Luigi Catalano, the future founder of the Napa Valley Symphony, was born in Lercara Friddi, Sicily, Italy, near Palermo, on November 29, 1881.
He attended the Palermo Conservatory of Music, where he studied violin and conducting. He found employment as the first violin in various orchestras in Italy and France.
  |
| This wonderful portrait of Luigi conducting, was signed in French on January 1, 1905, "From Paris, Best Wishes." |
Luigi Catalano in Paris, 1905
Happy Easter 1906, Palermo: Luigi and His Violin Conducting the Locals
 |
| An Original Lithograph: Best Wishes and Happy Easter, April 4, 1906, Signed by the Artist and Friends |
Luigi Catalano Arrives at Ellis Island, New York City, September 1906
 |
Luigi Catalano arrived in the United States in 1906 to begin his new life as a musician. Opportunities were few in Italy and especially in his native Sicily, so he joined the masses of his compatriots coming to America in pursuit of their dreams.
|
Violist Paolina Civiletti (Catalano) and Violinist Nelina Civiletti (Schiro), circa 1903
 |
| Paolina Civiletti, who later married Luigi Catalano, was, along with her sister, a talented musician. This photo was taken arouound the time they and the rest of their family immigrated to the United States from Palermo, Sicily, settling first in Boston. By 1910, they were living in San Francisco and playing at musicales in private homes. At the time of the photo, Paolina was about fifteen years old and Nelina, about fourteen. |
 |
Paolina Civiletti (later Catalano), 1903
|
The House in Pacific Heights where Luigi, Paolina and Nelina Played for Wealthy Music Lovers
 |
| 2698 Pacific Street, built 1906 by Julius J. Mack, whose wealth came from the wholesale drug company, J.J. Mack. The room on the lower left was the music room of this gracious mansion where musical evenings were held for the social elite of San Francisco, including Alma Spreckels, the doyenne of San Francisco society, who found the room's acoustics "beautiful;" and Sigmund Stern and his wife Rosalie Meyer Stern (sister of Washington Post founder Eugene Meyer), who went on to donate and fund Sigmund Stern Grove, the lovely outdoor theater home of summer concerts in San Francisco. |
 |
| This 1912 article from the San Francisco Chronicle is the first time that Luigi's name appeared in a newspaper, but it wasn't the last! Kohler and Chase Hall was at 26 O'Farrell St. and held many classical music concerts over the years. |
Luigi Catalano, Director of the Strand Theater Orchestra, Modesto CA, 1921
At the beginning of 1921, Luigi and his family moved to Modesto, California from San Francisco so that Luigi could take up his new position as the Director and Conductor of the Strand Motion Picture Theatre Orchestra.
According to Wikipedia, "From the beginning, music was recognized as essential, contributing to the atmosphere and giving the audience vital emotional cues. Once full feature films became commonplace, however, music was compiled from "photoplay music" by the pianist, organist, orchestra conductor or the movie studio itself, which included a cue sheet with the film. These sheets were often lengthy, with detailed notes about effects and moods to watch for. Starting with the mostly original score composed by Joseph Carl Breil for D.W. Griffith's groundbreaking epic The Birth of a Nation (USA, 1915) it became relatively common for the biggest-budgeted films to arrive at the exhibiting theater with original, specially composed scores.
By the height of the silent era, movies were the single largest source of employment for instrumental musicians (at least in America)."
%2B-%2BMozilla%2BFirefox%2B962014%2B70445%2BPM.bmp.jpg)
 |
Letter to Luigi from His Niece, Dora Schiro, July 1921
 |
| Letter to Luigi from his 8-year-old niece Dora Schiro--she clearly really loves her Uncle Luigi! |
Luigi Conducts the Orchestra at the Haight Theater, San Francisco 1922
 |
| The Haight Theater, in about 1939, long after sound films replaced theater orchestras |
Luigi Catalano in Modesto, Orchestra Leader and Virtuoso Violin Teacher,1922-24
 |
| June, 1922 |
 |
| April 4, 1923 |
 |
Catalano Family Homes in San Francisco
 |
| The lower left flat was home to the Catalanos in the 1910s. Daughter Vera was born in 1912. |
 |
| On the family's return to San Francisco from Modesto in 1924, with their second daughter Gloria, they lived here at 898 Union St. |
A Musical Gift from Luigi's Former Music Professor
Vespertina, A Medieval Song for Violin and Piano, by Rosario Profeta
of Palermo, Sicily, Italy
Illustration by F. Cutino
The printed dedication reads (in French): To Mademoiselle Altes Lycresy,
In the days of happiness...
