- Born
- Died
- Birth nameEverett Joseph Firth
- Vic Firth was born on June 2, 1930 in Winchester, Massachusetts, USA. He is known for Vietnam: A Television History (1983) and American Experience (1987). He was married to Olga. He died on July 26, 2015 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
- SpouseOlga(? - July 26, 2015) (his death, 2 children)
- He owns a company where they make drumsticks for any musicians.
- His father was a trumpet player.
- He was frustrated with drumsticks on the market, so he whittled a prototype that had the lightness, versatility, and equilibrium he wanted, and hired a wood turner to fabricate the sticks. He intended them solely for his own use, but his students asked for them. Soon other drummers did too, and in 1963 Vic Firth Inc. was founded. Today the company turns out some 12 million drumsticks and mallets annually. Its wares have been used by renowned classical, jazz and rock drummers, including Charlie Watts of the Rolling Stones.
- He was the principal tympanist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra for over 40 years. When he joined the orchestra, he was the youngest player by a wide margin. After joining, he earned a bachelor's degree from the New England Conservatory of Music. He later served as the head of the conservatory's percussion department for more than 40 years.
- He once ran a tympani class. While not a bully, he told students on the very first day that if they did not put in at least five hours of practice daily, then they had better not dare show their faces in his class. This rule, when not quite followed, led to some near altercations between himself and a few rebellious guys, a memory which he finds rather amusing.
- I was sitting on the stage, and they asked me to lead off the big drum solo. I was wearing a coat and tie and I told them I'd look like a stuffed shirt. But they persuaded me to take them off, and I did start off the solo. [on his cameo appearance with the Grateful Dead in Providence, Rhode Island]
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