Benny Green

Benny Green was born in New York City in 1963 and grew up in Berkeley, California. His father, who played the tenor saxophone, introduced him to Jazz at an early age through his record collection that included Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, Billie Holiday, Ray Charles and many founding voices of the music. He began piano lessons at the age of 7, and his first paid performance was at the age of 12. Oscar Peterson named Benny as his protégé in 1992 and chose Benny as the recipient of the Glenn Gould Award for excellence in Music and Communication. In 1998 Oscar Peterson invited Benny to record a two-piano album with him, entitled “Oscar and Benny.” Benny continued leading his trio and began recording for the Sunnyside label in 2014, and has released five albums for the label to date.