Oscar’s Legacy Lives On: How Andy Milne Continues a Tradition of Inspiring New Artists

Over the years, whether on tour or in the classroom, indirectly or directly, Andy’s influence has inspired countless budding musicians. In the same way that Oscar Peterson—as both an artist and Andy’s teacher—inspired his passion for jazz, Andy is continuing that legacy by passing it onto others.

Fresh off a North American tour, Andy sat down with us to chat about his experience learning from Oscar, his own musical journey, and his work helping us design the new commemorative circulation coin honouring his mentor's legacy.

We understand that you studied under Oscar at York University. What was it like to be taught by the legend himself?

It was a dream come true in a lot of ways because he’s the reason I was attracted to playing the music. To have even two minutes in a room with him, to have him push me to listen more deeply, to strive to think more profoundly about something, or to just practice more… I think just to have that influence in my experience was amazing because it gives you this bootcamp to refer back to. He was just really giving, and it was beautiful to be able to learn from him.

Is there something in particular that you learned from Oscar that you still carry with you today?

The thing that really sticks out is “learn the piece,” “learn the music.” He said it in a way that sounded very matter-of-fact. It was just the way he said it to me, carrying the weight of his entire career. It was not easily dismissible. I remember carrying that statement around for a month, just thinking, “What the hell does he mean?” And then it hit me. That’ll stay with me forever.

How would you describe Oscar in one word?

Elegance.

How has Oscar’s guidance influenced your own music and career?

There are some things that I’ve learned from Oscar that he didn’t teach me directly. I learned from Oscar by reading articles about him, reading interviews. I learned things by just observing what he was doing even though they weren’t things that he brought to the classroom.

I think the lessons that he didn’t realize he taught me were things that gave me the courage to do some of the projects I’ve done and still be able to see them in the trajectory of the jazz legacy I’d come out of, and not question their integrity or their worthiness. I think that’s something that he didn’t realize he was giving me, but I witnessed his versatility and his sort of childlike curiosity for things. That was (and is) a source of strength for me.

Now that you are an educator yourself, how does it feel to pass on this jazz legacy to the next generation of musicians?

It sneaks up on you. I have more to offer than I maybe would have 25 years ago. I’m reminded of [that] in these very wonderful environments that I get to be in while I’m teaching, and to bring that to students and to do it in a dynamic way, and to do it in a useful and supportive way, and to be able to listen as much as I’m able to impart. It’s a great privilege, but you’re also on the shoulders of these great people that did that for you, even indirectly—like people that you’ve never even met but just learned from their recordings. You realize, “Oh god, I’m one of these people, I’m on the scene, I’m one of these mentors.” It’s a big responsibility.

If you were to introduce Oscar Peterson’s music to someone for the first time, which album or song would you recommend they listen to and why?

The album which was probably one of my first acquisitions was his Night Train album, which was a great recording and it has a lot of quintessential performances on it. There are also a couple of really great recordings that he did with Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong. I think those recordings are really amazing too. One of the most important things about [Oscar’s] legacy musically in jazz is that he found a way to make the virtuosity and the “everywhere-ness” of someone like Art Tatum work in a trio. That’s why I say that something like Night Train is a great trio recording, it’s timeless. But so are these duos because they illustrate his ability for supporting great musical conversation and the support and comradery he feels for his collaborators.

You recently won your second Juno Award for Jazz Album of the Year, an honour that Oscar also shares. Can you tell us about your album The ReMission and how it came to be?

The album came to be in some ways because I was touring with my new band (Andy Milne and Unison) that I started in 2017, but conceptually I was working towards [the album] for a number of years. As a stand-alone entity, [a trio] is this giant thing that I was avoiding for a long time. I’ve done a lot of projects that were larger and different—and unusual in some cases—so I was just kind of putting [forming a trio] off. Then in 2017, I had a cancer diagnosis. I switched everything in my life to focus on that and to scale down all [my] other activities. What emerged from that artistically was [thinking], “Okay, well maybe this is the time to start playing in a trio.” And so, I did.

