Jeff Peterson
Jeff has had the honor to work with a wide range of artists and groups including Eric Clapton, James Galway, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Aaron Neville, Boz Scaggs, the Honolulu Symphony, Hawaii Opera Theatre, Amy Hanaiali’i Gilliom, The Matt Catingub Orchestra of Hawaii, jazz bassist Rufus Reid, shakuhachi master Riley Lee, the acclaimed string quartet Ethel, and with many other artists in the fields of Hawaiian, classical, and jazz music. He has four recordings with Riley Lee: “Maui Morning”, “Bamboo Slack Key”, “Haiku”, and “Haleakala”. He also released four solo guitar recording featuring his slack key artistry, “Kahealani” “Slack Key Jazz”, “The Artistry of Jeff Peterson”, and “Pure Slack Key”. Wayne Harada from the Honolulu Advertiser reacted to hearing the CDs by writing: “Add the Peterson name to the top 10 list of slack key giants”, “His manner is impeccable, his style exquisite: the CD is perfection”, “Brilliant . . . Peterson raises the bar a few notches in both slack key and jazz with this bright and exceptional release”. He is also featured as a performer and arranger on the 2008 Grammy Nominated recording Aumakua by Amy Hanaiali’i.
He has traveled to Europe, Asia, Australia, Tahiti, and across the United Sates to perform at a variety of venues from Symphony Space in New York City to the National Folk Festival in Canberra, Australia. He recently had the honor of performing for former president Bill Clinton and Senator Hillary Clinton on the island of Kauai on two separate occasions. He performs regularly at Michel’s Restaurant in the Colony Surf Hotel in Waikiki in addition to a variety of other venues throughout Hawaii and abroad in both solo and group settings. In addition to performing, he taught the guitar at the University of Hawaii for several years running the guitar program. He achieved a milestone in Hawaiian music at the 47th Annual Grammy Awards on February 13th, 2005, when a recording featuring Jeff and other island artists, “Slack Key Guitar Volume 2”, won the first ever Grammy Award for best Hawaiian recording.
