Life & Work with Benjamin Tomkins of Denver

Today we’d like to introduce you to Benjamin Tomkins.

Hi Benjamin, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I grew up in Dayton, OH, the home of Paul Lawrence Dunbar and the Wright Brothers. Orville once quipped, “If I were giving a young man advice as to how he might succeed in life, I would say to him, ‘Pick out a good father and mother, and begin life in Ohio'”. He’s right. I had both, as well as a wonderful school orchestra program, inspiring violin teachers, a stellar youth symphony, and of course, the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra—so I became a musician!

I got my MM in violin performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music at Case Western in ’05, and I’ve performed performed professionally for over two decades, including with the Charleston Symphony Orchestra, Colorado Ballet, Colorado Opera, the Colorado Bach Ensemble, and the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music. As an educator, I’ve served as the Director of Strings Attached, a non-profit arts organization in Englewood, CO that brought lessons to 120 students in the district, conductor of the Colorado Youth Symphony Orchestra, and I’m currently a Guest Artist with the Denver School of the Arts. I also spent time teaching in Haiti during 2017, and as a composer, I’ve had my music performed on concert stages across the US and in Europe. I guess my wife’s right: I have trouble focusing.

Behind the scenes, I also had another life that ran parallel to my main profession. I’ve always been a writer, and my work has appeared in publications by academic journals, media organizations, and many other professional outlets. I had a wonderful teacher in high school who encouraged me, so I just kept at it. I’m currently the Senior Writer, Editor, and Content Manager for the digital marketing agency Em Dash Content Studio, and those skills have been incredibly helpful for various administrative roles I’ve filled over the years. It’s a part of why I was appointed Executive Director of the Colorado Bach Ensemble in 2025, and I’m incredibly honored to be working with such an esteemed group of talented artists.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
There have been plenty of bumps. I met my wife in Cleveland, and when we graduated, we both hit the professional orchestra audition circuit. We won full-time jobs with the Charleston Symphony in South Carolina, which was the dream… but quickly realized that it wasn’t the life we wanted. I guess you don’t know if you really want your dreams until you achieve them, right?

So, we rolled the dice to come to Denver because we had a few friends in the music scene and it seemed like a cool city. My wife was able to land a contract with the Colorado Symphony, and I wrote music, played concerts, and did non-profit work. Everything was going well, but 8 years ago I was run over by a car on a scooter at 13th and Broadway here in Denver. Don’t feel too bad: I was on a 50cc scooter painted like the Italian flag wearing pink shorts and red boat shoes—I would have run me over too! I shattered about 30 bones including all the ribs on my right side, collar bone, femur, and had to have my right hand reconstructed. 0 out of 10 don’t recommend, and not a great move for a violin career. I spent a week or two in the hospital, several months recovering in a chair, and had no idea if I was going to be on disability for the rest of my life waiting for my wife to come home at night from another concert, I’d never be able to play. Oh, and we just bought a house…

As the months went on, things changed. I learned to play again, hold my bow differently, and got randomly called to play with the Colorado Ballet and Opera Colorado. These turned into some of the most fulfilling personal and professional relationships of my life, and I’m incredibly proud to be associated with both organizations. Then one day, an old friend call out of the blue asking me to do some writing for this spunky writing startup called Em Dash. It turned out to be a great fit, and it’s blossomed into a writing career I never, ever had on my radar.

The truth? I think I’ve worked hard and I love people, but I’ve also been unbelievably lucky. I owe an everything to my family, friends, colleagues, and of course my beautiful and talented wife Robyn. I can’t count the number of times a casual interaction became a polestar that guides my life today. I’ve been very blessed to have such wonderful people cross my path.

And of course, the dog. Obviously. She’s pretty great.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
As a writer, I specialize in digital marketing and creating digital content and strategy for arts organization. I’ve had the opportunity to work with inspiring clients on the for-profit side, and it’s been a pleasure to adapt those principles and techniques for arts organizations like Orvieto Musica—a three-week intensive performance festival for emerging professional musicians set in a gorgeous hilltop city in Umbria. We’ve been able to put them #1 on Google for “Italian chamber music festival” and their scope expanded in 2025 to present the inaugural Orvieto Leadership Summit, featuring Nobel laureates, a former Prime Minister of Belgium, Harvard’s top AI team, and global business and arts leaders from around the world. Full credit to Executive Director Kim Walker, her vision, and the team she put together—absolutely amazing. I did all the interviews and participated in the summit, and it was profoundly humbling to spend time with such extraordinary people. If you’re tired of listening to talking heads lecturing at Davos, OLS might be the breath of fresh creative and intellectual air you’re looking for. And I’ll tell you a dirty secret—Tuscany gets more press… but the food is better in Umbria.

We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
We’re all struggling with a work/life balance, but if you make your work about others, you’ll have a beautiful and fulfilling life along the way. I love people, I’m inspired by great artistry and authentic lives, and it’s a privilege to help make their journey easier and more rewarding. Something I think it’s easy to lose is that leadership is not about sitting on a throne and holding court. You’re in the service industry—you’re cooking on the line. That means answering awkward emails, making tough decisions, and digesting the daily stress so the people around you can perform at their absolute max without worrying about how the sausage is made.

If you’re going to step into these roles, I’d say commit yourself to putting the people around you first and leading by example. I didn’t figure that out paying $30k a year for my MM for sure. I learned it working in a coffee shop in Five Points at minimum wage plus tips for one of the most insightful business owners and community leaders I’ve ever met, and you know what? I still think about the lessons I learned from him to this day.