It was 2019 and I was doing a short tour as a trio. We were out on the road and I had won a Juno for my previous recording, Seasons of Being, with my group Dapp Theory. That was the latest recording that I had, so I was selling that recording on the tour. But that wasn’t the music people were hearing in the performances. So that was odd. We were just in this limbo phase. Coming out of that tour, I [booked a studio in New York] and said, “Let’s make this recording now that we’ve been on the road and had time to refine some of this music.”

That’s how I was sort of thrust into making this recording. But in a more introspective way, it was really an artistic reaction to life experiences I had been going through. I may not have been so compelled to start a trio seriously had I not been forced to reevaluate my life. [The album] really is a reflection, I suppose, of all those circumstances from 2016 through 2019.

How does it feel to win this Juno Award?

[The album was released] in the spring of 2020, which of course was the worst time to put a record out. We couldn’t tour to support it like we had planned. I had a lot of great press around the record, but it just kind of sat there and everyone went about their lives.

When we won, it gave this great sense of validation but also a sense of acknowledgement for the experience and the work. To me, winning a Juno—winning two Juno’s at this point in my life—if I had won them when I was [younger], I don’t think it would have had the same weight for me. I’ve done so many recordings and so many different projects that getting acknowledged at this point, to me, is an acknowledgement for all of that work, and also all of those musicians that I’ve had the pleasure of being able to collaborate with. For this one, it was really beautiful because it almost felt like [the album] was going to get forgotten.

With everything you have going on, you found the time to collaborate with us on the design of the new Oscar Peterson commemorative circulation coin. What was your role and what was the experience like for you?

I was consulted to stylize how the notation of Oscar’s piece Hymn to Freedom would appear on the coin. [It was a first for me] because I’ve never been part of the design of a coin, but what I’ve done many times is having to do the cover design when releasing a CD. I think that that experience was the closest I’d ever had to the coin which, in real life, is about the size of [a CD] thumbnail. Maybe even smaller. And we only really had a fraction of that real estate for the musical notation.

It was interesting to think about the notation in terms of how we articulate that information. It’s tough because there’s a lot of regional vernacular in how music is notated in jazz. It’s somewhat standardized, but there are lots of annoying little variations. I hope what I contributed to this endeavor is going to translate. [We didn’t use lyrics on the coin], so we had to let the notes speak for themselves.

What does it mean to you that Oscar’s legacy is being celebrated on a coin?

I think Oscar comes of age as an artist in a time when Canada was coming of age on the international stage. Oscar’s in a generation of Canadians that was instrumental in the exportation of Canadian culture and Canadian excellence. He’s certainly one of the biggest influences on my life, but I think he carried a whole generation of influence internationally.

I think [Oscar’s influence] is firmly cemented because of how amazing he was and how wonderfully he was able to navigate the media landscape and the cultural landscape, especially earlier in his career. You think about all these opportunities that he was afforded because of the type of personality he had and the way he carried himself. He was incredible on television. He was super charming, super funny, and just well-spoken and had this wit. He could just sit down and demonstrate anything and be able to carry on conversations with people. It’s nice that someone like him is represented [on the coin] because it does reflect a time of creating Canadian greatness and having independence. The fact that he is a person of colour makes this moment in time even more important as one to proudly celebrate.

What’s next for you? Do you have any upcoming projects or plans?

I’m currently shooting a TV show in Toronto and serving as the show’s musical director. I also have a major commission from the Banff Centre for the International String Quartet competition to write a piano quintet for the winning string quartet. They’re amazing musicians, so it is a great distinction for me to be asked to compose a piano quintet that I will then perform with that quartet. I’m looking forward to rolling my sleeves up and getting into that this fall. And I just recorded an album with my trio, Unison, at the end of our tour, so I have to find some time to sift over the takes for that and then schedule a time to go have it mixed and figure out the release schedule.

So those are the next three things I’ve got on the docket. I’m taking a semester off from teaching to work on these things. I’m just feeling grateful and blessed that the things that are happening are happening and that I can do them justice.

Learn more about how Oscar Peterson's influence continues to inspire artists like Andy and the coins celebrating his lasting legacy.