Interesting observations. I would describe it the other way around. To me Sarah seemed to just enjoy her sound more than the lyric, whereas Ella seemed more connected to the art form.
I'm not going to say one singer is better than the other but Sarah's voice and phrasing speaks more to my emotional interpretations. Sarah's voice plays my emotional strings and vocal sensibilities like no other with her vocal tones, phrasings and style.
Sarah's technique is superior, incomparably great.But I think Sarah's emotions sound more calculated, Ella is warmer and more natural. Her singing goes straight to my heart. Of course this is subjective.
I can't choose. Both insane vocally. I'd only really say that Sarah is more of a technical singer, whereas Ella more stylistic and gritty. But both had incredible technique when they wanted.
I'm ready to recognize that Sarah is the better singer technically and voice wise, but "it don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing". Ella touches my soul in a way no other jazz singer does (well, maybe Billie, some days).
These two are very similar in how they captured the ears of listeners and influenced generations of musicians, but their styles are very different. It's hard to compare. Sarah has the advantage when it comes to lows, her approach and lower voice. Ella's lows are impressive considering how high her voice is, though the majority of the clips are both of them in their later years. Ella takes belts for sure, they're so good for a jazz singer. Hv is hard for me, but I prefer Sarah's. Very neck and neck.
In her prime I Sarah Vaughan had a voice which with the proper training would have made her an excellent opera singer. During the 40s and 50s her voice had control, flexibility, resonance, richness, a stunning lower register, and an ability to reach a high C that were very reminiscent of classical singers. For Sarah Vaughan at her most "operatic" please listen to her performance of the song "Say You'll Wait For Me". Both Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan were wonderful singers. However, from a purely technical standpoint I think that Sarah Vaughan had the superior voice.
Sarah is one of my favorite singers and has one of the greatest voices and ability to sing than most singers. My vote is for her but that's not to take anything from the superb improvisons of Ella. I actually believe How High the Moon and It Don't Mean a Thing are sung and scatted best by Ella. They have their own style and songs that belong to them. Lullaby of Birdland is sung and scatted best by Sarah in my opinion. Love them both, but Sarah is my preference.
For me it's Sarah Vaughan. Her reach for notes is more effortless. She has a warmer tone for me and her timing is far superior. She also, in her live shows, showed more humour and intimacy with her audiences. That said, both are better than all the others.
I love both of em disciplined and technically sound singers both of em are. Ellas voice is so agile and clean. Like water in a stream. Sarah voice is smooth like a thick syrup and butter on pancakes.
Both of them were great. I prefer Sassy. Ella Fitzgerald was more of a scatter. Sarah I like the way she interpreted her ballads more. How she soared from high to low and vice versa. A plus Sarah played the piano
These two divas of vocal excelence are beyond excellent in. Style technique and smooth fluid captivating listening pleasure of sound.....in complete control and command...
Lets start by saying these are two of the greatest singers ever! As far as scatting , its no comparison Ella wins hands down, she has more vocal agility and creativity in her scatting, and can do it twice as fast as anyone on the planet. I love the tickness of Sarahs voice, and her bottom notes are insane. However when I hear the perfect pitch and diction and cleanliness of Ella's voice especially on her ballads, she puts me in a trance! Her voice is also colorless and colorful at the same time, which gives her a more universal appeal.......its Ella the magnificent for me!!!!!
This was a fairly good match even though it was between women of different strengths and styles. It was very fairly displayed. I think if I had to choose which woman I would rather listen to on a regular basis it’s probably Sarah Vaughan. And I went into this thinking it would be Ella Fitzgerald. It might still be though… I think I listen to Ella Fitzgerald more often anyway. I’m a little confused now, lol.
Improvisation, musicality and spontaneity wise - Ella wins for me… However, vocally Sarah due to her musical training always had the upper hand - technique wise . Hence, the quality of her voice was at its peak/prime throughout her life.
I’m halfway through but I’m gonna make a few comments; Sarah Vaughan was a very beautiful woman in her youth. Now, looks aside and vocally speaking, they were mostly equally good in the lower registers. With Sarah winning out for me a few times because she has that depth that can’t be beat. But Ella was equally strong on most of them with her very clear voice and if excellent forward Placement that helped her carry those low notes. They both have tremendous support, especially Ella. On belting, I think that Ella shined more on the fourth octave so far. She has more of that Belty quality, that chassis quality and is comfortable on those notes, whereas in may have been a little bit high in comparison for Sarah who sounds a little more light and soft and mixy to me. And there’s nothing wrong with that.
