For Immediate Release:
March 21, 2017
Press Contacts:
Eileen Chambers/CSO
312-294-3092
Mary Jane Maharry/Brava PR
773-490-6046
Photos available upon request
[email protected]
ALL-STAR ROSTER OF PIANISTS PAY TRIBUTE TO
JAZZ PIANO LEGEND OSCAR PETERSON IN OSCAR, WITH LOVE
Kenny Barron, Robi Botos, Bill Charlap, Benny Green, Ramsey Lewis and
Renee Rosnes perform in Chicago presentation on the
Symphony Center Presents Jazz series
Friday, April 7, at 8:00 p.m.
CHICAGO—Taking its cue from Oscar, With Love, the critically-acclaimed independent 2015
release of the same name, the Symphony Center Presents (SCP) Jazz series welcomes an allstar roster of pianists including Kenny Barron, Robi Botos, Bill Charlap, Benny Green, Ramsey
Lewis and Renee Rosnes for an evening of music honoring the late jazz pianist Oscar Peterson
(1925-2007) on Friday, April 7, at 8:00 p.m. The featured pianists, all of whom traveled to
Peterson’s home to play on the pianist’s own Bӧsendorfer Imperial grand piano for the landmark
recording project, deliver their interpretations of original Oscar Peterson compositions and jazz
standards made famous by the great pianist in his decades-long career.
The concert program, narrated by Oscar Peterson’s daughter Céline Peterson, showcases the
influential pianist as a composer and includes memorable arrangements of his familiar tunes, as
well as pieces Peterson wrote but never recorded. The program includes The Smudge
performed by Kenny Barron, Laurentide Waltz performed by Ramsey Lewis, Sushi performed by
Bill Charlap and Renee Rosnes, Cool Walk performed by Benny Green and When Summer
Comes performed by Robi Botos, among others. Peterson’s widow, Kelly Peterson,
spearheaded the 2015 album to commemorate his 90 birthday and is also coordinating the live
concerts inspired by the recording.
th
Famously called the “Maharaja of the keyboard” by fellow musician Duke Ellington, pianist
Oscar Peterson was an eight-time Grammy Award-winning artist who enjoyed an exceptional
international career as a touring and recording artist over nearly 60 years. Chicago audiences
experienced Peterson’s artistry in regular performances at the Ravinia Festival, Chicago Jazz
Festival and at Symphony Center, including a concert that was part of the inaugural grand
opening festivities for the venue in 1997.
The all-star roster of pianists featured in the Chicago presentation of Oscar, With Love, include
Chicagoan and three time Grammy Award-winner Ramsey Lewis, a leader in the contemporary
jazz movement for over 50 years. Lewis credits Peterson with teaching him how to play jazz
piano through listening to recordings and opening for him at Chicago’s London House in the
early ‘60s. Kenny Barron, also influenced by Peterson, has received 10 Grammy nominations,
was honored by The National Endowment for the Arts as a Jazz Master and was inducted into
the American Jazz Hall of Fame. Grammy Award-winner Bill Charlap has performed with some
of the leading artists of our time including Phil Woods, Tony Bennett and Wynton Marsalis.
Charlap’s trio with bassist Peter Washington and drummer Kenny Washington released its
acclaimed Notes from New York recording in April 2016 on the Impulse label. Charlap also
marks his 13th year as the artistic director of New York’s 92nd Street Y “Jazz in July” series in
2017. Charlap is married to fellow musician Renee Rosnes, a renowned jazz pianist, composer
and founding member of SFJAZZ Collective who also performs on Oscar with Love. Pianist and
bandleader Benny Green has appeared on over 100 recordings and was chosen by Peterson
as the first recipient of the City of Toronto’s Glenn Gould International Protégé Prize in Music in
1993. Fellow Canadian and two time Juno-award winner, Robi Botos became Peterson’s
protégé early in his career. Botos’ combination of bebop, modern jazz, eastern European folk
and romantic classical music has earned him top awards including National Jazz Award
“Keyboardist of the year”. Recognized as a “Jazz Bassist of the Year” by the National Jazz
Awards, Dave Young has had a remarkable career in the worlds of both jazz and classical
music including stints as a principal bass for both the Edmonton and Winnipeg symphonies, as
well as collaborations with jazz greats such as Clark Terry, Harry “Sweets” Edison and Kenny
Burrell, among others. Young also shared a 25-year history of artistic partnership with Oscar
Peterson including their performance together on Young’s acclaimed 1995 recording project
Two By Two, Vol. 1.
