I have been listening to Billie Holliday most of the evening. I have a 2 disc collection of her recordings and I find such healing in her voice, possibly more than in any other singer's.
Her voice...even if I could find the right words to describe it, I'm not sure they would do justice. Listening to her is like finding a balm for your own loneliness, like feeling, however temporarily, suspended in safety.
This article from NPR talks, among other things, of how Billie learned from listening to singers like Louis Armstrong.
Phil Schaap, curator of Jazz at Lincoln Center, says Holiday "speaks to your heart. She catches your ear. She reaches your mind, and she does this with an emotional power that, of course, is genius and is beyond words."
The emotional power of Holiday's vocals comes from the way she sings the melodies. It's about rhythm and phrasing, which Holiday learned from listening to the best.
You can read all of the article here:
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