Jazz Articles about Ella Fitzgerald

About Ella Fitzgerald

Radio & Podcasts

Salutes to Ma Rainey, Ella Fitzgerald and Blossom Dearie

by Mary Foster Conklin
June 4, 2019

Winding up Jazz Appreciation Month with special birthday shout outs to the Mother of the Blues Ma Rainey, pianist Dorothy Donegan, vocalists Ella Fitzgerald, Barbara Streisand and Blossom Dearie, among others, with new concept recordings from Nancy Kelly (a tribute to Mark Murphy) , Christina Morrison (duets with five other women vocalists) and Ellynne Rey (a study of birds). Playlist Toots Thielemans “Strutting With Some Barbecue" from Smooth and Easy (Smith & Co.) 00:00 Cat Conner “Waiting On ...

Radio & Podcasts

Billie Holliday and Ella Fitzgerald (1936 - 1945)

by Russell Perry
February 26, 2019

Billie Holiday began recording at 18, in a 1933 session with Benny Goodman and was musically active until her death at 44 in 1959. Ella Fitzgerald also began recording at 18 (in 1935 as the singer with Chick Webb), but in her case, her career surged again in the mid-1950's with the songbook series on Verve. They are perhaps the two most important female singers to come out of the Swing Era. We are joined in this hour ...

History of Jazz

Ella Plays Dice

by Eve Goldberg
November 15, 2018

Ella Fitzgerald was eating a piece of pie when the police burst into her dressing room, guns drawn. Nearby, Dizzy Gillespie and saxophonist Illinois Jacquet were playing a game of craps. The place was Houston, Texas. The date was October 7, 1955. The occasion was a sold-out concert at The Music Hall, one stop on tour for Jazz At The Philharmonic. Standing in the wings while Gene Krupa's band performed on stage, tour producer Norman Granz heard the ...

Getting Into Jazz

Ella Fitzgerald sings the Rodgers and Hart Song Book

by Mark Barnett
July 16, 2018

Getting StartedIf you're new to jazz, go to our Getting Into Jazz primer for some hints on how to listen. Background The Great American Songbook--songs written from the 1920's to the 1950's by giants such as Cole Porter, Rogers & Hart, Duke Ellington and the Gershwin brothers--has inspired jazz musicians and singers for generations, supplying the raw material for endless improvisation. In listening to jazz, a good rule of thumb is “Know the song and you're halfway there." ...

Getting Into Jazz

Ella Fitzgerald Sings The Cole Porter Song Book

by Mark Barnett
December 15, 2017

Getting Started If you're new to jazz, go to our Getting Into Jazz primer for some hints on how to listen. Background The Great American Songbook--songs written from the 1920's to the 1950's by giants such as Cole Porter, Rogers & Hart, Duke Ellington and the Gershwin brothers--has inspired jazz musicians and singers for generations, supplying the raw material for endless improvisation. In listening to jazz, a good rule of thumb is “Know the ...

In Pictures

Hommage To Ella Fitzgerald at Moncalieri Jazz Festival

by Antonio Baiano
December 5, 2017

The 20th edition of the Moncalieri Jazz Festival celebrated jazz masters that would have turned 100 in 2017: Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, Thelonious Monk, Dizzy Gillespie and Italian composer Armado Trovajoli. The first tribute was dedicated to Ella with the “Blue Night of Jazz," which featured many concerts held in downtown Moncalieri as well as a main event in Piazza V. Emanuele II. First on the stage was the Italian singer Simona De Rosa, who ...

Extended Analysis

Ella Fitzgerald: 100 Songs For A Centennial

by Nenad Georgievski
April 29, 2017

Blessed with an instantly recognizable voice full of youthful exuberance and a three-octave range, noted for its pristine and pure tone, the legendary jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald is, along with singer Billie Holiday, the most important singer of the 20th century. She has been called “The Undisputed Queen of Jazz Singing" or “The First Lady of Song" and these nicknames simply reflect the remarkable and inimitable vocal abilities she possessed. While her incredible technical abilities were pretty much evident, when ...