CHRISTOPHER CALIENDO

Hailed “a wunderkind!” by LA Weekly, composer, guitarist and publisher, Christoper Caliendo’s world music has been embraced world-wide finding equal resonance with film studios, philharmonics, chamber societies, the Vatican, the U. S. Military, virtuosi, political figures and celebrities.

His music is performed and recorded  by students and virtuosi alike and has been the subject of  doctoral dissertations. His sheet music catalog of world music for flute alone has more than 350 original compositions and arrangements made available as digital downloads.

Keith Hannaleck of Gramophone Magazine has described Christopher as, “… one fantastic guitar player … simply masterful and as fluid as humanly possible. A great composer … one of the best musicians in the world.”

GUEST: CHRISTOPHER CALIENDO

Hailed “A Wunderkind!” by LA Weekly, Christopher Caliendo is a world music composer and concert guitarist whose diverse music styles—featuring everything from Brazilian samba to Italian folk songs to American pop music to classical melodies—have been embraced worldwide, finding equal resonance with film studios, philharmonics, chamber societies, the Vatican, fellow artists, political figures and celebrities.

As a world music composer, Caliendo is considered a “best bet” by the Los Angeles Times, with more than 500 published works, many of which are standards in today’s repertoire. The complete catalog is now represented in 47 stores nationwide with additional presence in Belgium, Canada, England and South Korea. In recognition of this achievement, Caliendo has won numerous honors, including 10-time winner of the National Flute Association’s Newly Published Sheet Music Award.

Notable recent commissions for Caliendo’s work include Sherlock Holmes: Symphonic Suite, his fourth composition to be commissioned by the Pacific Chamber Symphony, which premiered March 2014 in California; Soccor, commissioned by the Dèdalo Ensemble, which will have its world premiere in October 2014 in Brescia, Italy; The Hobbit: Symphonic Suite, also commissioned by the Pacific Chamber Symphony, which will have its world premiere November 2014 in California; and Enders’s Game: Concert Band Suite, commissioned by the United States Air Force, a recording of which will release December 2014 to honor the 70th anniversary of D-Day.

As a composer for film and television, Caliendo’s accomplishments include the 20th Century Fox-commissioned soundtrack to John Ford’s 1924 silent film The Iron Horse. Called an “excellent orchestral score” by New York Times film critic Dave Kehr, the 136- minute original work was featured at 20th Century Fox’s 75th anniversary celebration in 2010, where selections were performed by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, along with music from Alfred Newman, David Raskin, Jerry Goldsmith, John Williams and Rodgers and Hammerstein. The soundtrack was also included in the Top 10 Film Scores of 2007 by Film Score Monthly magazine.

Also of note: Caliendo won the National Society of Film Critics 2007 Film Heritage Award for his work on The Iron Horse. He won the award again in 2008 for composing original scores for movies featured on 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment’s Murnau, Borzage and Fox DVD box set.

Caliendo was also commissioned by Sony Pictures to compose a new score for the 2005 re-release of Sam Peckinpah’s 1965 feature Major Dundee, which earned him the honor of being the first composer in film history to re-score a major motion picture. Film critic Leonard Maltin declared the score “A great victory!” while Grover Crisp of Sony Pictures said “[The score] is in the vein of Jerry Goldsmith or Elmer Bernstein or Alex North scores for similar pictures: Big where it needs to be, intimate where it needs to be, but really full-bodied and complex, fitting its subject perfectly.”

Caliendo has also written music for the documentary Life Is Love, which premiered at the Cinequest Film Festival in 2014, and for the TV series’ Dallas, Knot’s Landing and Paradise, for which he received an Emmy nomination in 1988.

Additional composing honors for Caliendo include the Artin Arslanian Music Scholarship for Composition; the Henry Mancini Music Scholarship; the Leonard Goldberg Music Scholarship for Composition; the Music Now Award; the Peabody Grant for Humanities; the Wilma Drama Scholarship for Outstanding Achievement in the Humanities; commissions by three state senators to premiere and perform new “chamber jazz” works at fund-raising events; and a decorative scroll from the City of Los Angeles commemorating Caliendo’s distinction as the first American to be twice-commissioned by Pope John Paul II for the Vatican’s “Encounters of Sacred Contemporary Music Festival” in Rome, Italy, where he debuted The Mystic Saints, a two-hour drama based on four of the Catholic church’s most enigmatic pioneers in Western spirituality.

