From Temptations to Tour de Ville

by Stevie Daniels

Managing a performance by The Temptations was a headliner for Carlos Barata ’14, a singer and songwriter himself who ranks the famed Motown group—one of the most successful in music history—among the top on his fan list. As an intern for ArtsQuest, Bethlehem, Pa., last summer, he worked directly with artists, negotiating and reviewing contracts, and assisting with production, grant writing, and hospitality under the guidance of Patrick Brogan, senior vice president of programming. He also worked in corporate relations, interacting with sponsors, new businesses, and writing proposals.

Barata helped manage the organization’s biggest event—Musikfest, promoted as the nation’s largest non-gated free music festival. “One of the most exciting aspects was being backstage for Ke$ha, OneRepublic, Darius Rucker, and Avenged Sevenfold,” he says, after having spent weeks negotiating contracts, preparing stage sites, compiling tech books, writing blog posts, developing proposals, and dealing with on-site activations and interactions.

With his love for music, people, programming, and event planning, Barata chose an internship beyond the typical scope of his majors in music and anthropology & sociology. “Choosing to do an internship for credit allowed me to further the depth of my curriculum. It was both a complement and supplement to my academic
experience.”

Barata says he paired his knowledge and analytical skills with creativity, attention to detail, and organization. “I incorporated some of the logic and rhetoric I learned in courses,” he adds.

“I enjoyed watching the daily progress of the construction of the Sands Steel Stage as well as other venues on the festival grounds. It was even more incredible to see it all disappear within a few days at the end. It’s like magic. That word defi nes a music festival—it’s truly a magical time. I am so thankful to have had a hand in creating that experience for people.”

Above all, he adds, the internship solidifi ed his career plans. “It reinforced the idea that this is what I want to do with my life—music event planning, programming, and management,” he says, adding, “I also learned that I am able to handle this business.”

Barata, who is a head resident adviser and arts marketing assistant, is instilling his inspiration and knowledge into a distinctive senior capstone project for his music major. He’s spearheading a new senior-week activity called Tour de Ville, in which teams of students will explore the campus and Easton.

So, “get ready ’cause here I come.”