Caryn Justice: Executive Producer, Lead Singer, Songwriter

Caryn Justice takes the stage bridging two worlds, music and law.  After serving the special needs community for 23 years, she shared her passion for music and healing by writing and recording with her record company, Healing With Music.  Caryn Justice studied vocal technique at the Grove School of Music.  She trains professionally with Rene Urbanovich.  Recently, she began studying performance technique with Grammy Award nominated vocalist Ilene Graff, and ASCAP Award winner Ben Lanzarone, and appeared in their salon showcase with other emerging artists.  Caryn Justice served on the Board of Directors of a local childrens’ musical theatre company for three and a half years.  She loved watching hundreds of children come alive with song and dance. The Power of the Mother Album is designed to inspire and honor parents, siblings, and caretakers of special needs children by healing with music.  Caryn volunteered as an Honored Guest Host for the 2015 Special Olympic World Games in Los Angeles.

Professionally, Caryn Justice is an attorney, a certified mediator, and a state Administrative Law Judge.  Caryn Justice graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and Southwestern University School of Law, and studied at the National Judicial College.  Caryn Justice in an instructor at a major law school, teaching fair housing litigation skills involving the rights of the disabled, and she is a contributing author of its new curriculum and content.  Caryn Justice served on the Superior Court Juvenile Dependency Panel, representing children and families in the foster care system for over six years.  Caryn Justice was appointed a state Administrative Law Judge over ten years ago.  She has mediated and presided over thousands of cases, and written judicial decisions concerning special needs children and adults. 

In her spare time, Caryn Justice enjoys spending time with her family, photography, hiking, downhill skiing and cross country skiing in the Eastern Sierras of California.

Rene Urbanovich:  Vocal Production and Voice Coach

Rene Urbanovich is a voice instructor, creativity instructor, singer, songwriter, recording artist, and author.  She studied at the Grove School of Music and earned a Singer/Songwriter Certificate.  Rene holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Creativity, a Master’s Degree in Humanities, and a Post Secondary Learning Certificate.  Rene has professionally trained with medical doctors, speech pathologists and other top industry session singers to develop proper vocal training techniques.  Rene is the creative director of singer showcases webcast at Kulak’s Woodshed.  Rene has published Maternallyours, a beautiful collection of short stories inspired by her own adventures in motherhood.   Rene’s creativity, inspiration, positivity, love and encouragement were instrumental to the creation of this album. Her website address is creativityadvocacy.com.

 Frank Josephs, Munchkin Studios: Keyboards, Engineering, Co-Arranging

Frank Josephs, the Principal of Munchkin Studios, has years of experience in music writing, producing, engineering, mastering and editing.  He studied jazz at the University of Miami School of Music, and he studied classical composition and piano performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music.  Frank has composed music for children’s albums, and won two Parent’s Choice Awards for Best Children’s Album.   As a composer, Frank has worked on high profile projects for American Idol, Dr. Seuss- The Lorax, P.S. I Love You, Love Guru, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, Love Guru, Storage Hunters, Fox News Channel, Fox Sports, Muzak, Warner Brothers, MTV Music Television, Nickelodeon, NBC, and the Weather Channel.  Frank has performed and recorded with the Dazz Band, the Dixie Dregs, Steve Vai, and Zapp and Roger.

James Lum:  Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitar, Mandolin, Banjo

James Lum performed upon two Grammy winning CDs with Sesame Street (Best Childrens Recording 1998 and 1999).  He has toured and recorded with James Ingram, The Buckaroos, Sheena Easton, It's a Beautiful Day, Al Jarreau, Dolly Parton, Peter Frampton, Celine Dion, Seals and Crofts, The Diamonds, Al Green, "Grease" the musical, Jim Carey, Ren and Stimpy, The Angry Beavers, Sesame Street, Jimmy Neutron, PF Sloan, The Chordettes and Patti Austin.

 Eric Valentine:  Drums/Percussion

Eric Valentine has toured and performed with former TOTO member and legendary guitarist Steve Lukather, and superstar artists Patti Labelle, Erykah Badu, Stevie Wonder, Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull), Doug Aldrich, Jonathan Butler, Stephanie Mills, Dionne Warwick, Patti Austin, Jeff Lorber, David Benoit, Gerald Albright, Kirk Wallum, Maysa Leak, Regina Bell, Chris Botti, Everette Harp, Eric Marienthal, Nick Colionne, Najee, Yolanda Adams, David Pack, Darryl Coley, Mindi Abair, Everette Harp, Wayman Tisdale, Rick Braun, Peter White, Steve Weingart, and many others.

Kris Feldman: Background Vocals, Flute

Kris Feldman is a voice instructor, a credentialed music educator, a singer, and a flautist.  She earned her Bachelor of Music at Indiana University, and studied classical flute with Harry Houdeshel, classical and jazz voice with Eileen Farrell, and jazz studies with David Baker, the head of the Smithsonian Jazz Institute.   Kris is a seasoned performer on television and radio, and was the lead singer of several bands, ranging in style from Folk, Dixieland, Jazz, Pop, Rock, Progressive Rock, and Indie.  She describes herself as “a classically trained jazz musician who sings rock and teaches at a musical theatre school.”  She was a featured singer on the Academy Awards, technical category, with Laura Dern.  Kris has recorded commercial jingles and CDs, and is a BMI songwriter.

Gabe Witcher:  Fiddle

Gabe Witcher is a fiddle player and singer.  He is a Grammy nominated record producer, arranger, session musician and a founding member of the critically acclaimed string ensemble, the Punch Brothers.  As a producer, he was nominated for a Grammy in 2013 and 2015 for Bluegrass Album of the Year, and won 2014 IBMA Album of the Year.  Gabe Witcher played fiddle on Roseanne Cash’s The River and the Thread, which won three Grammy Awards. His film and television scores include the Hunger Games, Brokeback Mountain, Cars, Toy Story, Nashville, True Detective, Better Call Saul, and Sons of Anarchy.  Gabe has appeared on records with Paul Simon, Eric Clapton, Beck, Willie Nelson, Neil Diamond, Roseanne Cash, John Denver, Bette Midler, The Chieftains, Travis Tritt, Leanne Womack, Dwight Yoakum, and Fiona Apple.  He toured with Kenny Loggins and Jim Messina, and the Dave Rawlings Machine.  He appears courtesy of Nonesuch Records.

Roslyn Justice: Background vocals

Roslyn Justice is Caryn Justice’s daughter, and is a talented soprano.  She debuts on two songs on this album.  Roslyn has studied vocal technique with Rene Urbanovich for four years.  Roslyn Justice has performed as Papagena in the Magic Flute, and nine children’s musical theatre productions, including The Sound of Music, Peter Pan, Annie, Alice In Wonderland, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, The Music Man, Beauty and the Beast, Oliver and The Wizard of Oz.  Roslyn Justice has performed at the Rockwell Table and Stage, and Kulak’s Woodshed.  Roslyn Justice was a performing member of her high school show choir team, which competed at regional, state and national showcases.  She loves working on the technical aspects of the competition, especially lighting and costuming.