 |
| Add caption |
The handwritten inscription reads: To My Dear Luigi Catalano, whose artisitic merit is equaled by his integrity- [From] His old teacher, R. Profeta. It is dated the 22nd of August, 1928.
Vera and Gloria Catalano, Luigi and Paolina's Musical Daughters
  |
| Vera Catalano, pianist, senior yearbook picture, San Francisco Polytechnic High, 1930 |
 |
| Gloria Catalano, cellist, age 16, 1938 |
Mr. Catalano, Music Teacher, Napa High School
 |
From the 1936 Napa High School Yearbook. Luigi is fourth from the right in the last row.
In the early 1930s, Luigi and his family relocated to Napa where he became the music teacher at Napa High School. This began his association with the Napa community, which led to his founding the Napa Valley Symphony in 1933 and assuming the directoship of the Napa Valley Conservatory at about the same time. |
Luigi Catalano and Napa High School Student Orchestra, with Daughter Gloria and Her Cello, 1936
 |
| Gloria is the cellist who is second on the left in the front row, wearing the white blouse with short sleeves. |
Luigi's Legacy: Mentoring Music Students in Napa During the Depression
Luigi was extremely generous to his music students in Napa during the Depression with reduced fees and even free lessons if they couldn't afford to pay. Luigi also mentored his students in many ways, one of which was making sure they were exposed to the classical music offerings around the Bay Area.
 |
One of the many concerts attended by Luigi and his family was the exciting San Francisco Symphony premiere in 1937 of George Gershwin's Concerto in F with Gershwin at the piano, as well as the premiere of his suite from Porgy and Bess. Daughter Vera was able to get the autograph of the conductor of the performance, Pierre Monteux (who had also conducted the very first performance of Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring, in Paris, for the Ballet Russe in 1913). This was not the only autograph Vera acquired that evening. Memorably, she was able to meet George Gershwin, himself, who autographed her program. This became a treasured family memento: |
Another musician that the Catalano family heard was the Puerto Rican pianist, Jesus Maria Sanroma, who, according to Wikipedia, "is considered by many to be one of the 20th century's most accomplished and important pianists." Below, is the signed photograph that Vera acquired in 1946:
Luigi Catalano and the Napa Valley Symphony, 1933
  |
| Founder and Conductor Luigi Catalano with the Napa Valley Symphony in the Year of its Founding, 1933 |
The Napa Valley Symphony was founded in 1933 by Luigi Catalano, who was also the director of the Napa Conservatory of Music, as a means for students and volunteer musicians to provide symphonic music to the community. Following a brief period of dormancy during World War II, it was reformed as a community orchestra and prospered as such through the years. In 1981, thirty-three years after his death, the Napa Valley Symphony became a professional orchestra and continues to play today as Symphony Napa Valley.
Luigi Catalano, Wife Paulina Civiletti and Younger Daughter Gloria
 |
Luigi, Paolina and younger daughter, Gloria, circa 1939. At this time, Gloria began teaching cello,but by 1940 she had been diagnosed with the multiple sclerosis that led to her death at age 36 in 1958.
|
Vera Catalano Simpkins at the Piano with her Husband Bill Simpkins at the Microphone, early 1950s
 |
| Vera's husband, Bill worked for PG&E but his passion was music: he had a fine tenor voice and was a member of the San Francisco Opera Chorus for many years. He also sang popular songs and here he is, accompanied by Vera, providing entertainment at an unnamed Bay Area restaurant or banquet hall. Vera meanwhile, taught piano privately while raising their son, Bob. |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)