[Dixielandjazz] Pianist OscarPeterson--Commentary from NY Times

[Norman Vickers]

Listmates:  Oscar Peterson doesn't play OKOM.  However, he is a giant who
cannot be ignored.  I want to share these thoughts and the NY Times
commentary from yesterday with you.  I hope this is acceptable to  you and
our leader Bob Ringwald whom I also admire for many reasons, including
keeping this list going and shepherding us along when the discussion strays
to far afield.
Thanks.

Norman Vickers
Re:  Jazz Pianist Oscar Peterson

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Jazz pianist Oscar Peterson is a huge man, as a jazz pianist, in physical
size and personal resolve.  As the article indicates, he has recovered from
a major stroke which decreased his manual dexterity on the left side.  This
NYTimes review from yesterday of his appearance at Birdland will, I hope, be
of interest to some of you.  I never had the opportunity to see him in
person, but I've followed his career through the jazz literature, CDs and
videos.  I must say, too, that some of his performances were not my
favorites.  He was probably, at the time of his peak activity, the most
versatile and technically skilled jazz performer.  To my mind, surpassing
Art Tatum.  It was his sheer virtuosity which amazed me, but at the same
time, detracted from my enjoyment of his performances-- in a word, too many
notes! My late pianist-gastroenterologist friend Jim Cerda described
Peterson's jazz performances as "gladiatorial." I remember one time watching
him perform on PBS with the late guitarist Joe Pass.  The would play complex
musical figures so that watching and listening was like watching a
championship ping-pong match.  When they finished--and in a way, I was glad
they did-- I was exhausted just watching them.

On the early recordings of the Oscar Peterson trio-- with guitarist Herb
Ellis and bassist Ray Brown--the tunes were more melodic and subdued.  Also
more commercially appealing, too.

I have always admired Peterson, a Canadian native, as a person.  In reading
about some of the problems he encountered as a black musician in a white
world, I was saddened. However, Peterson's firm resolve and his physical
size, made him his own person and able to survive adversity.  His stroke,
with the long recovery time to "re-wire" his brain. added to my admiration
for his personal resolve.

I hope you can read the following article was some increased appreciation
for Oscar Peterson and his long musical career.

Norman
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In Every Note, a Comment on Getting Old

June 17, 2004
By BEN RATLIFF


Jazz accommodates a sense of honesty about the passing of
time; it has to, since great jazz performers don't retire.
In the past an Oscar Peterson concert left your neurons
firing bright thoughts about invincibility. Now you're up
against the realities of aging.

On Tuesday night at Birdland, where Mr. Peterson performs
through Saturday, this 78-year-old pianist paused to talk
about friends slipping away. Some whom he mentioned,
including John Lewis, have been dead for several years, so
this couldn't have been the first time he delivered the
monologue.

He apologized for being morbid, then played a piece he
wrote after Lewis died in 2001 called "Requiem": slow and
sweet and focused, with chord progressions that sounded
like an early-1960's pop ballad.

But even at fast tempos, as when Mr. Peterson gamely sped
through "Sweet Georgia Brown," he made you think about
aging's toll. Playing almost entirely with his right hand -
the left was disabled by a stroke 11 years ago - he worked
hard to make his hands keep up with his mind. Even if he
didn't always drive home every bar with the authority he
used to, he was going to try. Seeing Oscar Peterson try
hard after a life of making virtuosity seem incredibly easy
is a moving thing.

He still interrupts his own best improvisations to grab
hold of a string of bop-language licks. It can seem like
self-protection, as if he is unwilling to contemplate the
void. The audience doesn't much like a void either, and Mr.
Peterson is resolutely old-school about the musician's
relationship to the audience. He is there to delight.

The old speed and flash were alluded to in other ways. Ulf
Wakenius delivered finger-busting guitar solos, and Mr.
Peterson's bassist, Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen, played
hornlike solo lines, riding on the swing of the drummer,
Alvin Queen.

The amount of sound coming out of the piano is thinner than
before, and neither fast nor slow tempos best suit him. So
on "Kelly's Blues," an easygoing blues line written for his
wife, he broke through with perfect swing feeling,
connecting his bop-harmony lines with some careful
contributions from the left hand. Moderation suits him now.


http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/17/arts/music/17PETE.html?ex=1088494613&ei=1&
en=b7828a370c0b20cb