You don't know me... (Part 2)

You don't know me... (Part 2)

In my last post, I wrote about how Sarah Vaughan was an intensely private woman leading a public life, and how she kept her fans, members of the press, and even, sometimes, her own family at a distance.

Since then, I’ve been thinking about why that was and how it influences my work as her biographer. Part of my job is to tease out the details of her life, provide a glimpse into the woman behind the scenes, the private Vaughan. But what does a biographer do when her subject doesn’t cooperate? How much do I extrapolate from the information I do have? In other words, how do I read an absence? And how do I respect my subject and her desire for privacy while satisfying the desires of readers in search of an intimate portrait of a performer they admire?

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It’s not you. It’s me.

It’s not you. It’s me.

I’ve often wondered why we love the music that we love. Why does one performer captivate and excite us, while others simply fall flat?  This is a complex question. One that involves the artist’s mastery of her craft, stage persona, and creative vision, not to mention the nuts and bolts of the actual music performed. But more often than not, it boils down to an artist’s ability to move her listeners – to create emotional, very visceral responses to the music she performs.

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Why Sarah Vaughan?

Why Sarah Vaughan?

I've always been intrigued by the paths people take en route to their life's work; how one passion leads to another then another until you have found what truly inspires and motivates you. For me, my interest in vocalists and women in jazz began with Sarah Vaughan. I guess you could say that she was my crossover moment. 

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