As a concert guitarist, Keith Hannaleck of Gramophone magazine has described Caliendo as “one fantastic guitar player…simply masterful and as fluid as humanly possible…[one] of the best musicians in the world.” He has performed with many Hollywood luminaries, including Larry King, Linda Hamilton, Ron Perlman, The Manhattan Transfer and Walter Koenig, and was selected by Bob Hope to be the featured performer for his 90th birthday celebration. He is also a recording artist for major film studios on movie soundtracks and currently tours his world music with the Caliendo Trio. Caliendo is endorsed by Kevin Ryan guitars, performing on the model “The Mission Grand,” and has numerous CD recordings.

In addition to being a world music composer and concert guitarist, Caliendo is also a guest speaker, teacher, conductor, performer and master-class technician at major universities and other venues. His motivational seminar, “Composing Success,” based on his substantial knowledge of the music industry, targets both composers and performers who wish to establish self-reliance and accountability, knowing their creative actions are in alignment with their creative purpose.

Caliendo’s love of music began at an early age, playing guitar at age 9 and composing music at age 14. He is a graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music, the University of Massachusetts, Lowell, and the University of California, Los Angeles, where he received a Master of Fine Arts in music and graduated magna cum laude.

Arielle Ford is a love and relationship expert and a leading personality in personal growth and the contemporary spirituality movement. Arielle is a speaker and the producer and host of Evolving Wisdom’s Art of Love series. Her mission is to help people find love, keep love, and most importantly, be love. Arielle is the author of 11 books including the international bestseller, THE SOULMATE SECRET: Manifest the Love of Your Life with the Law of Attraction. She also just created the world’s first transformational coloring book based upon her Soulmate book. Further, she is the author of Turn Your Mate into Your Soulmate, devoted to exploring a simple and effective way to achieve groundbreaking shifts in perception so you can embrace and find the beauty and perfection in yourself and your mate. She lives with her husband, Brian, and has been called “The Fairy Godmother of Love.”

Arielle Ford is a leading personality in the personal growth and contemporary spirituality movement. For the past 30 years she has been living, teaching, and promoting consciousness through all forms of media. She is a celebrated love and relationship expert, author, speaker, and is the co-creator and host of Evolving Wisdom’s Art of Love series. Her mission is to help women Find Love, Keep Love and Be Love.

As the president of The Ford Group, Arielle was widely recognized as America’s foremost book publicist and was instrumental in launching the careers of many NY Times bestselling self-help authors including Deepak Chopra, Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Neale Donald Walsch, don Miguel Ruiz, and Debbie Ford.  Arielle was the publicist for dozens of other top selling authors such as Wayne Dyer, Marianne Williamson, Louise Hay, Gary Zukav, Dean Ornish, Joan Borysenko,  Jorge Cruise, and don Miguel Ruiz. She is retired for the PR & marketing.

Arielle is a gifted writer and the author of eleven books including the international bestseller, THE SOULMATE SECRET: Manifest The Love of Your Life With The Law of Attraction (published in 21 languages and 40 countries).

She has also written many groundbreaking books including Turn Your Mate Into Your Soulmate: A Practical Guide To Happily Ever After and Wabi Sabi Love: The Ancient Art of Finding Perfect Love in Imperfect Relationships, and  Turn Your Mate Into Your Soulmate.   Her latest book is Inkspirations, Love By Design: Coloring the Divine Path to Manifest Your Soulmate, the world’s first transformational coloring book.

A long-time “Student of Love,” Arielle regularly presents workshops around the world including England, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Kuwait, Canada, Romania, Ireland, Austria and Bali as well as personal growth centers such as Omega Institute, Kripalu, The Chopra Center, Esalen, Alternatives in London, AwesomenessFest, Celebrate Your Life, and many other prestigious venues..

