Jane Little Death: 71 Years For Same Orchestra Sets World Record

Jane Little left the world through the stage of the Atlanta Symphony, where she also played the double bass since she was sixteen. Last year, the American musician fainted in the middle of performance after winning the title for the musician with the longest tenure in any orchestra.

Little showed valor in defying the expectations set for a Southern woman of her upbringing. Little fought the pressure to resign when women were forced to just keep the house after the war. Following the death of his flutist-husband, Warren Little, Jane embarked on a solo act.

Reports indicate that Little's appetite for risk was not only limited to her manner of dressing. The musician acquired lucrative properties, played the market and invested her winnings.

Little's double bass is six feet from scroll to endpin, but in all her photos, she was noted to be a spunky little girl in pigtails yet a young beauty in a decorated gown. For many, Little radiates the infectious vitality of a living genius, New Yorker reported.

Meantime, Little was recently featured in a short profile made by The New Yorker, including an accompanying video that can be seen online. The profile is entitled, "The Longest Shortest Double Bassist."

Incidentally, Little stands only 4"11 and weighs 98 pounds only. She started playing a double bass in 1945 in the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra when she was only 16. According to reports, Jane continued playing the bass in the orchestra for the next 71 years, which gives her the longest professional tenure with the same orchestra.

Little died on stage after collapsing, during her performance of  "There's No Business Like Show Business," Open Culture reported. Watch Atlanta Symphony Orchestra bassist Little here:

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