Fitzgerald, Ella (1917-1996), ranked among the best and most popular singers in jazz history. She became known for her pure and beautiful tone, extended range, flawless intonation, and strong sense of jazz feeling. She also became famous for her ability to improvise through scat singing. In this style, rhythmic wordless syllables are sung instead of lyrics.
Ella Jane Fitzgerald was born on April 25, 1917, in Newport News, Virginia. Her father died when she was a child, and she moved to Yonkers, New York, with her mother. In 1935, she won an amateur talent contest at the Apollo Theatre in Harlem. This led to an engagement with the big band of drummer Chick Webb. She became the band’s featured vocalist and recorded her first hit, “A-Tisket, A-Tasket,” with the band in 1938.
Loading the player...Upon Webb’s death in 1939, Fitzgerald took over the band, leading it until 1942, when she began a career as a soloist and with vocal groups. She increased her fame while working with the “Jazz at the Philharmonic” touring group of musicians and singers beginning in 1948. She died on June 15, 1996.
