Trombonist loses leg in ski accident, returns to stage
Yevgeny Firsov has been playing the trombone in the Novosibirsk Symphony Orchestra for 25 years. He is well known to the public, especially fans of the Vladimir Tolkachev Big Band. When he confidently walks on stage and at some point limps slightly, you think that this strong, muscular man simply overdid it at the gym. In reality, 13 years ago Yevgeny lost his leg. He had to learn to walk again, get used to a prosthesis, and live with phantom pain. But most importantly, he had to find the strength to pick up the instrument again and go on stage. He not only succeeded in that — he shared the details with correspondents of NGS.RU.
«We just went on a whim»
Yevgeny Firsov dreamed of becoming a pilot until the 9th grade, and got into music school by chance: his best friend Stanislav played the trumpet and asked him to come pick him up after an exam. Music so impressed the boy that he persuaded his friend to introduce him to the teacher.
Through trial and error, it turned out that the best instruments for Yevgeny would be the tenor and trombone. At the time, the boy lived in Irkutsk Oblast and planned to study in Irkutsk, but a former student of his teacher told him that Novosibirsk had a very strong music college. Of course, he was already expected at Irkutsk College, but youth took its toll.
«I knew absolutely nothing about Novosibirsk. When it was time to enroll, my mother and I simply bought a ticket and went to the Novosibirsk station. We got out, looked around. We didn«t know where to go or what to do. And we just went on a whim,» Yevgeny Firsov said. «We had an address, but we didn»t know where it was. We just walked from the station.»
His teacher both at the college and at the conservatory was Honored Artist of Russia Pavel Mor. The young trombonist started working from his first year, and joined the symphony orchestra of the Novosibirsk Philharmonic in 2001, where he still plays, combining it with work in the Vladimir Tolkachev Big Band.
«Don«t worry, Vlad, we»ll shape him up now»
The Siberian could never sit still: he was fond of fishing, traveled, visited Kamchatka and the Kola Peninsula. At the end of winter 2012, he got the idea to learn how to ski. He went to the Inya ski resort and rented equipment.
«I understand that the first thought in my head was: skiing is not for me. Not at all. But by the end of the day, something still caught me — I liked the speed, the snow,» Yevgeny admitted.
By the next season, he was seriously prepared: he got his own equipment and hired a professional coach named Vlad. The coach advised him to control his speed. But Yevgeny«s acquaintance Pavel interfered.
«Don«t worry, Vlad, we»ll shape him up now!» — Yevgeny recalled about the ill-fated run. — «I tried to ski down, but something happened. I realized later that most likely all my weight shifted to the inside ski. It spun me so that my left leg twisted around itself, around its own axis. That tore the popliteal artery.»
On his back, the man slid to the lift fence, hit his knees and head — at that moment the helmet saved his life. His legs were severely injured, especially the left one, which began to swell before his eyes. Yevgeny could not stand up on his own; he was lifted up using a sled and a snowmobile.
«I want to take off my boots and realize that my left calf is like a soccer ball. It turned out that blood was already gushing there,» the man said. «The ambulance arrived in 40 minutes. I«m not denying it: I fell on my own, I skied, I»m to blame. No one left me or pushed me. I fell on a flat spot. But the paramedic who arrived, in my opinion, misjudged the situation, didn«t understand the severity. She gave some injection, put on a splint and said: »Well, that«s it, let»s go.« But I can»t walk. «What, am I supposed to drag you? Find someone.» And she said it all in such a boring, calm tone. I even remember her face at that moment.»
First operation
Yevgeny was helped to the ambulance by an acquaintance. It was then, the musician recalled, that incredible pain came: without blood, the tissues began to die. The ambulance drove through traffic jams at 7 p.m. without lights or sirens. When the doctor at the emergency room cut his pants leg, the leg was already purple. A vascular surgeon was urgently called to the hospital.
The Siberian is sure that if the paramedic had correctly assessed the situation, he would have been on the operating table not closer to 11 p.m., but much earlier — and that could have saved his leg.
«If blood circulation had been restored within two or two and a half hours, everything would have been fine. But if you don«t make it, irreversible processes set in. And that»s exactly what happened,» Yevgeny shook his head.
The doctors took a vein graft from his thigh; he lost a lot of blood and suffered cardiac arrest. Yevgeny spent two weeks in intensive care: doctors checked the sensitivity of his leg every day, and only toward the end of the week did he slightly feel a pinprick.
«And I remember the words of the doctor, the head of the trauma department. He came in, looked, and said: «Oh sport, you are life! Yes.» Turned around and left,» Yevgeny said. «They promised to take me for a revision — a second operation to see what the situation was inside.»
