This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: DeeDavidson97 Surnames: HERBY Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.newyork.counties.chautauqua/21158/mb.ashx Message Board Post: Martha Herby (pj obit) 10/21/2007 - Martha Herby, the Oregon Symphony's second flutist, died Friday of gallbladder cancer, shocking many members of Portland's close-knit music community. Called a ''dynamic force" by her friends, Herby, 55, was diagnosed in July with a rare and aggressive type of cancer. By the time her symptoms appeared, the disease was well advanced. Herby played her last public performance in June, in Oregon Ballet Theatre's production of ''Sleeping Beauty."Herby, known for her humor and devotion to the flute, joined the Oregon Symphony in 1981. To her colleagues, she was funny, outgoing and a dynamic flute player, but she would have made a poor advocate for Portland's urban growth boundary. Each Christmas season, she turned her living room into a winter wonderland, adding subdivisions upon subdivisions of ceramic buildings until the display sprawled across the entire room. In addition to playing in the Oregon Symphony for 26 years, Herby played principal flute in the former West Coast Chamber Orchestra, from 1980 to 1990, and taught at Lewis & Clark College. She performed as both principal and second flute on most of the Oregon Symphony's CD recordings with laureate music director James DePreist. ''She was the one who kept all of our egos in check," said Niel DePonte, a close friend and colleague in the Oregon Symphony. Herby didn't do things halfway, her friends said. ''That's how she played the flute," DePonte said. ''She was totally devoted to being a better flute player. She dedicated her life to the flute.''As a member of the Oregon Symphony's garden club, she enjoyed her honorary title, ''Queen of Dirt." She once dug up her entire front and back yards to put in an English garden, complete with pond, walk ways and gazebo. Her profile on the Oregon Symphony's Web site also shows her wit: ''I've had many important teachers throughout the years,'' she said. ''There was the one in junior high school who told me I wasn't disciplined enough to make it in music (he just made me mad!) and another who charged me five cents for using the wrong fingering on middle D and E-flat (that was expensive).''Herby was born in Jamestown, N.Y., and earned music degrees from the State University of New York at Fredonia and the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, N.Y., where she distinguished herself by winning the school's coveted Performer's Certificate. She also received coaching from some of the world's outstanding flutists, including Sir James Galway and her mentor, Keith Underwood. Herby is survived by her parents, Norman and Violet Herby, her brother and sister-in-law, Paul and Sue Herby, nephews Chris and Tim and niece Caitlin, of Chanhassen, Minn. A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 3 in the First Congregational Church, 316 East Fourth St., Jamestown, N.Y. Friends will be received from noon to 2 p.m. in the church. A reception will follow immediately following the service in the church. Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.