@@Rosannasfriend Yep, Ella was primarily a chest belter. A more stylistic, raw singer. Sarah was quite influenced by classical soprano singing which is very apparent in her approach and style. I find it hard to compare.
@@vyeagra420 I think it is more due to the approach rather than trying to sound like a higher voice. Her approach is very akin to how some classically-trained sopranos and mezzos who sang jazz sounded.
Ella Fitzgerald had it till the end. The notes for me as music teacher are crispier to the ear. You can see them both reach heights with ease, the breath control from Ella astounding. If anything Ella was freer in that her persona never left her grasp. Sarah however did. Ella Fitzgerald will be forever you see her even now gaining popularity.
@@monicabella7894 Sarah is wonderful, I love her - but first of all I think Ella is musically more versatile and I would like to say that your assessment of Ella is a big underestimate. Excuse me if I write this - your statement about Ella Fitzgerald: "Ella Fitzgerald is good for a nice relaxed musical background, that's all" is actually an embarrassingly stupid statement for every jazz connoisseur. If you told that to the world famous jazz legends that Ella worked with, they would laugh at you. Ella is so much more than just nice relaxed music. I think you don't know enough about Ella's huge record work. I've seen Ella live about 15 times. She was more than fantastic, simply unbelievable.
I would say that Sarah Vaughan had the more "perfect" voice, but to me she often seems rather detached from the lyrics and like she's listening to herself, which I find distracting. I feel like she is more about vocal technique and about an intellectual approach to harmony, than about really connecting with the idea and feeling of the song. Ella Fitzgerald is certainly no slouch technically, and she did have a strong level of engagement with the lyrics, as well as a musical freedom and spontaneity, all of which put her ahead as a singer in my book.
Both of them have quite an unlimited range. I find new notes from them almost everyday, especially Ella. Ella mixing B5s with absolute ease and singing (well, grumbling) an F2. Found tons of C6s but no good notes above though.
They were both phenomenal vocalists…though, apropos of your theme, it’s interesting to note that Ella herself thought, and said many times, that she thought Sarah was the greatest singer of their generation….there’s no battle…they are very different artists. Both great….but I would offer that Sarah had the greater instrument….and certainly a much greater vocal range.
I really love their styles so very much. Scat singing wise. Sarah had beautiful vocals. When she'd scat, she'd sing melodies with her voice that connected to everyone's ear. Satisfying but beautiful. Ella on the other hand. She had a very beautiful way of improvising when it came to scatting. She improvised the same way a trumpet player would, and depicted her voice as a jazz instrument for her band, and her audience. It's a tie, however, in my opinion. Ella Fitzgerald is jazz's most perfect singer. While Sarah Vaughan is one of jazz's most satisfying and soulful singers.
Two absolute Legends of music! This is Real talent and professionalism on a grand scale. They are both Jazz, Music, and Vocal Icons. Ella is my absolute favorite singer and i also love and Have a huge amount of respect and admiration for Sara “Sassy” Vaughn! 2 💎💎
Im am , & have been in awe of both singers from my teenage years. Then when I started extensively collecring their CD's, I found Sarah's repotoire more captivating. However, just lately, I've been mesmerized by the extensive musical renditions of Lena Horne. But the bottom line, - they all are my ladies of song, including, Dina Washington. Now run & tell that!
In terms of head voice I think Sarah Vaughn has better control over it. She has vibrato, whereas Ella almost never has vibrato in her head voice it seems. Not in this video. Though I’m not a vibrato freak anyway, but there’s other factors. Ella‘s head voice tended to sound a little bit pushed all the time, and abrasive and a little bit too harsh/bright. I don’t mind that sound as a choice, but it seems to be her only choice most of the time. Though I did appreciate her warm F5. Sarah can crescendo and decrescendo and have a bright tone and warmth in her voice and sustain and go from a long held notes and phrase different notes after coming down on the same breath and do everything with her head voice. So I was very impressed by that.
