Ella Fitzgerald Sheet Music

Her Legacy, My Life: The Story of Ella Fitzgerald

Ella Fitzgerald is the most important female jazz vocalist of all time. Born in 1917, she was raised by her grandmother in Harlem, where she sang in church choirs and on street corners for extra money.

Fitzgerald began her professional career singing with various jazz and swing ensembles in the 1930s, and became popular when she began to improvise scat lyrics to the established melodies.

A vital figure in the evolution of jazz vocal technique, she was one of the first to improvise using the method of scatting. Her unique and compelling vocals have been credited with bringing a "warm intimacy" to many of her most admired performances. 

Her legacy has been passed down to the younger generations, who are still able to enjoy her music. She was able to express love in such an inspiring way through her live performances, this makes all the difference when the artists interact with their audience.

Ella Fitzgerald Career

She was born in Newport News, Virginia, in 1917. When she was only five years old, Fitzgerald and her family moved to the tenement slums of Yonkers, New York. It was a tough life for Fitzgerald and her siblings, but she did her best to keep her spirits up.

Fitzgerald started singing at an early age, and she knew that she wanted to be a jazz singer. Ella Fitzgerald started her career in the 1920s. She was part of a traveling troupe led by Ina Ray Hutton, who was noted for introducing a new song called "Jingle Bells. "

She performed in big cities like Kansas City, Tulsa, and St. Louis, among others. Fitzgerald also performed on the vaudeville circuit, where she met another African-American performer by the name of Norma Ver ney.

After a couple of years of touring together, they were courted by record producer Milt Gabler, who signed the duo to Commodore Records in 1930. The song "Dinah" was selected as their debut single. In an interesting note, when she was just 18 years old, Fitzgerald met the man who would change her life.

She met an aspiring jazz musician by the name of Louis Armstrong. It wasn't long before they got married and the two were performing together on stage.

Ella Fitzgerald Pictures