Chicago Music Award winner for Best Jazz Entertainer 2015, celebrated jazz singer/songwriter(and former West Point Military Academy nominee)Peter Oprisko enjoyed a successful career as a nationally-syndicated radio personality(interviewing and featuring the music of jazz legends Tony Bennett, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Natalie Cole, George Shearing, Michael Feinstein and their contemporaries) before embarking on a path that has led him to become one of the nation’s most in-demand and acclaimed concert and recording artists.
Accompanied by various-sized music ensembles(ranging from solo piano to symphony orchestras), Peter has averaged 300+ performances annually for the past 15 year at theatres, performing arts centers, charity galas, casinos and corporations throughout North America. His exciting, engaging and interactive presentation that preserves, promotes and perpetuates the rich musical legacies of America’s foremost singers and songwriters appeals to audiences of all ages and has attracted legions of followers and fans.
Grammy-winning jazz pianist Ramsey Lewis calls Oprisko “The Rolls Royce” of singers today, and(as his schedule allows) Peter performs the National Anthem for the home games of the Chicago White Sox. Additionally, Peter’s recordings and original songs have been featured in movies and on numerous popular television series including “Criminal Minds,” “NCIS,” “Go On, “Bad Judge,” and “The Mindy Project” to name a few.
Mentored in lyric-writing by Oscar-winning lyrist Sammy Cahn, Peter’s 25-year collaboration with Henry Mancini protégé(and fellow Indiana University alum) Sean Baker has also yielded scores for several off-Broadway productions including “Ed Wood’s The Bride And The Beast” and their latest: “The Perfect 10,” which opens at the Theatre-On-The-Square in Indianapolis on June 5th.
An effective headliner in his own right, Peter has also established himself as a popular opener for other top-flight acts such as the Buckinghams, Howard Levy, and the Beach Boys. Peter is a long-time voting member of The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences(NARAS) as well as the esteemed licensing and performing rights organization ASCAP(American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers). Peter is also vice-president of the nationally-distributed independent record label Retropolis through which he has recorded and released 8 critically-acclaimed CDs including his newest entitled “Lost In A Kiss.”
In 2013, Peter was the only artist to have TWO albums contending for Grammy Award consideration in the categories of “Best Traditional Pop,” “Best Engineered Non-Classical,” and “Best Improvised Jazz Solo.” Peter also owns the world’s largest collection of Frank Sinatra recordings and is a renown authority on Sinatra’s career having contributed to numerous books and periodicals dedicated to Ol’ Blue Eyes including the official Frank Sinatra Memorabilia Price Guide and People magazine’s memorial issue.