Johnny Costa

about

Johnny Costa (January 18, 1922 – October 11, 1996) was an accomplished jazz pianist. Given the title "The White Tatum" by jazz legend Art Tatum himself, Costa is best known for his work as musical director of the children's television program, Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. Costa graduated from Carnegie Mellon University with two degrees in music, and immediately began work as a musician, and eventually music director, for Pittsburgh's KDKA-TV. He provided piano and organ music for many programs, eventually teaming with Fred Rogers to create the music for Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, for which he served as musical director until his death in 1996. Costa's first recording was The Amazing Johnny Costa, a Savoy LP released in 1955 and reissued on CD as Neighborhood in 1989. Though his increasingly lucrative career was beginning to bring him international attention, the amount of time spent away from his family led him to cut his career short. He stopped traveling, gave up his job as the musical director of The Mike Douglas Show and returned to Pittsburgh, where he remained for the rest of his life, never venturing far from the city limits. Costa served as musical director, arranger, and composer for the children's television program Mister Rogers' Neighborhood from the program's debut in 1968 until his death in 1996. The program's creator and host, Fred Rogers, considered Costa to be one of the most gifted musicians he had ever met, and one of the world's most talented jazz pia

top songs

albums

Plays Mister Rogers' Neighborhood Jazz

Johnny Costa Plays Mister Rogers' Neighborhood Jazz

Flying Fingers

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Classic Costa

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Dream

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Costa Plays Gershwin

Dream - Johnny Costa Plays Johnny Mercer

Classic Costa - Unique Jazz Interpretations By The Legendary Johnny Costa

A Portrait of George Gershwin

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Chiaroscuro Christmas

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Won't You Be My Neighbor?

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A Chiaroscuro Christmas

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