries with a renewed determination to widely share the joy and happiness that music and theatre can bring. Like may others, I am most grateful that he has been granted the opportunity to do just that.

Album Review: CROWDED HOUSE - Time on Earth

Parlophone 00946-396 007-2-4
Review copy supplied by Abels Music, Canberra

Reviewed by Tony Magee

Hi readers. I’m back for just this one issue, covering for Tim Hansen whilst he is away in New York at the international composers forum, Bang on a Can, which by the way, he is having the time of his life at.

Well, the hottest thing around at the moment seems to be the new Crowded House album, Time on Earth; so naturally, I am compelled to review it for you! Let’s dive straight in and say that it is excellent, highly listenable, catchy, and playable over and over again.

There are no real “buts”, however I merely point out, and it’s obvious to all who listen anyway, that the innovative qualities that made them so special in the first place are not really present any more. By this I mean - it’s more of the same - and many people will be grateful for that. Ever present are the clear uncluttered arrangements, economy of instruments, but played to full potential, rich vocal lines, and sometimes unusual melodic progressions.

This is one of those very pleasing albums where there are no “dud” tracks. Everything is composed and performed to the highest quality and there is that usual evenness of sound and solidity of line and form to every track. However, I can’t help feeling the album really doesn’t start hitting its straps until near the end, with the last three tracks. In these, there seems to be something extra in the musical development, the thought behind the lyrics, the ambiance, which is a very excellent way in which to finish off a project like this. In fact it’s usually the opposite way round. There are so many albums where second-rate tracks are plonked in at the end just to fill it up. This album starts very well and finishes with the highest quality stuff last. What a great plan.

Stylistically, there are many bopping tracks that can be great for listening or dancing, groovin’ and toe tapping, oozing the body around every solid beat. Some of the other tracks, particularly the later ones are more reflective and deserving of even higher praise. My copy is the limited edition set, which is fantastic value at $29, because you get the 14 track album, plus a bonus DVD of film clips and photo gallery. Great packaging as well.

Tony’s rating:  4 stars

First published in Eat Drink Magazine and Our Hotel Magazine, August 2007

Feeling right at home - The Canberra Times, July 18, 2007

Stuart and Audrey Magee at Circular Quay

Stuart Magee finds the perfect freedom of a choice – in a private hideaway

It must be said that the menu at the Café Carstensz, in Carstensz St, Griffith, is distinctly limited. There are no entrees. At first reading, the list of mains seems to offer a choice of two plates, but it turns out to be only one. There is no sign of any dessert, but those in the know are aware that later in the evening the cook’s heart thaws a little and there will be a most passable sweet of one sort or another.

The absence of entrees is offset by the fact that when one has placed an order for the main course, the establishment provides, for free – but it should be remembered at tipping time - a plate of crackers with cottage cheese, accompanied by sliced pickled onions and slivered stuffed olives. The plate is served with a scotch and soda – again no charge.

Among the stronger cards in the café’s hand are the seating arrangements. Preserve me from restaurants where the tables are so close together that the conversation from neighbours is inescapable. At this café there is the lovely table by the window. It is big and comfortable, beautifully set, sometimes a candle, and it is difficult to hear any intruding noise from nearby tables.

When my wife and I dined there recently, we were debating whether to have the chops or the sausages, but as it turned out the two were served together. Much simpler really – many of Canberra’s eateries would do well to limit their choice of main. The lamb chops and beef sausages had been dusted in flour and fried in a hot pan to get very well browned. We had ordered the bangers well done and the chops a little pink, and they came to the table done precisely that way. They arrived with a mighty mound of fluffy potato mashed with chives, a lesser mound of buttery mashed pumpkin and a large serve of fresh, flawless green beans with a shake of nutmeg. There was onion gravy. Not drizzled in a line around the edge of a largely unoccupied plate, but ladled over. Indeed there was no vacant space on the plate to permit drizzling, just a small gap beside the sausage to allow a good splurt of tomato sauce.

The wine waiter is a crusty old codger. I happen to know he has a reasonably extensive cellar, but each night he brings up only what he sees as fitting, and you like it or leave it.

