BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Two groups of Bethlehem Area School District students on Friday unveiled a specially sourced lineup for this summer's music festival, offering innovative classes focused on developing real-world marketing skills. has been completed.
As part of Marketing Music Fest, a partnership between ArtsQuest and Bethlehem Area School District that focuses on the practical application of marketing skills, students booked several performances for perhaps the Lehigh Valley's biggest attraction.
And inside the Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas at ArftsQuest Center, students from Freedom and Liberty High Schools announced the lineup for the Plaza Tropical Stage.
“All the nuances of how you book a band, how you market a band, and how you do it on the scale of a musicfest.”
ArtsQuest Chief Programming Officer Patrick Brogan
They also answered questions from the public about the process of locking down these bands for a show scheduled for Aug. 3 at noon.
“This program, now in its 12th year, provides real-world experience by educating Freedom and Liberty high school students on the basics of concert promotion, how to book a band, how to market a band, and all the other nuances. How do we do that on the scale of Musikfest?'' ArtsQuest Chief Programming Officer Patrick Brogan said at the beginning of Friday's announcement.
“And we give them the task and responsibility of booking bands for Musikfest and getting the word out, just like our team of experts here at ArtsQuest do every day.”
lineup
To kick off the event, Liberty was able to book a close drive. According to a Liberty news release, they are a “dynamic rock band known for their high-energy performances and infectious melodies.”
performed at noon, followed by Ghosts of the Mill, “the personification of guitar rock enhanced by an earth-shaking rhythm section,” and at 1 p.m. with Erin Kelly, “her expert guitar playing. and powerful vocals that define her country/rock roots.'' ” — concludes with a 2 p.m. set.
Freedom's lineup includes Miauna Persson, winner of Freedom's Great Musicians and Entertainers contest who will make her live debut at the festival, at 3 p.m., folk rockers Surfing for Daisies at 4 p.m., and indie alternative at 5 p.m. The costume Just Say When follows.Finishing off at 6 p.m. with the group Wynton, “psychedelic rock and jazz with a touch of hardcore punk and grunge influenced by Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix and the Doors.”
Both schools offered students the opportunity to learn the ins and outs of booking bands and all the work that comes with it through their Marketing Musikfest classes.
This includes selecting artists, negotiating contracts, hiring marketing and public relations skills, and arranging social media exposure for the band.
Brogan said the program will greatly help students use their project management skills and work on negotiation, communication and detail work.
It can also be about finding ways to deal with variables you can't control, such as how to meet deadlines and budgets, or what to do if your first choice doesn't work out.
Boost Bethlehem Schools
Bethlehem Schools Superintendent Dr. Jack Silva noted that the district believes in “strong community relationships” and said, “We are fortunate to have a festival like Musikfest in our district.” .
“And I'm proud that our students can support that and make it an academically important adventure for them as well,” Silva said.
“So I always go to those bands. I'm looking forward to Plaza Tropical and August and Musikfest starting.”
“This event is always one of my favorites because we talk about Musikfest, now we talk about summer, and now we talk about the good life here in Bethlehem Area School District and our community. It’s from.”
Bethlehem Area School District Superintendent Jack Silva
“This event is always one of my favorites because we talk about Musikfest, now we talk about summer, and now we talk about the good life here in Bethlehem Area School District and our community. It's from.
“And most of all, I would like to thank the students who made this course possible.”
Liberty senior Matthew Kopetsky said he treasures the time he spent with Brogan and the rest of the ArtsQuest staff, especially when explaining the details of the reservation process.
“He explained how you can actually reach out to these bands using mobile websites like Sonicbids,” Kopetsky said.
“We also worked with the marketing staff and she showed us how to post social media ads on Instagram, Facebook, and all types of social media.
“And we voluntarily created wristbands and various social media accounts to help promote the bands of our choice.”
Students' experiences
Students from both schools said there were some difficult elements to the process, including finding the right tackle for the festival atmosphere and negotiating performance pay. “It took us a long time to find the perfect band that made us think, ‘Wow, this is our band!’ It took a long time, but I think that was probably the hardest part,” says Freedom student Brenden Enriquez said.
“Of all the elements involved in this, the hardest part was marketing, advertising, creating the logo, visiting different people within the school, putting up flyers around the building, things like that. I think it was,” Freedom student Tierra Chestnut said.
One of the biggest challenges, students said, was looking beyond their own personal preferences when selecting performers for the festival.
“We weren't just thinking about what we wanted to play at Musikfest, we were also looking at other people and what they expected from Musikfest,” said Freedom student Mia Taylor. “I was aiming at it,” he said.
“So you have to take that into consideration when choosing a band.”
Nevertheless, all of the students said that learning about these elements of business was a welcome opportunity, and several of them said they immediately intended to put those new skills to work in their own independent businesses. Ta.
