University of Virginia Library

Fioravanti Describes Trials
In Scheduling University Concert

By Fred Hebtech

"Many people are critical of the
job done by organizations here in
providing entertainment. They just
don't realize how difficult it is to
arrange a concert," said Joe
Fioravanti, president of the PK
Society, yesterday.

The concert this weekend will
be "excellent entertainment," but
"many people, disappointed by
rumors which failed to materialize,
will not attend and will blame the
PK-German society for not
providing a more attractive show,"
said Mr. Fioravanti.

The featured artists, Hugh
Masekela and John Sebastian, are
first-rate entertainers, he said; but
as one official of the University
Union said, "People won't come
even if it's a good show, because
they aren't familiar with the names.
Hugh Masekela is an excellent
musician with a jazz style, and
anyone familiar with the Lovin'
Spoonful knows John Sebastian's
talents."

Student support plays a large
role in the decision of which groups
to try to bring to the University.
One official of the Union said, "If
we could count on student support
here we could conceivably get
almost anyone." He added that
student support here is "normal."

Few people realize the enormity
of the task of arranging a concert,
or the difficulties encountered and
the hard work involved. The people
who carry out this task are largely
unapplauded for their efforts. They
face the difficult job, as Joe
Fioravanti, the president of the PK
Dance Society, put it, "of trying to
be a peoples' man in musical taste,"
and "trying to please as many
people as you can."

In planning concerts, the
societies try to vary the type of
entertainment presented. They try
to avoid presenting successive
"soul" concerts or "rock" concerts,
and concentrate on attempting to
satisfy all the musical tastes at the
University. Once they decide on
type of group they want, the work
is begun to find a particular group.

One of the main problems in
finding an act is what Mr.
Fioravanti called the "availability"
of a group. The concert dates are
fixed as much as a year in advance,
and many times a desired act
already has an engagement on a
particular date. Since the date is
inflexible, it may be impossible to
get a certain group.

Another problem often
encountered is the "deliverability"
of a group. 'Some groups only play
in certain part of the country; Herb
Alpert and the Tijuana Brass for
instance rarely play in the east.
Sometimes groups are on tours
which keep them in one part of the
country and find it impossible to
come to Charlottesville. Some acts
also have the bad reputation of just
not showing up for a concert.

All this work is usually done
through a large agency, which may
handle many acts. This presents the
problem of a middle man, but these
agencies hold a bargaining power
with the entertainers much greater
than that of a single college.

Once a group is termed both
"available" and "deliverable," an
offer is made, a price is settled on,
and a telegram, which is a verbal
commitment by the sponsor, is
sent to the act. All this is begun as
much as three months in advance.

However, even after the
contracts are signed, it is still not
certain that the group will really be
at the University. Almost every
contract contains a "30-day"
clause, and an "act of God" clause.
The first is a loophole by which an
act may cancel if it receives a better
offer, and the latter is used when
circumstances beyond its control
make it impossible for an act to
appear.

The "act of God" clause was
used recently by Sly and the
Family Stone, scheduled for a
concert on IFC Weekend. The
University Union received a letter
from a doctor stating that one of
the Family Stone had had a bladder
operation which was "healing
slowly," and that the group
wouldn't be able to appear.

The Fifth Dimension was
originally scheduled for this
weekend. The group was contacted
in November, and signed by
December, but insisted that the
"30-day" clause be in the contract.
The agent insisted that it was just a
technicality and that the group
hadn't used it in over two years.
According to Mr. Fioravanti, the
agent "swore up and down" that
the group would appear at the
concert. On January 21, one day
before the clause expired, the Fifth
Dimension cancelled to go on the
Ed Sullivan Show. This left Mr.
Fioravanti in the middle of his
exams with finding a replacement.

Groups cancel for many reasons.
One group signed three months in
advance may settle for a price lower
than the price it could get it during
that period its popularity rises. One
example of this fluctuation
occurred when Glenn Campbell was
here last year before his enormous
rise in popularity.

Considering all the difficulties
involved in sponsoring a concert,
many people ask, "Should there be
one central agency at the University
responsible for providing
entertainment?" John Herring, the
Director of Newcomb Hall, who
serves as a coordinator between the
various organizations and helps the
organizations with their problems,
says he favors having one agency.
He feels it would "serve as a
clearing house for all this monkey
business." An official of the Union
said it would "improve