This night, he had a Jacob’s Creek Shiraz at $5.80 for the bottle and a Wynns Coonawarra Riesling at $12.

Conversation lagged a little as we applied our full attention to the excellent dinner, together with the adroitly chosen wines. Dessert did arrive later: cups of tea – bottomless – with a large slice of iced ginger cake.

Our home café scores one out of four for its menu, and that’s being kind. But four out of four for ambience, and the same for quality, quantity and very good value. A final score of 21 out of 20.

It’s open seven nights, but we’ve booked it out for the foreseeable future – though there are occasional cancelations.

 

Note from site administrator Tony Magee: My father wrote this article in July 2007 and it was published in The Canberra Times on the 18^th of that month. All is revealed in the second last paragraph: “Our home café…” !!! Astonishingly, a staff member from that paper called my Dad and said “Stuart we love your story and we’ll publish it, but I’m curious – I can find no reference to a restaurant in Carstensz Street, Griffith.” The poor lad had failed to grasp the ending of the story. My Dad soon set him straight!

Lady Bird Johnson

Claudia Alta Taylor was born in Karnack, Texas, on December 22, 1912. She was the daughter of Thomas Jefferson Taylor and Minnie Lee Pattillo Taylor. Her nickname, “Lady Bird,” came from Alice Tittle, a nursemaid who remarked that she was “as purty as a lady bird.” 

After graduating high school, Lady Bird attended St. Mary’s Episcopal School for Girls, a junior college in Dallas. She went on to attend the University of Texas at Austin, earning a Bachelor of Arts in history in 1933, and a second degree in journalism in 1934. That year, she met Lyndon Baines Johnson, and the couple married on November 17, 1934. She later gave birth to two daughters: Lynda Bird and Luci Baines. 

She supported her husband’s political career, providing $10,000 of her inheritance for his first congressional campaign in 1937 and running his congressional office when Lyndon enlisted in the Navy during World War II. 

In 1942, Lady Bird also purchased a radio station in Austin, Texas, which she and her family owned and operated until 2003. 

In 1961, Lady Bird became Second Lady of the United States, when Lyndon took the oath of office as vice president to President John F. Kennedy. Following Kennedy’s assassination on November 22, 1963, her husband became president and she moved into the White House a couple weeks later.

As first lady, Lady Bird focused on the environment, creating the First Lady’s Committee for a More Beautiful Capital, and lobbying for the passage of environmental legislation, including the Highway Beautification Act of 1965, also known as “Lady Bird’s Bill.” 

She also continued many of her predecessor Jacqueline Kennedy’s visions for the White House, including efforts to support the arts and humanities. In 1965, Lady Bird hosted the Festival of the Arts at the White House, featuring an exhibit of contemporary American art and performances by writers, musicians, and actors. Lady Bird also completed a redesign of the East Garden, renaming and dedicating it as the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden in April 1965. 

Just before leaving the White House, she created the Children’s Garden, located on the White House South Lawn. 

After leaving the White House in 1969, Lady Bird published her daily diary, Lady Bird Johnson: A White House Diary. In addition, she helped establish the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library in 1971, preserving Lyndon’s legacy and sharing the history of his administration. 

She also continued her work with the environment, creating the National Wildflower Research Center in 1982 (renamed the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in 1997). 

In 1977, she returned to the White House to accept the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Gerald Ford. She returned again in 1988 to accept the Congressional Gold Medal, presented by President Ronald Reagan. 1

Lady Bird Johnson passed away on July 11, 2007, at the age of ninety-four in Austin, Texas. She is buried next to her husband at the LBJ Ranch in Stonewall, Texas.

Published at The White House Historical Association.

Sophia Loren arrives for The Italian Australian Film Festival, and to meet burns victim, heroic little Sophie Delezio

Italian screen actress Sophia Loren, 72, is greeted by fans after arriving at Sydney Airport. Loren is in Australia as a special guest of the Italian Australian Film Festival, 31 May 2007. 
Photo: Ben Rushton, courtesy Sydney Morning Herald.

