ATLANTA — Music filled the Atlanta Symphony Hall, as it often does, on Sunday — though one deep tone was sadly absent.
Sunday was the memorial concert for Jane Little, the world's longest-serving orchestra member. She was a member of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra for 71 years.
Little, 87, collapsed during a concert May 15.
“Jane Little was standing next to me last Sunday when she played her last note, surrounded by people she loved in a place that was like home to her,” said bass player Michael Kurth.
She collapsed during the encore of the orchestra's Pops Broadway show tunes performance.
Little was remembered in word and song as the orchestra performed and shared their fondest and funniest memories of someone as ubiquitous to the orchestra as the very instrument she played.
“She was strong, remember how she never gave up, that’s how she would want you to remember her — strong, fiery and spirited and most importantly happy and smiling,” said Ellie Kosek, her friend of 30 years. “I think it was a gift to be as happy as she was. I would call her every day — of course, not before noon — just to chat with her.”
They would talk about life and doctor’s appointments and schedules. They also would take occasional trips to the North Carolina mountains — where Little hoped to one day retire.
“On our many trips to North Carolina, I would drive and sit and listen to her stories which were priceless," Kosek said. “Who needed a radio?”
One of those stories involved sneaking away from home as a young girl and taking a Cadillac convertible to Daytona Beach, Fla. — against her mother’s wishes.
Kosek said her mother hung up on her when Little called, but she enjoyed herself anyway.
“A true modern day Scarlett O’Hara — their philosophy, ‘I’ll worry about that tomorrow,’ ” Kosek said.
At 4 feet 11 inches, Little chose the biggest and bulkiest instrument in the orchestra — the double-bass.
Despite a stature and name that would say otherwise, Little’s contributions to the orchestra as a musician were anything but small.
She had succeeded despite playing an instrument dominated by stronger men who she said have much bigger hands that can handle the difficult string movements more easily.
“When I feel sore and weary after a day of playing the bass, I remind myself that if an 87-year-old cancer patient with a broken vertebra who weighs 90 pounds soaking wet can do it, maybe I should stop whining and get back to work,” Kurth said adding that he wished he had the chance to tell her that.
Little celebrated her 71st uninterrupted session with the orchestra Feb. 4, her birthday, and crossed into the history books as the longest consistent member of any orchestra. The feat was verified by officials with Guinness World Records.
Months later, she would play her final note together with the same group that she had made so many memories with.
“Much has been said of the appropriateness of the circumstances of Jane’s passing,” Kurth said. “It certainly seems poetic.”
Little’s last song with this group was There’s No Business Like Show Business. On Sunday, a group of musicians made clear that there was no one quite like Little.
“I would eagerly trade that Hollywood ending,” Kurth said, “for a few more heartbeats, a moment, one last opportunity to tell Jane how beloved she is and how much she means to our orchestra family and how grateful we are for her life and her gifts.”
Follow Christopher Buchanan on Twitter: @ChrisB11Alive
