In observance of Black History Month we are recognizing one of America’s  greatest singers:  Ella Fitzgerald.

Music Historian Bill Sano will give a one-hour presentation on the life and career of this great vocalist.  We’ll travel  all the way from her 1917 birth in Newport News, VA  through her years growing up in the slums of Harlem, to her association with the renowned Chick Webb Orchestra, to amputation of both her legs in 1993, to her death from stroke in Beverly Hills at age 79. This “Queen of Jazz” was noted for her diction, intonation, and absolute pitch.  She had the ability to imitate any instrument of the band.  It is said that Ella Fitzgerald didn’t invent scat singing—she perfected it! Many examples of her marvelous voice will augment the presentation.

Doors will open at 11:30, with the talk starting at Noon.