Vocal Jazz

Vocal jazz is a small niche, and this German station treats it with the reverence it deserves. The focus stays on the voice: Ella Fitzgerald's scat runs, Sarah Vaughan's vibrato, Billie Holiday's phrasing, the stuff that made these singers untouchable. Newer names get airtime too, so you'll hear Cécile McLorin Salvant or Samara Joy sitting next to Chet Baker's ballads. That mix matters. Plenty of stations treat vocal jazz as background music for dinner parties. This one doesn't. Tracks get room to breathe, which is rare when most playlists are built for skipping. German radio doesn't often han…