James Ford Hanna

A memorial gathering will be held at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 29 at Rabenhorst Funeral Home for James Ford "Jim" Hanna, 71, who passed away on June 23, 2022 at Our Lady of The Lake Hospital after a brief illness. Jim is survived by his wife, Debbie Campbell Hanna, of Baton Rouge, son, Blake Hanna of Baton Rouge, sister Elizabeth Lott of Baton Rouge, nephew Simon Jesse Lott II, of New Orleans and many loving relatives. Jim was preceded in death by his father, James Ray Hanna, and mother, Margie Owen Hanna. Jim was born on December 17, 1950, in Lafayette, LA and was a 1968 graduate of Lafayette High School and received a Bachelor of Music in Viola Performance from Louisiana State University. Hanna was formerly with the Valcour String Quartet- the resident quartet with the Baton Rouge Symphony, where he was co-principal violist. He also performed with the New Orleans Symphony Orchestra. In 1994, he moved to the Los Angeles area due to his wife's job promotion and began the challenging task of restarting his freelance musician career in a highly competitive market. His first break was being hired by composer, Lalo Schifrin, for a movie recording job. During his 14 years in Los Angeles, Jim performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, was Principal Violist for the California Philharmonic, Chamber Orchestra of South Bay, Camerata of Los Angeles and others, also performing with Santa Barbara Symphony, Glendale Symphony, Pasadena Pops, Opera Orchestra of Los Angeles, plus various TV and Film recordings. While in LA, he was also Adjunct Professor of Viola at California Lutheran University and The Masters College, while also maintaining a private studio. Upon his return to Baton Rouge in 2007, Jim continued playing with various chamber groups. In 2009, he was hired by the Baton Rouge Symphony as their Personnel Manager/Orchestra Librarian where he maintained payroll and records, scheduled musicians, coordinated auditions, organized & maintained the orchestra's collection of scores and parts. In 2011, in addition to those duties, he was appointed Director of Artistic Operations, working very closely with Maestro Timothy Muffitt in the planning and implementing of concerts, while overseeing the scheduling and production of all orchestra and educational events. In June 2017, adding to his other responsibilities, he accepted the position of Interim Executive Director for the BRSO, until that position was filled a year later. Although known as highly organized with attention to detail, a strategic problem solver with an ability to manage multiple priorities and projects, Jim's greatest joy during his 11 year tenure with the BRSO was working with the musicians. Having himself been a working violist for 40+ years gave him a personal insight to that life. He was a "musician's musician." It was said that Jim went out of his way to make each member of the BRSO feel that they mattered and that he always treated them with the utmost respect. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to your favorite Arts organization.