For the American carver of fish decoys, see Oscar W. Peterson. Oscar Emmanuel Peterson, CC, CQ, OOnt (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian jazz pianist and composer. He was called the Maharaja of the keyboard by Duke Ellington, but simply O.P. by his friends. He released over 200 recordings, won eight Grammy Awards, and received numerous other awards and honours.