Lesson 8: Ella Fitzgerald

Ella Fitzgerald

Although Ella Fitzgerald (1917-1996) first wanted to become a dancer, she would become the 'First Lady of Song'. Fitzgerald was a jazz icon during her 60 years of performing, known for a vocal range of three octaves and her ability to improvise during a song. She is also regarded as one of the best scat singers in the history of jazz. Yet, perhaps, she is best known for putting her own artistic stamp on the music of her time in a way that no one quite measured up to.

Growing up in New York, Fitzgerald listened to the recordings of jazz musicians such as Louis Armstrong and Connee Boswell. During an amateur contest at the Apollo Theatre in 1934, she was discovered as a singer and was invited to sing with Chick Webb's band. When Webb died in 1939, Fitzgerald led the band for three years, recording with many of the musicians of the time. Leaving the band in 1942, she signed with the record company Decca.

With the rise of Bebop, Fitzgerald began to change her way of singing. She included more scat singing in her music, saying that she tried to imitate the sound of the horns with her voice. During the 1940s, her acclaim as a jazz singer and musician grew. She participated in the making of the Great American Songbook in the 1950s, the music of which would become standard in the jazz repertoire. She continued to record for the decades after, with several different record labels, and appeared on numerous television shows as a guest. During her career, she won thirteen Grammy awards, including Lifetime Achievement award in 1967, and her records sold over forty million copies.

Miles Davis

Another important figure in jazz music is Miles Davis (1926-1991). Music scholars consider Davis to be one of the most influential musicians of the twentieth century. He was at the front of a number of developments in the evolution of jazz, including bebop, modal jazz, and cool jazz. In fact, he might be the most innovative jazz musician of all time. The bands that Davis put together would also nurture and develop some of the best jazz musicians of the late twentieth century.

Davis began learning music around the age of thirteen. He father gave him a trumpet, which Davis would later say was done to irk his mother, who wanted Davis to learn the piano and who disliked the sound of the trumpet. He began playing professionally by the age of sixteen. In 1944, he moved to New York to study at the Julliard School of Music. He eventually left the school and continued to play professionally around New York. He played in Charlie 'Bird' Parker's quintet for a time until he helped form a new band and began recording with them. In 1956, his album The Birth of Cool was released, giving the name 'cool jazz' to the sound. In 1959, what is regarded as Davis' best work, Kind of Blue, was recorded. As the forms of music changed over the years, Davis continued to lead the changes. He died in 1991 at the age of sixty-five.

In this unit, we examined the birth of jazz music in the United States. In doing so, we considered how to define jazz and looked at some of the aspects that are typically associated with this musical form. We also compared and contrasted jazz to Western classical music. In tracing the development of early jazz music, we learned about some of the types of jazz music as well as some of the musicians who have influenced the development and evolution of jazz.

Think About

1. What is Jazz music?  How is it defined?
2. What are the characteristics of Jazz?
3. How does jazz music compare to classical music?
4. What are some of the forms or types of jazz music?
5. Who are some of the composers or musicians associated with jazz?

Journal Activity: Answer these questions in your journal.