JOURNALISM
Dave Calkins - Publisher/Editor
Dave Calkins works in a diverse mixture of art forms including music, film, photography, visual arts, and publishing. He is active as a virtuoso guitarist, singer, conductor, and composer. He is owner and CEO of the production and distribution company Ancova International and also is publisher/editor of the online publication Pousto Media which covers the Arts, Culture, Health, and the Environment.
As a singer, he has performed on National Public Television, National Public Radio, on more than two dozen recordings, and has performed nationally. He was a leading singer for a world premiere performance featuring the internationally acclaimed Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts. He was featured as a singer and conductor on the album “Grand Opera on the Great Plains” at the NAMM conference in Los Angeles. He performed a solo concert at the National Choral Conductors Conference in Jackson Hole Wyoming and was leading tenor at the Denver Opera Company. He studied at the Manhattan School of Music with renowned tenor Charles Bressler and subsequently with Metropolitan Opera tenor and Grammy award winner George Shirley.
As a conductor, he has performed at the National Conductors Conference in the first staged performance of the choral opera “Wind in the Willows” by John Rutter and was featured on National Public Radio with the Scottsbluff Chamber Ensemble. He conducted numerous concerts with Orchestra 21 and produced recordings and videos with that group. He conducted an album of opera arias that was featured by the Yamaha corporation and is currently conductor of the Ancova International Orchestra which records film soundtracks using acoustic and electronic instruments.
As a composer/arranger/performer he has produced works across multiple genres. His output includes songs, film scores, operas, stage shows, and arrangements. He brings an eclectic blend of forms to his compositions and arrangements and expresses his respect for a variety of styles which include western classical, Asian classical, jazz, rock, blues, folk, and flamenco. He has released more than two dozen recordings as a solo artist, collaborator, and producer. His music has been featured numerous times on National Public Radio, National Public television, dozens of recordings, and in multiple concerts. He has performed three times at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, twice as guitarist-composer and once to debut his original musical theater work "Precipice," in September 2008.
As a filmmaker/photographer/visual artist, he has directed, produced, written and composed music for more than two dozen films. He creates feature films, experimental films, and music films. His first film “Wilderness Journeys” was shown in continuous rotation on National Public Television from 2001-2004 and played in all 50 states and the Virgin Islands. His other music films include "Journey to the Passage," which was partially shot in Yellowstone Park, and "Music of the Isles," which was filmed in England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. He produced and composed music for Dr. Anne Talbot's film "Bosnian Spring: Transformation of Cleansing," which was shot in Sarajevo and debuted at the International Seminar on Psychological Trauma at the University of Denver. His first feature film “Alexandra the Great" was released in 2005. His feature “Debut the Road to Carnegie Hall” was the first film to ever be released at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall and he was featured in performance at that event. He also creates experimental films which display graphic images, photography, and abstract video combined with music. He was founder and Executive Director of the non-profit Ancova Empowerment Project from 2015 until 2022, and produced multiple film and music projects with at-risk young people for that organization. He has created thousands of paintings, drawings, graphic works, and sculptures that often appear
in his films.
In 2018 he started the online publication Pousto Media which covers the Arts, Culture, Health and the Environment. Pousto features award winning writers and journalists that explore current events and trends.