Arielle has been called “The Cupid of Consciousness” and “The Fairy Godmother of Love.” She lives in La Jolla, CA with her husband/soulmate, Brian Hilliard and their feline friends. 

DOLLY RAMIREZ and JJ SCHOCH as COOLHOUSE

CoolHouse is an L.A. based indie folk duo, Dolly Ramirez and JJ Schoch.

Dolly Ramirez is a vocalist/songwriter and Owner/operator of Divine Rebel Music, a music promotion company.  Jean-Jacques (JJ) Schoch is a composer/multi-instrumentalist.  Together, they are the Americana duo, CoolHouse.

Though born in Mexico, Dolly grew up in Los Angeles, raised on the passionate sounds of Ranchera ballads and other Spanish music. From the time she was a little girl, she loved to sing and knew that was all she wanted to do. 

She eventually found her way to Aretha Franklin, Etta James, Led Zeppelin, Janis Joplin, Whitney Houston, Patsy Cline. Determined to hit every note, she had no idea she was working out and developing those muscles. In time, she got over her debilitating stage-fright when her partner JJ encouraged her to attend and perform Open Mics and local music jams.  

Dolly’s voice has been described as having the power of Linda Ronstadt, the soul of Aretha Franklin, and the vulnerability of Brandi Carlile.  She now performs all over Los Angeles with CoolHouse, and as a vocalist in multiple music projects. Dolly loves supporting the music community through Divine Rebel Music, creating intimate and fun opportunities and venues for local musical artists.  

An accomplished composer producer, arranger, and songwriter, Jean-Jacques (JJ) Schoch has been involved with music, in one way or another, since he was very young. Raised by musical parents from Switzerland, Jean-Jacques grew up in Bethesda, Maryland outside of Washington D.C., where he studied cello, piano, bass and music composition. While living in the Washington area, he played in traditional orchestras and string quartets, as well as bands playing eclectic blends of jazz, funk, rock and bluegrass.

A modern-day Renaissance man… musician, writer and inventor, Jean-Jacques is at his core a passionate, gifted composer. Blessed with European charm and a wonderful sense of melody, he is fluent on piano, electric & upright bass and guitar. As a singer/songwriter, Jean-Jacques paints offbeat stories delivered in his distinctive vocal style.

JJ has recorded with the Gap Band (on Bass) co-written music with Maurice White of Earth, Wind and Fire, and performed live opening up for Stevie Nicks, Crosby, Stills and Nash, Jackson Browne, Stevie Wonder, Linda Ronstadt, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Taj Mahal, and Gil Scott Heron.

“I have been drawn to the beauty of music since I was a young boy learning to play piano and cello, and started composing and songwriting since I was 12.

CoolHouse plays all over Los Angeles, and performs in a monthly residency called Roadhouse Series Presents at the infamous Coffee Gallery Backstage in Alta Dena, CA.

JULIE POTIKER

Author and mindfulness expert Julie Potiker is an attorney who began her serious study and investigation of mindfulness after graduating from the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program at the University of California, San Diego.

She was trained by Kristin Neff, Christopher Germer and UCSD as a Mindful Self-Compassion Teacher. She went on to study with Rick Hanson, becoming a graduate of his Positive Neuroplasticity Training Professional Course.

Potiker also completed Brené Brown’s Living Brave Semester. Now, she shares these and other mindfulness techniques with the world through her Mindful Methods for Life trainings and her new book: “Life Falls Apart, but You Don’t Have To: Mindful Methods for Staying Calm In the Midst of Chaos.”

She holds a B.G.S. from the University of Michigan and a J.D. from George Washington University.

VOLKAN CAN CANBOLAT, Ph.D., aka “VOLKAN THE VIOLINIST”

Volkan Can Canbolat hails from Izmir, Turkey, where he began his violin studies at the age of ten at the Dokuz Eylul State Music Conservatory, continuing his studies at the Conservatory until his graduation in 2011. 

Can’s concert performances have taken him around the world, from his original Turkey to Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Pakistan, Israel, Italy, Portugal and the United States. His worldwide performances have included solo recitals, chamber music and appearances as a soloist with orchestras. Can Canbolat holds Masters and Doctorate degrees from the University of Minnesota School of Music.

