Inez Catalon facts for kids

Inez Catalon (born September 23, 1913 – died November 23, 1994) was an American Creole singer. She was famous for singing traditional "home music" from Louisiana. This type of music was usually sung by women in their homes.

Home music included songs like lullabies, love songs, and game songs. These were often sung without instruments (called a cappella). Families enjoyed this music for entertainment before radio and TV existed. It was passed down through generations. Unlike Cajun and zydeco music, which were often played by men in dance halls, home music was a private tradition.

In 1993, Catalon received a National Heritage Fellowship. This is the highest award the United States government gives for traditional folk arts.

Early Life and Family

Inez Catalon was born in Maurice, Louisiana. She grew up nearby in Kaplan, Louisiana. She was the youngest of ten children. Her family had German, Spanish, French, and African roots. Her great-grandmother had been an enslaved person.

Her father built their family home in Kaplan in the 1920s. He was a farmer who passed away when Inez was young. Both of her parents spoke Creole French, not English. They both loved to sing. Inez's mother was her biggest singing inspiration. Her mother had a "beautiful deep, rich" voice.

Inez enjoyed learning the old French songs, called cantiques, that her mother knew. She spent many hours singing on the steps of their home. Inez Catalon never went to school. After her father died, the children had to start working to help the family.

Singing Career

Inez Catalon worked as a house helper for most of her life. But she loved to sing on stage. She was best known for singing old stories through songs, without any instruments. These songs were passed down from her French-speaking ancestors. She also enjoyed singing other types of music, like blues, jazz, and popular songs of her time.

Catalon's first public performance was in 1974. It was at the first "Tribute to Cajun Music" event. This event later became the Festivals Acadiens et Créoles. She was the very first person to perform on stage that day. After that, she sang at many music festivals across the United States. This included the Festivals of American Folklife in Washington, D.C., in both 1976 and 1983.

She also toured with a concert series called "A la mode de chez nous." This series featured French-American music and dance. In Louisiana, she performed at the Louisiana Folklife Festival in Baton Rouge. She also appeared at the Festivals Acadiens et Créoles and Festival International de Louisiane in Lafayette.

Catalon often performed at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. She was usually joined by folk singer Marce Lacouture. Marce Lacouture, who has Cajun family roots, started researching traditional music in the early 1980s. By 1983, she met Inez Catalon and another singer, Lula Landry. Marce learned old French a cappella songs and Creole culture from them.

In 1986, Marce Lacouture received a grant to formally learn from Catalon and Landry. This was to help save these old, traditional home music songs. She received another grant in 1987–1988. Marce became very close friends with both women. They treated her like a granddaughter.

Catalon and Lacouture performed together at the New Orleans Jazz Festival many times. At her last Jazz Fest performance in 1994, Catalon made a memorable exit. She playfully flipped the hem of her dress to the crowd as she left the stage. Marce Lacouture said this was Inez's way of saying goodbye to her audience. Inez Catalon passed away seven months after that performance.

Personal Life

Inez Catalon was Catholic. She lived her whole life in the house her father built. She had two children, a son named John Chargois and a daughter named Mary A. Chargois. When she passed away, she had nine grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Inez Catalon died in her sleep on November 23, 1994. She passed away at Abram Kaplan Memorial Hospital in Kaplan, Louisiana, due to heart problems. She was buried in Maurice Cemetery.

Legacy and Impact

In 1973, Inez Catalon shared a traditional Louisiana story with a folklorist named Barry Jean Ancelet. This story was later turned into a children's book in French. It was called Qui Est le Plus Fort? (Who is the Strongest?). The book was first published in 1999, and Catalon was given credit as a helper. A second edition came out in 2014.

In 1989, Catalon, Lula Landry, and Marce Lacouture were interviewed at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. This interview, along with 33 others, is part of the "Crescent City Living Legends Collection." In 2002, the Library of Congress chose this collection for the National Recording Registry. This means it is important for its cultural, historical, or artistic value.

The certificate Inez Catalon received in 1993 for her National Heritage Fellowship honored her. It recognized her as a "master traditionalist artist." This means she helped shape and keep alive the artistic traditions and cultural variety of the United States.

In 2000, Marce Lacouture released her first solo CD, La Joie Cadienne. It was re-released in 2004. The album includes songs called "Inez" and "Lula." These songs honor the women who taught and inspired her.

In 2019, the Festivals Acadiens et Créoles celebrated the role of women in Cajun and Creole music. They held a special event called "La Femme et les Filles: Female Perspectives in Cajun and Creole Culture." Inez Catalon was one of the women honored for helping to save the traditional songs of Louisiana home music.

Discography

Inez Catalon did not release her own albums. Her performances can be found on other artists' compilation albums.

• Zodico: Louisiana Creole Music (1976, Rounder Records, RR 6009): This album includes four songs by Catalon. One music critic said it showed the "widest spectrum of Creole music collected on one record."
• Louisiana Creole Music (1978, Folkways Records, FA 2622): This album features three songs and two stories by Catalon.
• Louisiana Folk Masters: Women's Home Music (2007, Louisiana Crossroads Records, LCR CD 2002-3): This album has five songs by Catalon. It was the best-selling CD at the 2007 Festivals Acadiens et Créoles.
• La Musique de la Maison: Women & Home Music in South Louisiana (2008, Origin Jazz Library, OJL-3001): This album includes three songs by Catalon. All 34 songs on this album were recorded by folklorists between the late 1940s and 1977.

Filmography

Inez Catalon was featured in two documentaries about Creole music and culture in Louisiana.

• Les Créoles (1976, Société Radio-Canada): This was part of a four-part series called Le Son de Cajuns. This part focused on black French-speaking culture in Louisiana. It included interviews and performances by Catalon.
• En Francais (1984, Louisiana Educational Television Authority): Catalon was featured in an episode of this TV series. It included interviews with her, her brother Lionel, and two friends. It also showed some of her song performances.