The Singer As A Horn
One aspect of singing that makes the jazz singer 'different' or special is the way the singer emulates the feeling and phrasing (not necessary the sound) of the horn – could be trumpet, trombone, sax...
It likely started with Louis Armstrong and then Duke Ellington, who used many singers as 'horns' -including Ivie Anderson. Singers in jazz don't sound like pop singers or theater singers or classical singers. The phrasing is like horns – utilizing slurs and accents and slides and even the occasional 'wa-wa' sound. The scat improvisation that many jazz singers use utilizes syllables that copy the horn sounds (as opposed to “la-la-la” etc).
Stephanie was asked to conduct at seminar at the College of William and Mary on this topic and the results were wonderful – making for a great show – educational and innovative. Stephanie's trombone imitation is renown across the country. She learned from the master – Jon Hendricks – to be a horn. This show is especially fun with another 'horn' – trombone, sax etc so that the two instruments – singer and horn – can play off each other and the audience can witness the interaction.