Vita Nova Live
UD hospitality, music students collaborate to bring performances to restaurant guests
4:11 p.m., April 22, 2016--The Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics’ Department of Hotel, Restaurant and Institutional Management (HRIM) at the University of Delaware emphasizes not only practical application of business and interpersonal skills, but collaboration skills, as well.
Vita Nova, the Lerner College’s on-campus student-operated restaurant, is home to a number of interdisciplinary collaborations that build these skills.
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In one such example, UD Honors sophomores Camilla Daniel and Ben Rossman started the Vita Nova Live concert series in an effort to both showcase student performers from the Department of Music and create an event-focused environment in which HRIM students can hone their skills.
The series started last semester as a class project, but has since evolved into a popular event amongst guests and a hands-on learning experience for Vita Nova’s students and the student musicians.
“Playing at Vita Nova is a great experience for me, as I hope to perform for a living after graduation,” said Frank Sokolovic, a junior music management major and jazz bassist. “I anticipate playing in restaurants and nightclubs frequently, so this definitely allows me to get a feel for what it will be like.”
“As a freshman, it’s tough to find venues to play at to gain experience and exposure,” freshman clarinetist Stephanie Schrader added. “But Vita Nova Live offers that environment in front of a very engaged audience to help with any nerves.”
Venka Pyle, director of operations at Vita Nova, said that Vita Nova Live “allows our student staff to understand the challenges of service with special events like this.”
“Timing and flow have certainly been a learning experience for all of us involved in this project, but all of our students have handled it well and learned how to handle these problems as they arise,” Pyle continued.
Vita Nova Live creator Daniel explained that because the collaboration is student-driven, both HRIM and music students have been willing to participate.
“We’ve had an overwhelming amount of support, not only from the professional staff at Vita Nova but also from our fellow students,” she said.
“An incredible number of music students are interested in performing, and all of the hospitality students currently enrolled in the dinner class have gone above and beyond to help make this project a reality.”
Pyle said that Vita Nova Live’s third event of the semester on Friday, April 15, was an overwhelming success, adding that within minutes of reservations opening for the event, every table had been reserved.
“I received over 100 calls for reservations on that day alone,” Pyle said. “We could have sold out that event four times over.”
Acts for the night included Sokolovic and Tom Warnock performing jazz standards, UD a cappella group Vocal Point, and Matthew Hubner, a senior music management major who performed a mix of covers and original songs.
The final Vita Nova Live event of this semester will be on Friday, May 6, at 5:30 p.m.
Reservations are required. To reserve tables for the event, call 302-831-0500 or email vitanova@udel.edu.
The schedule of Vita Nova’s special events for the fall semester will be released in early June.