As part of this special evening that pays tribute to Oscar Peterson, Symphony Center hosts a
Bösendorfer Oscar Peterson Signature Edition Piano in the Rotunda Lobby on the evening of
the concert. Featuring Yamaha Disklavier technology, the piano recreates performances that
Oscar Peterson originally recorded in the 1980s. Audiences can see the piano in action before
and after the concert, as well as at intermission.
Tickets for all Symphony Center Presents Jazz series concerts can be purchased by phone at
800-223-7114 or 312-294-3000; online at cso.org, or at the Symphony Center box office: 220
S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60604.
Discounted student tickets for select concerts can be purchased, subject to availability, online in
advance or at the box office on the day of the concert. For group rates, please call 312-2943040.
Artists, programs and prices are subject to change.
The Symphony Center Presents Jazz series is sponsored by Exelon.
###
Symphony Center Presents
Jazz
Friday, April 7, at 8:00 p.m.
Oscar, With Love – A Tribute to Oscar Peterson
Kenny Barron, piano
Robi Botos, piano
Bill Charlap, piano
Benny Green, piano
Ramsey Lewis, piano
Renee Rosnes, piano
Dave Young, bass
Céline Peterson, narrator
Tickets: $28 - $89
Featured Artists for this Performance:
Kenny Barron
Robi Botos
Bill Charlap
Benny Green
Ramsey Lewis
Renee Rosnes
Dave Young
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra: www.cso.org and www.csosoundsandstories.org
Founded in 1891, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra is consistently hailed as one of the greatest
orchestras in the world. Since 2010, the preeminent conductor Riccardo Muti has served as its 10th
music director. Yo-Yo Ma is the CSO’s Judson and Joyce Green Creative Consultant, and Samuel Adams
and Elizabeth Ogonek are its Mead Composers-in-Residence.
From baroque through contemporary music, the CSO commands a vast repertoire. Its renowned
musicians annually perform more than 150 concerts, most at Symphony Center in Chicago and, each
summer, at the suburban Ravinia Festival. They regularly tour nationally and internationally. Since 1892,
the CSO has made 60 international tours, performing in 29 countries on five continents.
People around the globe listen to weekly radio broadcasts of CSO concerts and recordings on the WFMT
radio network and online at cso.org/radio . Recordings by the CSO have earned 62 Grammy Awards,
including two in 2011 for Muti’s recording with the CSO and Chorus of Verdi's Messa da Requiem (Muti’s
first of seven releases with the CSO to date). Find details on these and many other CSO recordings at
www.cso.org/resound.
The CSO is part of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association, which also includes the Chicago
Symphony Chorus (Duain Wolfe, Director and Conductor) and the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, a training
ensemble for emerging professionals. Through its prestigious Symphony Center Presents series, the
CSOA presents guest artists and ensembles from a variety of genres—classical, jazz, world, and
contemporary.
The Negaunee Music Institute at the CSO offers community and education programs that annually
engage more than 200,000 people of diverse ages and backgrounds. Through the Institute and other
activities, including a free annual concert led by Muti, the CSO is committed to using the power of music
to create connections and build community.
The CSO is supported by thousands of patrons, volunteers and institutional and individual donors. The
CSO’s music director position is endowed in perpetuity by a generous gift from the Zell Family
Foundation. The Negaunee Foundation provides generous support in perpetuity for the work of the
Negaunee Music Institute.