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Article: Vic Firth
- Article from:
- The Boston Globe (Boston, MA)
- Article date:
- June 23, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 1996 The Boston Globe. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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The youngest principal player ever for the Boston Symphony
Orchestra, timpanist Vic Firth, now 65, is in his 44th season,
girding for the yearly shuffle to Tanglewood next month. Meanwhile,
his Dedham-based company, Vic Firth Inc., continues to turn out
millions of computer-matched pairs of drumsticks.
You have a peculiar way of preparing for a concert.
People see me come in at the last minute and go onstage and never
warm up, or warm up minimally. But what I do is, I drive in, and I
have a stick in the car, a timpani stick. And I go through
calisthenics with it as I drive. By flexing the right muscles, I
keep in the same shape as if I'm playing. I'll pull up to a light,
and I've got one ...