Question 1

True or false: Oscar Peterson's trio with Ray Brown and Herb Ellis was famous for never using a drummer.

Accepted Answer

False. They did use a drummer—often Ed Thigpen or others. The trio was famous for its tight interplay, but never drummerless.

Question 2

True or false: Peterson recorded over 200 albums and won eight Grammy Awards during his career.

Accepted Answer

True. He was incredibly prolific, with more than 200 albums and eight competitive Grammys, plus a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Question 3

True or false: Oscar Peterson was born in Montreal, Canada, and learned piano from his father, a jazz trumpeter.

Accepted Answer

True. He was born in Montreal in 1925; his father was a ship's steward and amateur musician who taught him classical piano first.

Question 4

True or false: Oscar Peterson was a self-taught pianist who never took a formal lesson in his life.

Accepted Answer

False. He studied classical piano rigorously as a child with Hungarian teacher Paul de Marky, focusing on scales and technique.

Question 5

True or false: Oscar Peterson was once named 'the Maharaja of the keyboard' by Duke Ellington.

Accepted Answer

True. Duke Ellington indeed called him that, a rare honor from one jazz giant to another, reflecting Peterson's regal piano command.

Question 6

True or false: Peterson refused to perform with any musician who used electric instruments, calling them 'inauthentic.'

Accepted Answer

False. Though a purist in acoustic jazz, he occasionally played with electric bassists and never made such a blanket public statement.

Question 7

True or false: He was the first jazz musician to be awarded the Order of Canada, the country's highest civilian honor.

Accepted Answer

False. The first jazz musician to receive the Order of Canada was actually pianist and composer Oscar Peterson? Wait, no—he received it in 1972, but others like Glenn Gould preceded him. Actually, Peterson was among the first, but not the first. The statement is false because he was not the very first; that distinction goes to others like Duke Ellington (honorary) or earlier Canadian jazz figures.

Question 8

True or false: Peterson lost the use of his left hand after a stroke in 1993 but continued performing with just his right hand.

Accepted Answer

True. A severe stroke in 1993 weakened his left side, but he adapted, returned to touring, and recorded with only his right hand.

Oscar Peterson Trivia Questions