WHAT A FABULOUS VIDEO- THANK YOU SO MUCH !!! I love both, but I prefer Ella. I listen more "Soul" when Ella sings. Also more genuineness. I think Sarah sings more deliberately, more intellectually, and very mannered in her late recordings. . It's certainly very subjective, but I feel that Ellas radiates more happiness and joy when she sings. Sarah's best live album ever is Swings At the Tivoli 1963. I never tire of hearing it over and over again. I would like to point out these words from one of jazz's most important critics:Leonard Feather described Sarah's skills: “Recently I heard a classical, a pop and a jazz singer. A soprano, a contra-alto and a coloratura singer. A singer with the spontaneity of Ella Fitzgerald, the soul of Aretha Franklin, the warmth of Peggy Lee and the flawless phrasing of Carmen McRae. They were all on the same show and they were all Sarah Vaughan"
I can hear them both in todays female vocalist….who are continuing the legacy….Such as Dee Dee Bridgewater, Dianne Reeves, Nnenna Freelon, Rachelle Ferrell, Jazzmeia Horn, Samara Joy, Ledisi, and etc.
Also, I like to compare both singing the same song- then I assign "that" song to the version I enjoy the modt! But they are equally represented on the Diva 's top chart!
❤❤❤ BOTH ARE NUMBER 1. ELLA'S WAS LIQUID SILK AND SARAH'S WAS LIQUID GOLD ! NOW, WE HAVE PATTI AUSTIN, DIANNE KRALL, MAYSA LEAKS ÀND. LINDSEY WEBSTER .... DON'T FORGET NANCY WILSON
I've never been able to choose It's like Biggie or Pac. They're two powerhouses with different approaches. Only wish I got to see Ella and Sassy do something together.
Completely ridiculous "duel". This is not "america's got talent". Those to ladies were both at the pinnacle of their game, unsurpassed, deserved icons of jazz, blues, ballads and R&B. My soul gets a little better listening to them.
It's an easy choice for me ,Ella all the way ,she more flexible ,Blues ,Rock,Jazz and more of all round entertainer she was smooth as silk. I looked in my record collection i have one album of Sarah ,Ella i lost count, Cds and LPs she sang with all the great .From Sinatra ,Dean Martine , Nat cole ,Armstrong ,Tom Jones she has done it all.
Sarah Vaughan seems to have become more appreciated after her passing. I think younger generations might enjoy her more than Ella because a lot of her stylings were carried on by R&B/gospel singers like Dionne Warwick, Chaka Khan, Daryl Coley, Mariah Carey, and Anita Baker. Ella was a genius, but I don't hear her influence in modern day singers as much as Sarah Vaughan's. Which is interesting since Ella was more popular and respected than Sarah in their hey day.
That is a really interesting observation. I myself am 23 and have been besotted by Sarah's voice since I first heard it back when I was around 18. I would say Ella's voice was fantastic, but Sarah's was just superbly untouchable, to a level that very few singers have ever been able to achieve, and certainly not achieving now in today's popular artists! I think that has definitely caused younger generations to explore past artists by picking up these videos on RU-vid and keep exploring alternatives to today.
m.ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-KzgDpqoxUNc.html skip to 5:00 for the okay alright part & the Sarah clip I’ve had for a while but it was from a performance of “Sometimes I’m Happy” at the 1964 Newport jazz festival which appears to no longer be on RU-vid
I'm an Ella fan all the way - have been since I was a teenager - pure tone, vocal ability, and amazingly inventive. Sarah was excellent too, but for me there was a little too much artifice at times in her approach to the lyrics.
Both were the most absolutely towering figures in mid-century American Songbook music. Impossible to say one is better than the other. Ella had a certain brightness to her voice, her pitch was perfect and she burst with versatility (Sunshine of My Love!) Sarah had stunning drama and sweeping operatic high notes. To be a bit nit picky, Ella wasn't a deep interpreter of lyrics and Sarah could overdo that slushy style at times. I can listen to them both for long streches, but Dinah Washington is actually the only singer I never tire of listening to.
20:04? Sometimes I’m happy. Here’s the link: m.ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-4OnPZAhm8EY.html&pp=ygUjU2FyYWggdmF1Z2hhbiBuZXdwb3J0IGphenogZmVzdGl2YWw%3D
