In Ella Fitzgerald’s centennial year, the great singer is being honored around the world. The Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra began the celebration with a pair of tribute concerts ahead of The First Lady of Song’s April 25 birth date. The one that Jim Wilke recorded at the Kirkland Performance Center across Lake Washington from Seattle will air at 2PM PST today, March 5, on Jim’s Jazz Northwest program on KNKX, and be streamed on the web.
The SRJO invited vocalist Carmen Bradford to perform songs popularized by Ms. Fitzgerald, who recorded extensively, toured with the Count Basie and Duke Ellington orchestras and was featured on Jazz At The Philharmonic tours. Fitzgerald album sales top more than 40 million. If you’re in the Seattle-Tacoma area, tune in to KNKX, 88.5 FM. Elsewhere around the world, hear the stream on the internet at http://knkx.org.