He currently serves on the violin faculty at the renowned music conservatory in Los Angeles, the Colburn School. 

MATTY B WOOOO

We all need a Guardian Angel at some point in our lives, but we never know when our Guardian Angel will show up. In my case, she showed up just in the nick of time.

NO CASUALITIES

If you happen to be standing at the FUBAR CROSSROAD of your life, not knowing which direction to go, you can either have a drunk driver hit you head-on at sixty miles an hour or come along with me on my journey from loser to embarking on the road to recovery. If I could do it, you can do it.

A NEW OPPORTUNITY

It took a sixty-mile-an-hour, head-on collision with a drunk driver, when I was twenty-five and waking up ten days later from a coma, massive memory loss, debilitating paralysis and excruciating pain to find myself standing at my FUBAR CROSSROAD. Fortunately, God gave me a do-over.

CYNTHIA BRANDO

Cynthia Brando is a Los Angeles singer songwriter with a recognizably unique voice, which has been described as “equal parts silk and Stevie Nicks.” Cynthia has developed a connection with fellow musicians and appreciators as a performer all across the Los Angeles region and beyond-sharing her unique “vintage vibe” powerful vocals and steady acoustic folk rock rhythms in clubs, homes and as a street performer.

She has played notable shows at House of Blues in Hollywood, music festivals and has completed her second tour across the country.

Cynthia is the founder of Music Emerging-a site dedicated to the emotional well being of people in the music industry. She has been published as a guest writer on the music sites “Music Clout,” and “Music Industry How To,” and has received honorable mentions for her music in the Songdoor International Songwriting Competition and the American Songwriter Magazine Lyric Contest.

Cynthia is a 2017 recipient of a Hemera Foundation Fellowship Award for her music. Her new album, “The Treehouse Trio Sessions” was released in June of 2018 with positive national and international reviews. Music Connection Magazine included it in their “Top 20 Prospects of 2018” list.

“I have lived in Los Angeles now since the end of 2013 when I moved from a quiet Northern Californian town where I had a rural lifestyle. I moved here in my late 30’s to do something musical with my life. I wasn’t exactly clear on what form that would take-but my heart always gravitated towards music. I was not born a musician. It took me a very long time to reach the point where I felt good enough to make such a big move. I also came up against many emotional roadblocks in my life that stopped me from following my dreams.

My life has completely changed when I moved to one of the major musical capitals of the world. There are continually MANY challenges, but I get to do something I love every day in the form of writing, performing, recording, traveling and so much more. 

In these years, I have performed in many venues, festivals, homes, and as a street performer-I started a project-Music Emerging, where I devote time to the emotional well being of my fellow colleagues in the music industry with my blog, workshops, life coaching and other resources. 

I hope to inspire others to work through any fears they may have that stand in the way of their own dreams. I’m excited about sharing my music and stories with others on this fascinating path of the creative and working musician!”

ELAINE T. SILVER, ESQ.

Elaine Silver is a peaceful divorce attorney and mediator.  She helps families heal.  She practices yoga and gardens to maintain her own balance.

Elaine is a “holistic” Collaborative lawyer and mediator, a peacemaker.  She advises clients to be at their best while moving through divorce. 

She is President of the Florida Academy of Collaborative Professionals.  FACP is the umbrella organization of Collaborative divorce attorneys, counselors and financial experts in 16 Collaborative divorce communities throughout the state of Florida.

She has represented some “rich and famous”, including Carl Icahn’s first wife.  In Connecticut, where she practiced for the first half of her career, she tried and won the case that awarded the highest alimony and support award given to that time.

Elaine graduated with honors from New York University School of Law.  Elaine has been a visiting professor in family law at law schools in China, Connecticut and Florida. 

Knowing the devastation of a litigated divorce, even when her client “wins”,  Elaine encourages all families to take the route that Jeff Bezos just followed—peaceful, private Collaborative divorce.  Elaine speaks frequently to professional and lay audiences on “How To Have a Good Divorce.”