Women in Jazz: Sarah Vaughan, African American Classical Music (Jazz) Soloist
Sarah Vaughan sang in the choir of Mount Zion Baptist Church, Newark, as a child, where at the age of 12 she became organist.
In October 1942, she won an amateur contest at the Apollo Theatre; shortly afterwards, in April 1943, she joined Earl Hines' big band as second pianist and singer to Hines and Billy Eckstine.
Eckstine formed his own bop-oriented big band early in 1944, and Vaughan joined him a few months later, making her first recording with his orchestra on December 31.
She left Eckstine after about a year, and thereafter, except for a brief stay in John Kirby's group in winter 1945-6, she worked only as a soloist.
