Cal lives with his wife in Santa Fe and plays jazz drums and shoots photos in the surrounding area. Cal uses the art of improvisation learned from more than 35 years of playing jazz when creating his views from inside the music. Each digital image evolves according to the energy and feelings present at the moment–the way a musician would develop a solo. His goal is to deliver the essence and intensity of a live musical performance in visual terms. Cal’s dynamic sense of drumming, rhythm, and knowledge of song forms play into finding the right shot at the right time. He is a drummer who doesn’t stop making music when he picks up the camera.

Already an accomplished percussionist, Cal studied photography at Memphis State University and built a dark room specifically to create one-of-a-kind photos of musicians he admired. By the time he returned to this passion after raising a family and 20 years as an Equipment Engineer in the high-tech Semiconductor industry, the digital age was in full swing. Cal had the technical skills and drive and went digital with the muse. His work is in private collections in California as well as on exhibit at Tizzy Lish in Sparks, Nevada, and at Portland Alterations in Portland, Oregon. Cal has designed a cover for a book about traveling around the world with Elvis Presley, being printed for release later this year.

He has also displayed his pieces at the Loretto Chapel Artisan Corner and the Los Alamos Spring Art Show. Currently he is being featured as a new artist at m-etropolis.com (see the link page for details and passage to the site). Cal’s original vision also sparked an innovative use of an image that will appear on the face of a custom guitar. In 2007, Cal returned to Santa Fe to continue his drumming and photography careers.

A few other facts about Cal’s musical background that figure in the photo mix: Drafted and later toured the southwestern US with a USO show. Music scholarship to Tennessee’s Memphis State University where he played a concert under the direction of Aaron Copeland. Worked in Memphis for musical contractor, Ernie Bernhart and performed with such diverse acts as Diahann Carroll, Rich Little, Bob Hope, Charlie Rich, Ray McKinley and the Modernaires, Al Greene, Danny Thomas and the St Jude’s Telethon, Clark Terry, Marvin Stamm, Yul Brenner in the “King and I,” and the Memphis Symphony. Performed at Opryland Theme park and the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. In Orange County, played in local clubs and performed with Llew Mathews, Teddy Edwards, Max Bennett, and Jim Gordon. Performed with Emily Remler, Bobby Shew, Dee Kelly, Richie Cole, the Albuquerque Jazz Orchestra, Real Time Quartet, and concerts sponsored by the New Mexico Jazz Workshop and the Outpost Performance Space. Played with the New Mexico Symphony, the Santa Fe Symphony, and the Santa Fe Desert Chorale.