«The surgeon said amputation is not the main problem»
On the day of the second operation, there was no talk of amputation, only revision. When Yevgeny woke up in intensive care, he found himself tied down, and a ventilator was breathing for him.
«I felt normal, I didn«t have the sensation that something was missing. But I look and realize that the blanket is strangely tucked. I see one leg, but the second — no. And then it dawns on me that it»s gone. The nurse shakes her head. I say: «What, the whole foot?» She says: «Above the knee.» I was in shock,» the man recalled.
The surgeon explained that the situation was severe and the leg had to be amputated. He added that life does not end there, and moved on to more important news.
«He said: «Amputation is not the main problem now. We have another problem: you have sepsis. Yes, blood poisoning. I won»t hide it — the mortality rate is 90%. If you don«t help us, we won»t cope. We«ll do everything we can, everything possible, everything that depends on us. But if you don»t help us, we won«t cope,»» Yevgeny Firsov recounted the doctor«s words.
For a week in intensive care, they could not bring down his temperature of 40 °C (104 °F). The doctors did everything they could, and Yevgeny admitted that in the first days he did not accept what had happened.
«If they had told me, «We»re taking you for amputation now,« I might have said, »Just finish me off right there and that«s it.» Of course, at first I didn«t accept it, but later I understood that if I didn»t accept it, I wouldn«t be able to live. I wouldn»t be able to work, walk, or exist at all,» the Siberian reasoned. «Either you give up and die, or you want to live.»
«In another profession, it would have been harder for me»
He spent three months in the hospital. At first, he tried to move on a walker — his head spun, he fell, and he could no longer lean on his left leg.
«I still feel the leg that isn«t there. The toes, foot, ankle, knee. Sometimes it hurts very badly — these are so-called phantom pains. Maybe some tranquilizers dampen it, but not painkillers — nothing helps,» Yevgeny admitted. «The brain starts sending electrical signals; it thinks the leg is there, but the signal doesn»t come back. It doesn«t understand why. And I can say that the feeling is like such an electric shock that it makes you jump.»
In 2014, the man flew to Moscow for prosthetics. There, new challenges awaited him: blood, blisters, fittings. For the entire year after the injury, the man did not pick up his instrument — he missed music, but his strength was needed for other things. He returned to the ensemble a year after the fall.
«Of course, I love my instrument,» Yevgeny shifted the trombone from hand to hand. «I think I«m very lucky in life that I got into music. And if I were in some other profession, I would probably have a much harder time.»
The Siberian describes his first feelings after a year-long break: «Did I really play this before?» But a couple of weeks were enough to remember everything. In December 2014, Yevgeny went on stage. He was nervous, but he managed.
«When you go on stage, there is always a thrill — you can«t do without it. If you go on stage and aren»t nervous, you«re wasting your time with music — it»s not your place. Without inner thrill, without a living soul, music doesn«t exist,» the musician hugged his instrument. «People usually think of the trombone as either scaring with a loud sound or burying with a mournful one. In fact, you can play anything on the trombone. Lyrical, romantic, scary, quiet — any music. The instrument»s capabilities depend solely on the musician. And timbre is also a personal marker.»
«I chose to live»
And today, Yevgeny Firsov does not sit at home. Last year, he fulfilled a long-time dream — he skydived. He admits the feelings were unforgettable. He regularly goes fishing, raises his daughter, communicates with his already grown-up son, and manages to attend hours-long rehearsals.
During the pandemic, the Siberian gained weight to 103 kg (227 lb) and started getting sick — especially his back suffered. He realized he couldn«t continue like that and went to the gym, improved his diet. Now he weighs 88 kg (194 lb).
«Many people tell me that this is some kind of feat: «You went through such a thing.» Yes, I went through it. But I don«t consider it a feat or heroism. In such a situation, the choice is always small. I chose to live,» the man emphasized.
He added that other people«s pity not only doesn»t help but irritates and hurts. Yevgeny advises to help only if asked. In general, a person with a prosthesis can handle most tasks on his own: drive a car, raise children, fight giant fish while fishing.
«To all people who are currently going through or have gone through amputation, I would like to say that our technology is not standing still. It is developing, prostheses exist, you can walk on them, you can live on them. You can do almost everything,» Yevgeny Firsov assured. «Most limitations are essentially in our heads. There are people who, with double leg amputations, climb Everest. So what more could there be to think about?»
This spring, he intends to get a motorcycle license — he only needs to pass the practical part of the exam. Yevgeny says he lives life to the fullest and has no intention of stopping, let alone getting depressed.
Last year, we told the story of an amazing 10-year-old female footballer: she lost her leg in an accident and now runs with a crutch on par with the boys.
