Temple University Alum John Oates Shares “A Day in the Life” On Tour Oates and industry colleagues David Haskell, Anthony Aquilato and Phil Nicolo ‘77 kick-off Klein College Visiting Artists Series
The Visiting Artists panel (from left to right) David Haskell, John Oates, Anthony Aquilato, Phil Nicolo meet up with Joe Tarsia (bottom left), former owner of Sigma Sound.
Philadelphia, PA (November 18, 2019) … Rock and Roll Hall of Famer John Oates returned to alma mater, Temple University, to kick off the Klein College of Media and Communication’s Visiting Artists Series with “A Day in the Life” On Tour. Along with long-time industry colleagues Anthony Aquilato, David Haskell and Phil Nicolo, Oates shared insights with those in the Temple community interested in the music industry.
The panel was the first in a series of talks by artists and industry professionals who want to share their knowledge with future leaders in the entertainment industry. Both John Oates and Daryl Hall were working on their music careers while attending Temple University, and Oates was happy to impart some wisdom about the realities of the touring life with current students.
“I’m so happy to see that Temple is offering courses and programming to students about the live event industry,” says Oates. “A lot more goes into it than people realize, and I appreciate getting to share some of my experiences as the first artist in Klein’s Visiting Artist Series.”
David Haskell, president of Morris Light and Sound, shares his insights with Temple students.
Oates brought along several friends to join him on the panel and further explain their sides of the business. As a longtime front-of-house engineer and manager, Anthony Aquilato emphasized the importance of gaining versatile skills to put on a great live show. Founder of Philadelphia’s Studio 4 recording studio, adjunct professor at Klein College, and Temple alum (‘77), Phil Nicolo stressed taking any and every opportunity to learn more about the business and technical sides to the music industry.
President of audio and lighting production company, Morris Light & Sound, David Haskell stressed that people who are enthusiastic to work in the music industry need to be prepared for its challenges. Because of his experience on the business side of live events, he also challenged students to think about pursuing technical roles, including audio engineering, lighting and more.
“It’s always a pleasure to have an opportunity to speak with young people who have an interest in our industry,” Haskell says.
Temple students welcome the first panel in the Visiting Artists series.
The Klein College of Media and Communication is committed to preparing students to enter careers in live sound and production. In 2019 Klein College was the first higher education member to join the Live Event Association of Pennsylvania, and the university is currently building a state-of-the-art version of the famed Philadelphia Motown studio, Sigma Sound.
The college recently launched a Music Media Entrepreneurs program and plans to add courses aligned with the live event industry. The Visiting Artists Series was developed to kick off this program, with the first live events curriculum class about live sound running set to launch next fall. The college continues to seek advice and input from professionals in the live event industry on its evolving Music Media Entrepreneurs program. For more information, please contact Karen Gallagher, Asst. Dean, Development at karen.gallagher@temple.edu or 215-204.5276.
