George Tompkins (composer)

George Ira Tompkins (1888–1972), was a ragtime composer, vocal director and music teacher from Waterbury, Connecticut. His musical contributions in the early 20th century in the Farmington and Naugatuck Valley regions of Connecticut were numerous. He was one of the earliest violin students of The Institute of Musical Art (known today as The Juilliard School) and was also active as a violinist in the New York Symphony Orchestra. Education and background George Tompkins was a local musician to the populous city of Waterbury, Connecticut in the early 20th century. Tompkins was born on July 1, 1888 in the same city. Tompkins was a student at Crosby High School while in Waterbury. He started out in Waterbury as a violinist before moving to Simsbury, Connecticut. Prior to 1905, George Tompkins had played in the first Waterbury Symphony Orchestra, giving a violin performance at its final concert on May 23, 1905, at the Poli’s Theater of Waterbury. By age 16, George Tompkins was attending the Yale School of Music and was awarded a Lockwood scholarship in 1906. He was a student of violin professor Isidor Troostwyk. In 1907, he accompanied a vocal quartet based in Connecticut on violin in a