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January 2, 1962 - June 12, 2006
Tony is survived by his beloved wife of six weeks, Shi Lu, and her family in Shanghai, China and his loving parents, Tony and Beverley Calvo of Aptos.
He was a loving brother to his sister Luz of Oakland and her partner Catriona Rueda Esquibel, his brother Alex of La Selva Beach and his wife Michelle and his brother Andrew of Graton, CA and his partner Tracy Scala. He was always an enthusiastic uncle to his nephew Joseph Calvo and his nieces Olivia Calvo and Assia, Laila and Mariam Scala.
Tony attended elementary schools in southern California and graduated from Claremont High School in L.A. County.
In the 1990's Tony worked at Live Oak School, and Lakeview Middle School in Watsonville as a computer and library "tech".
He earned his B.A. from San Francisco State University and his Masters in Information and Library Science from San Jose State University.
He began his professional career as a music librarian at University of Pacific in Stockton. For the past four years he has been the Music and Media Librarian at California State University Northridge.
In 2004 he was a visiting scholar to Nanjing University in China. It was during his time in China that he met the woman who was to become his wife.
He will be missed terribly by his family, friends and colleagues. He will forever be remembered for his intelligence, his creativity and the joy he brought to every gathering.
Memorial services and buriel took place June 16 at San Fernando Mission Cemetery.
The family is requesting that memorial donations be made to Janus of Santa Cruz, 200 7th Ave, Suite 150, Santa Cruz, CA 95062.
- Published in Santa Cruz Sentinel on June 25, 2006
Date Of Birth: 01-02-1962
Date Deceased: 6-12-2006
Age at Death: 44
Alumni City: San Fernando
Survived By: Wife Shi Lu Calvo, son Tony Calvo
A memorial from his colleagues at Cal State Northridge, where Tony was the Music and Media Arts Librarian. Tribute to Antonio Calvo 10/5/06
I want to thank the faculty senate for taking the time to honor the memory of Antonio Calvo today. As many of you know Antonio was a member of this faculty senate – and I hope you know how much he truly enjoyed being a part of this body. He dutifully relayed the campus business discussed at these meetings and he valued all of your hard work and collegiality.
Antonio passed away on June 12, 2006. He was a wonderful colleague, faculty member, and friend. As a librarian he really was a shining example of someone who strived daily to make sure that he was working to make the library and the experience of using the library a special experience for our students.
Antonio joined the library faculty at CSUN in July of 2002 and his impact was immediate – his charm, his passion and his commitment to working in the area of Music & Media/Reserves has left a lasting imprint on all of those who worked with him and those who will continue to remember him through memories and the collection & services that he helped build.
In his short time with CSUN I think he would most likely tell us he was most fond of his research and work as a visiting librarian in Nanjing Normal University in China, his work on the Oviatt Library's Mozart Week in Commemoration of 250th Anniversary of Mozart’s birth, and most importantly his love of working with students and faculty to further the mission of this university.
My colleagues and I consider ourselves very lucky to have known, even if it was for far too brief a time, a person whose enthusiasm for research, music, scholarship and the support students was thoroughly contagious and awe inspiring. Antonio was fond of the concept of listening – and if it would please the senate I would like to ask us to take a moment of silence to “listen” and remember a truly wonderful and unique faculty member and colleague.
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Sharon Esterley (1961)
April 18, 2014
I met Tony in the early 1980s when we played in the Cabrillo College big band together. We then ran into each other a few years later in San Francisco. (We literally crossed paths on the street.) We exchanged phone numbers and agreed to get together and do some music.
From that chance meeting, a little band formed. Tony brought in one of his friends, an artist (as in like Picasso) and percussionist named Dominic Alleluia. The year was 1988 so we called ourselves "Jazz Trio '88." Then, at some point we became a quartet by adding a keyboard player: "Jazz Quartet '88."
Tony's musical interests back then were rather eclectic. He was into the performance art thing which was big in the 80s. I remember going to see him at this funny little venue South of Market where, like some old speakeasy, you had to knock on the door to get in. It was a free-form music show. There was this huge horn section and this guy in a tux with tails conducting them. (The music reminded me of improvised Vaclav Nelhybel.) There were rubber chickens hanging from the ceiling and a bunch of old televisions stacked on top of each other, showing nothing but snow ... women in leotards with streamers jumping around. I think the performance art scene was where Tony had met Dominic.
Anyway, it's interesting that we called ourselves Jazz Trio/Quartet '88 because that's exactly how long the group lasted – one year. At the end of 1988, I got married and went back to school to get my teaching credential, Tony moved back to Santa Cruz, and Dominic decided to devote himself more fully to art. But it was a fun time while it lasted.
For a while we had this regular gig at Goat Hill Pizza up on Portrero Hill. Then we also played at this art gallery/coffee shop on Fillmore. The whole Georgia O'Keefe/southwest trend was going strong back then. I remember the gallery had these cow skulls on the wall with neon lights running in and out of their nostrils and eye sockets.
Then we also played at this couple's 40th anniversary party up in the east bay hills. Dominic was the one who got us the gig. The party was full of "artsy types." According to Dominic, the husband had been a student of Salvador Dali's. It was quite a spread. I remember the couple's sons presented them with a restored 1920s roadster as an anniversary present. They even had a priest there to do a blessing on the thing.
At the end of our last set, the crowd was looking bored so, just to see if they were awake, we decided to get weird on the instruments. We gave them about five minutes of abstract bird sounds, random beats and below-the-bridge bowing, and then stopped. They loved it! We probably could have done that all afternoon and no one would have complained.
The last time I saw Tony was in '90 or '91. I was teaching high school in San Jose and there was a battle-of-the-bands night that I was responsible for. I invited Tony and a couple of other musician friends of mine to help me open the show with a short "faculty set." Tony then went back over the hill to Santa Cruz. After that, we lost touch. I googled his name a few years back and learned, from this website, that he had passed. What a tremendous loss. He was a fine musician, but he was an even finer friend and human being.
The subject of the Goat Hill Pizza gig recently came across my radar and that prompted me to dig out this old video tape of Jazz '88 and have it digitized. I hope you enjoy the clips.
Peace,
Tony's friend Steve