Sunday E-dition: When Ella Fitzgerald came to Napa
By Virginie Boone
NAPA VALLEY, Calif. — With the Grammy Awards taking place tonight, I started thinking about how strong the ties are between wine and music. The two pursuits have always gone together, and great musicians have long flocked to the Napa Valley.
Margrit Mondavi was among the first to foster a music scene in the Napa Valley in the modern era. As she recalled in “Margrit Mondavi’s Sketchbook,” written in 2012, “When I saw the lawn at Robert Mondavi in 1969, I said, ‘You have this wonderful lawn. Why don’t we have a concert?’”
This was after she had already successfully tested the concept at Charles Krug in 1964. Margrit and friend Kay Ryman were members of Young Audiences, which brought music into Napa’s elementary schools, and they figured that holding a concert at a winery would work as a fundraiser.
They went to six of Napa Valley’s biggest wineries and were turned down, except at Charles Krug. With a venue finally in hand, Margrit transported her own piano to the winery in her Volkswagen bus, borrowed a stage and chairs, and booked Donna Petersen, a mezzo-soprano with the San Francisco Opera. They raised $2,000.
Hot off that success, Margrit was offered a job giving tours at Charles Krug, serving as the first woman on the team (and eventually meeting and marrying Robert, a seminal moment in Napa Valley history).
It didn’t take long for those concerts to resume at Robert Mondavi Winery. That first year, 1969, Margrit again borrowed a stage and chairs and threw a concert featuring the Napa Valley Symphony, drawing 400 people to enjoy free wine and Rouge et Noir cheeses for an entry fee of around $3. She made $1,200 that was put into a general fund for the next year’s concert.
And so began an esteemed summer music festival that drew some of the most significant musicians of their time to the Napa Valley. Ella Fitzgerald, Lena Horne, Judy Collins and Natalie Cole performed, and so did the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Buena Vista Social Club, Dave Brubeck, Tony Bennett, Sarah Vaughn, Benny Goodman and Robert Cray.
The concerts opened to rave reviews, with The Napa Valley Register in 1972 describing how, “People parked a mile away and hiked in with pillows and blankets … the lawn a sea of happy picnickers,” and concluding with, “The setting of last night’s concert was perfect, the hills changing from green to mauve as the sun set, and later, in the dark evening, a few starts glittering as the Preservation Hall band worked up to its final number and the crowd went wild. A great experience and a fine beginning to the Mondavi Summer Festival.”
Margrit recalled in her sketchbook how Fitzgerald came to the Napa Valley to perform five times and shared this particularly poignant memory:
“She was delightful. I drove her and her agent to the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco one night when the car she had ordered didn’t come. She and I packed the agent, drunk as a skunk, in the back seat and then she sat next to me in the front seat. It was a hot night, and when we got to Yountville, she noticed that the stars were out and she said, ‘Look at that! I didn’t see them when I was singing.’ Then she started with, ‘Are the stars out tonight…’ and she sang all the way from Yountville to San Francisco, just for me.”
Benny Goodman came to the valley twice, having to lie flat at intermission because of a bad back and keeping a cup of coffee (that was really bourbon) on the piano while he performed.
Performers stayed with the Mondavis on Wappo Hill, where they often enjoyed dinner together, Johnny Mathis, Harry Belafonte and Ramsey Lewis among them. Belafonte’s political activism during the Civil Rights era caused some St. Helena locals to confront Margrit with, ‘If you’re going to have Harry Belafonte at the winery, I’ll never buy another bottle of Robert Mondavi wine.” Oh well.
Other bands got arrested for substances, and Margrit had to post bond to get them out in time to perform for the night before returning to jail. In 1974, a downpour threatened to end the concert while streakers flashed across the stage not once, but twice.
The concerts at Robert Mondavi Winery went on under Margrit’s direction for 27 years, for four Saturdays in July every year with no advertising, just word-of-mouth, and always sold out. Eventually the winery was able to donate $100,000 a year to the Napa Valley Symphony.
Now called the Margrit Mondavi Summer Concert Series, the producers of BottleRock Presents book the shows at Robert Mondavi Winery, continuing a great tradition of music and wine in the vineyards, a seemingly small idea that took flight.
Last Week
In "The Unseen Influence of pH on Wine Quality," Dan Berger explored pH's vital role in wine production and quality. He emphasized its impact on wine balance and stability, empowering consumers in wine-food pairing. Total acidity and alcohol content were also highlighted for their contributions to aging potential and food compatibility with wine.
Lisa Adams Walter introduced the 7th Annual Yountville International Short Film Festival, featuring more than 100 short films, including Oscar-nominated works. This festival, founded by Bill Hargreaves and Sinohui Hinojosa in 2018, celebrated various film genres while blending cinema with the region's rich wine and food culture.
In her article, "Winter Gardening Wisdom for Bounty in the Spring and Summer," Linda St. Claire provided practical advice for winter garden preparations in Napa Valley. She emphasized tasks such as crop rotation, seed starting, compost, mulch and the "lasagna method" for new garden beds. Clean gardening tools and smart irrigation practices were also stressed to ensure a fruitful garden in the coming seasons.
Jeni Olsen discussed the practice of setting intentions as a valuable tool for personal growth and well-being. She highlighted intention-setting as a commitment to oneself, offering focus and hope. Vision boards were suggested as a creative means to work with intentions, emphasizing their display in a visible location for daily reminders. Olsen also underscored the importance of involving family in the intention-setting process to strengthen relationships. She shared her personal focus for the year, which is radical self-care, emphasizing self-awareness. Overall, the article encouraged readers to explore intention-setting as a transformative practice.
Kathleen Scavone, a naturalist and writer based in Northern California, authored an article that showcased diverse winter wildlife encounters during walks in Napa Valley. The article highlighted encounters with black-tailed deer, banana slugs, pileated woodpeckers, western gray squirrels, rough-skinned newts, jackrabbits and northern flickers. These encounters provided readers with a glimpse into the unique and vibrant natural world of the region.
Next week
Looking ahead, Napa Valley Features has exciting content in store. Dave Stoneberg will take readers through 100 years of crop reports, offering insights into Napa Valley's past and future. Expect more gardening tips, a spotlight on the Calistoga Fairgrounds, Kathleen Scavone’s history of Lake Berryessa, insights from Dan Berger on Napa Valley wine, a piece from Sasha Paulsen, and the second issue of "Under the Hood" for paid subscribers.
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Virginie Boone has written about the Napa Valley for more than a decade. Follow her Instagram @virginieboone or visit virginieboone.com
* "Rupert," is a new comic series by Kathleen Scavone, coming to our Sunday E-dition. Enjoy this clever and thoughtful work from a talented artist and writer.
Thank you for sharing these wonderful memories of Margrit's from Margrit Mondavi's Sketchbook, which I had the pleasure of writing with her. As you can tell, she was a natural-born storyteller. I've always loved that Ella Fitzgerald anecdote. So many more great tales of her life in this memoir.
My husband and I and several friends attended many of these events. They were wonderful.