Vera and Gloria Catalano, Luigi and Paolina's Musical Daughters

Vera Catalano in 1926 when she was fourteen, wearing a dress designed and made by Paolina

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

Luigi Catalano, sometime in the late 1920s or early '30s

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.

Here's some of the sheet music they used for their concerts and for Bill's opera performances:

Inside the cover of the complete opera, music and libretto, of Madame Butterfly is this inscription from Vera to Bill:

(Lt. Pinkerton is the leading male role in the opera and the lover of Madame Butterfly)

Luigi's Grandson, Bob Simpkins

Luigi's grandson, Robert Simpkins, son of Vera and Bill Simpkins, soon after his birth in 1946 with his grandmother, Paolina 

Bill and Vera Catalano Simpkins with Bob, circa 1956

Bob Simpkins on the far right, his dad Bill Simpkins on the far left with  Luigi's widow, Paolina by Bill's side in Rome in 1960, in a photo taken by Vera. This marked the first time Paolina had returned to Italy since she emigrated in 1904, and the first time that Vera and her family had ever been there. They were joined by the family of Paolina's nephew Bruno Schiro, with his wife Mary Richmond Schiro and their sons Michael, on the left and Paul, all of whose first time in Italy it also was.

Bob Simpkins at the piano on the right, with his cousins Jean, Claire and Cliff in 1968.  Bob not only is an accomplished pianist but also studied clarinet from a young age and played that instrument in the San Francisco State University band, where he was a music major.