They say the neon lights are bright on
Broadway, but don’t tell David Edricks that. He has
always preferred the sounds emanating from under the stage to
the dazzling visual display on top of it. He was like that even
as a boy. His parents instilled some New York culture in him
through various trips in the city to museums, galleries and
musicals — David’s personal favorite.
“The show hooked me, but it was the
orchestra and listening to the pit that knocked me out,”
he recalled. “It was such an exciting thing because
usually on Broadway shows — though not as much today
— there was an overture. Back then, that was the
first thing you saw. It’s kind of like the previews at
the movies. A lot of people talk during them and wait for the
action to start. I was fixated on the sound that came out of
the pit and what was going on there.”
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“When it’s live and you know
that those people down there are playing eight shows a week, 52
weeks a year and they’re making it sound like it’s
the first time they’re doing it — with all of that
excitement — well, that grabbed me right away,” he
explained.
Fast forward David’s life a few
decades and it may seem strange to discover that he owns Edricks Fine Dry Cleaning in Farmington, CT. However, that is only
half of his professional life. He also enjoys a successful
career in music.
When he leaves the plant on most days, he
works as a freelance musician doing a variety of gigs...
everything from playing drums in a jazz band to being principal
timpanist for the Pioneer Valley Symphony Orchestra.
David picked up his first set of
drumsticks in the fourth grade and he hasn’t been able to
put them down since. Realizing that he wanted to be a high
school band director someday, he took his music studies
seriously, including lessons from famous jazz drummer Jim
Chapin, whose songwriting son, Harry, penned “Cat’s
in the Cradle” and “Taxi.”
“I’d take jazz lessons from
him on the drum set,” David explained. “I’d
take a whole other set of lessons from a guy who was the
principal percussionist of the old NBC radio orchestra and
that’s where I would learn all the other facets of
percussion — whether it’s timpani or xylophone, the
proper technique of how to play a tambourine or triangle
— that kind of stuff.”
After high school, David chose to attend
the University of Hartford’s Hartt School of Music in
Connecticut instead of working for his father’s dental
laboratory company.
“I was pretty headstrong in wanting
to be a music teacher and my parents were very, very
supportive,” he said. “Percussion was what I lived
and breathed, between school and rehearsals and practicing.
It’s pretty all-consuming.”
In order to receive a B.A. in music
education, he had to take courses in general educational and
advanced training and theory in music while learning to play
several instruments.
“I had classes on woodwinds, brass
and strings because you’ve got to be able to show a
proficient enough level to be able to teach beginning
students,” he said. “You have to learn everything
from scratch.”
In time, he did, but once he graduated,
it was hard drumming up work.
A move to Brooklyn was in order so that
David could teach instrumental music at Ditmas Junior High
School for the next year. He returned during the ensuing school
year, but was laid off during the first week due to huge
teacher cuts.
From there, he found a vocal music
teaching position in a Hartford elementary school. However, he
wanted to get back into teaching instruments, so he applied for
a Fellowship to teach and conduct orchestras in Israel the
following year.
He was joined by his fiance, Sharon,
whose father owned Clothing Care Centers in Farmington. When
the couple returned stateside, David began to rethink his
decision to teach.
“It was hard. Teachers
weren’t making any money,” he recalled. “I
didn’t have a job waiting for me when I got back from
Israel and I was going to get married and at some point would
like to have kids. While all that was happening, I had a bunch
of friends who were professional musicians at night and owned
retail businesses during the day.”
Taking a cue from them, David joined his
father-in-law, Harold Jacobs, at his plant in 1983. Having been
used to the three-month vacation of a teacher and still
pursuing music gigs that ran late into the night, the
drycleaning industry was quite a shocking change of pace.
Still, David was serious about making it work and, after a
year, he bought the business.
At the time, Clothing Care only worked
with over-the-counter retail in its 1,200 sq. ft. plant. Under
David’s guidance, the store expanded its scope to include
three pickup and delivery routes and a satellite location and
it grew from a half a dozen employees to 24. The store has also
had three additions and is now about 5,000 sq. ft. David
performs fire restoration work from a 3,500-sq.-ft. warehouse,
as well.
About seven years ago, David decided to
give the company a facelift and a new name. His fellow members
of Methods-For-Management suggested the idea.
“The final decision of the group
was: the work looks fabulous. It’s very high-end stuff,
but the store didn’t look good physically and the name
was confusing,” he said. “So, the suggestion was:
a) lower the quality of work to match the look of the store and
keep the name; or b) change the name, make it more personal,
and remodel the store and continue to improve on quality and
packaging, which is what we did.”
American Drycleaner subsequently
recognized the revised “Edricks Fine Dry Cleaning”
store with a Best Image Enhancement award for 1999-2000.
Customers responded to the change, too.
“We upgraded our packaging a lot,” David said.
“I think it was new to the area to see that amount of
packaging and that kind of work. We have some great competitors
here, which is good for us. It keeps us on our toes, but I
needed to find a niche in the market. So, we geared everything
we do in the store toward the higher end.”
Oddly enough, David’s dry-cleaning
plant has helped him become a more successful freelance
musician.
“I’ve gained a reputation
from being here so many years as a player that people can count
on,” he said. “I guess business brings a lot of
that to you because you’ve got a lot of responsibility...
a lot of people are depending on you. So, on the side when I
get jobs, I make sure I’m there on time, I’m
prepared and ready to play. You can be the greatest player in
the world — the Buddy Rich of drummers in
Connecticut — but if you don’t show up and
you’re not prepared, you’ll never get a call
again.”
In order to keep up with his music
career, David has to practice several hours a day. It can be
hard to find time when you run a full-time business and have a
family (which includes daughters Lauren and Rachel), but he
always seems to manage somehow. “Some days are better
than others,” he admitted.
With such a hectic schedule, it seemed
highly unlikely he’d be able to pursue one of his
lifelong dreams. However, one night while he attended a
Broadway show with his wife, he found himself inspired once
again.
Ever since he saw his first Broadway
show, David wanted to play in the orchestra pit. About four
years ago, he was confident enough in his musical abilities
that he felt he could do it. The only problem was, it was
almost impossible to even get an opportunity.
After an Internet search, he contacted
legendary percussionist Michael Hinton and began studying with
him.
“Michael is just a fabulous
musician,” he said. “He’s got a
Master’s from Julliard. He actually started as a kid
playing in Jefferson Airplane.”
For the next several months, David began
learning the book for many shows while he also networked with
Broadway musicians. Typically, they must find their own backups
in case they end up missing a show.
Meanwhile, tutor Michael wanted to take
his music in a different direction. It was only through a twist
of fate that he got back into the Broadway scene: a former
conductor needed him for a revival of “Man of La
Mancha” starring Brian Stokes Mitchell as Don Quixote and
Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio as Dulcinea. He agreed to play and
promptly made David one of his backups. Then, one day, the call
came.
“Michael said, ’What are you
doing Friday? I’m taking the night off.’ I said,
’Great. Sure. No problem’,” David recalled.
“Meanwhile, I wanted to go to the bathroom and throw
up.”
Days later, he played in the pit. The
conductor was pleased with his performance, so now he was
“in” the game. During the next ten months, David
played over two dozen shows. Now that “Mancha” has
ended its run, he is trying to play in another musical. In the
meantime, he’s content to treasure those moments when he
lived and played “The Impossible Dream.”
“It was a great show to
play,” he said. “The piece would end and the
standing ovation was so long — in the middle of the show
— people were on their feet screaming. To be a part of
that on a nightly basis, well, it doesn’t get much better
than that from a musical standpoint.”
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