International Jazz Summit Partners With Ella Fitzgerald Foundation To Celebrate Her Legacy In Birthplace Of Hampton Roads
January 01, 1970
Virginia Beach – Zeiders American Dream Theater (The Z) and JazzVoice.com partner with the Ella Fitzgerald Foundation to celebrate the legacy of Ella Fitzgerald at the 5th annual Virginia Beach Vocal Jazz Summit June 5th-8th.
Known as “The First Lady of Song,” Ella Fitzgerald was born in Newport News, Virginia, the next town over from where the annual Vocal Jazz Summit is held in Virginia Beach. Celebrated as one of the most important jazz singers of all time, the directors of the Vocal Jazz Summit thought it paramount to reach out to the Ella Fitzgerald Foundation to honor and amplify Ms. Fitzgerald’s legendary career.
The Vocal Jazz Summit is a premier performance & education conference specifically designed for jazz vocalists of all levels– from those who sing for the pure love of it, to those who gig professionally every night. It was created for jazz vocalists by jazz vocalists: Alexis Cole & Liz Brydge.
Cole rightly states, “Ella Fitzgerald was The First Lady, not just the First Lady of Song! Her whole life long she gave back to children and the community, her spirit of generosity just as luminous as her creativity in music.”
Part of the summit’s mission is to nurture and inspire the next generation of jazz vocalists so it seemed a natural fit to partner with the Ella Fitzgerald Foundation which awards scholarships to exceptional jazz majors at colleges and universities. When asked to partner, the Ella Fitzgerald Foundation answered with a generous, “Yes.”
They will make it possible for “Ella Scholars” attending East Coast colleges to attend the June Vocal Jazz Summit by paying for their travel, lodging, food and summit passes.
Ella Scholars Anaïs Reno and Shayla Woods are thrilled about the opportunity to attend the June Vocal Jazz Summit. Reno excitedly shares, “Ella began a long-standing tradition of joy and warmth in music, and I’m honored to interact with a community that is celebrating that every day!” Woods warmly adds, “I am grateful for this opportunity to celebrate Ella’s impactful voice, and to meet people who share a passion for her, and jazz singing.”
Past Ella Scholars include Grammy winner Samara Joy, who also happened to take her first vocal jazz lesson from Vocal Jazz Summit Director Alexis Cole while at SUNY Purchase. Fitzgerald’s spirit of generous support reveals itself again in this tight-knit jazz community.
Alexis Cole, founder of JazzVoice.com, and Virginia Beach producer, Liz Brydge, of Zeiders American Dream Theater, have created an amazing lineup of Grammy-winning and nominated artists including Samara Joy, Kate McGarry, Theo Bleckmann, René Marie & Christie Dashiell alongside a schedule of workshops, masterclasses, and jam sessions at this richly packed annual conference. Sunday, June 8th’s Ella Celebration Concert will feature René Marie and 2025 Grammy-nominated Christie Dashiell.
History of the Vocal Jazz Summit:
Cole served in the U.S. Army from 2009 to 2015 as the vocalist with the West Point Band’s big band The Jazz Knights. Since then, she has built a notable career as both performer and educator. During the height of the Covid pandemic, she pioneered an online vocal jazz educational ecosystem that brought together vocalists from around the world with a team of her jazz vocalist peers & educators and founded JazzVoice.com.
Liz Brydge, a pillar of the Hampton Roads 757 Arts scene, and nonprofit Zeiders American Dream Theater’s Music and Community Series Producer has been a part of The Z’s team since the beginning and sustains a robust jazz singing career of her own.
Brydge and The Z’s first Artistic Director, Bart Kuebler, who served in the Army as a musician with Alexis Cole, conceived of the Vocal Jazz Summit. They noticed a gaping hole in the educational and artistic offerings for jazz vocalists and wanted to fill it with a dedicated event at Zeiders American Dream Theater. It was then that they reached out to Cole and worked toward the first Summit in 2021, which was completely virtual due to the pandemic.
Now in its fifth year, the Vocal Jazz Summit is fast becoming the premier vocal performance and education conference in the U.S. and beyond, with attendees coming from as far away as Brazil, Japan and Australia.