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Ella Fitzgerald

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@ National Portrait Gallery

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Hailed as the “First Lady of Song,” Ella Fitzgerald topped DownBeat magazine’s annual readers’ poll as the best female vocalist for seventeen consecutive years (1953–70). She was just a teenager when her victory in an amateur contest at Harlem’s famed Apollo Theater led to the opportunity to sing with Chick Webb’s orchestra in 1935. Fitzgerald soon secured her standing as a leading swing-era performer and scored a major hit with “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” (1938). After Webb’s death in 1939, she led his orchestra for three years before launching a highly successful solo career. With a supple voice that spanned three octaves, as well as an immense talent for improvisational “scat” singing, Fitzgerald built a wide-ranging repertoire encompassing jazz and popular song. Her long and fruitful association with jazz impresario Norman Granz resulted in the legendary series of “songbook” recordings that marked Fitzgerald as one of the greatest interpreters of American popular music.Aclamada como la “Primera Dama de la Canción”, Ella Fitzgerald permaneció en el tope de la encuesta anual de la revista DownBeat como mejor vocalista femenina durante diecisiete años consecutivos (1953–70). Era todavía adolescente cuando ganó un concurso de aficionados en el famoso Teatro Apollo de Harlem que le dio la oportunidad de cantar con la orquesta de Chick Webb en 1935. Pronto consolidó su posición como intérprete cimera de la era del swing y en 1938 logró un éxito importante con “A-Tisket, A-Tasket”. Al morir Webb en 1939, Fitzgerald quedó a la cabeza de la orquesta por tres años...
Type:
Image
Format:
Selenium Toned Gelatin Silver Print
Rights:
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution
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National Portrait Gallery

Record Harvested From

Smithsonian Institution