By Jenna Price

Sydney correspondent

The Italian ambassador just would not believe her.

When Queenslander Gabriella Mattacchioni went for her regular visit to the Italian Embassy in Canberra last November, she told the ambassador some astonishing news.

Sophia Loren - the magnificent, the beautiful, the icon - would be the guest of honour at the inaugural Italian Australian Film Festival.

Ms Mattacchioni and business partner had sussed out Loren, invited her to the festival in early June - and Loren had said yes!

Even this week, the ambassador had trouble believing that Loren would arrive. But arrive she did, in Sydney yesterday to a small but passionate crowd. And Ms Mattacchioni still can’t believe it has happened.

Loren, who began her film career in 1951 and who won the 1962 best actress Oscar for La Ciociara (Two Women), opens the festival in Sydney tomorrow night but that’s not the only good work she plans to do.

Sophia Loren during 2007 Italian Australian Film Festival Opening Night - Red Carpet at Hoyts Cinema, Bent Street, Entertainment Quarter in Sydney, NSW, Australia. (Photo by Don Arnold/FilmMagic)

On Sunday night she will be guest of honour at the Serata Con Sophia, a dinner to raise money for the Day of Difference Foundation, which was set up by the family of Sophie Delezio for burns victims.

Sophie’s father, Ron Delezio, can’t believe his luck either.

Mr Delezio, 53, has fond memories of Loren in movies with all the other film greats: Cary Grant, Anthony Quinn, Clark Gable and Charlton Heston.

And he is quick to say all the right things about her, what an honourable wife (her husband Carlo point died earlier this year at 94), what an excellent role model.

“We are fussy but we looked at Sophia and what a beautiful role model she is and we knew she was right for us,” he said.

But the truth is, Mr Delezio is bowled over by her.

“I contacted Alan Jones [the Sydney broadcaster] to ask whether he would MC the function and said that if he accepted, I would fight him for the first dance,” he said.

“She is absolutely gorgeous, I don’t care that she is 72.”

“We are seeing her on Friday night, Saturday night and Sunday night.”

The entire Loren entourage is bubbling - and perhaps the most bubbly is event producer Julia Loaney, who left a quiet farm in Bungendore five years ago to retire to Queensland.

Ms Loaney, of Italian descent, decided to brush up her mother language and met Ms Mattacchioni who is responsible for Italian language teaching in Queensland.

Her Italian has improved immeasurable but Ms Mattacchioni was more interested in Ms Loaney’s event management skills, which have been in steady use since February.

Yesterday she headed out with the directors of the festival, to greet Loren in a Maserati especially hired for the occasion. “But I came back in the ute!,” she said.

First published in The Canberra Times, June 1 2007

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Jazz singer Anita O'Day dies

Anita O'Day, 1958 Newport Jazz. Photo courtesy Musica Jazz

Jazz great Anita O'Day, one of the legendary American singers from the 1940s and 1950s, has died at the age of 87 in a Los Angeles hospital.

"She died in her sleep this morning from a cardiac arrest in a convalescent hospital where she had been recovering from pneumonia," manager Robbie Cavolina said in a statement.

Known for her versions of Honeysuckle Rose and Sweet Georgia Brown and her scat style, O'Day rose to fame in the 1940s during the big band era and helped shape modern jazz vocals along with her contemporaries Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan.

Born in Chicago in 1919, she embarked on her singing career as a teenager without formal training, entering dancing and singing contests and then working as a chorus girl.

She hit the national spotlight with Gene Krupa's band in 1941, singing the hit record Let Me Off Uptown.

The voice of And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine and Let Me Off Uptown, O'Day rejected the standard evening gown worn by previous female singers, opting for a band jacket and skirt instead.

She suffered from drug and alcohol addictions and wrote openly about her struggle in her memoir, Hard Times, High Times.

O'Day was dubbed "The Jezebel of Jazz" for her occasional arrests on drug charges and hard-drinking lifestyle.

Her last album, Indestructible, was released earlier this year and a documentary about her career is due out next year.

First published at ABC News, November 26, 2006

- AFP