Olivera Music

Connie Olivera, a professional pianist, and her tuba/bass player husband Kevin, started their music booking agency in 1987. Connie explained that she and Kevin have been operating their business since the day they decided there was a demand in the Greater Washington area for a service-oriented music entertainment agency. “We were (and still are) professional musicians and we knew several musicians and the corporate clients who hired talent for their events,” explained Kevin Olivera, “so we started to match up the talent with the clients. For the past 26 years, we have been successfully brokering music talent for our clients from our home in Ashburn.

The new Salamander Resort & Spa in Middleburg and the National Conference Center in Leesburg are two of the Olivera’s many Loudoun County clients, but their long list of satisfied clients includes most of the major corporations and organizations located throughout the Greater Washington area, including both the Republican and the Democratic National Committees; they arranged the musicians for the Official Inaugural events for both of President George W. Bush’s inaugurations and have performed for President Obama.

When we interviewed Connie and Kevin Olivera in October 2013 for this special profile, they had just completed a successful event at Mount Vernon – the opening of the new Fred W. Smith Library for the Study of George Washington. Kevin explained how Olivera Music Entertainment has worked with the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association for many years. When the Association began to plan this special opening event for their exciting new library, they called on Olivera Music Entertainment to provide and manage the music entertainment. “We worked with them for sev- eral months, helping them plan how music would be an important part of the festivities, especially for the Gala celebration,” said Connie Olivera. “We arranged a fife and drum unit to greet the guests, plus an 8-piece swing orchestra for cocktails, dinner, and dancing. We also booked a strolling string quartet for the luncheon the following day, held after the official grand opening.”

“As with most of our clients’ special events, the Association looked to us to help make music an integral part of the grand-opening event. We are known throughout the entertainment industry in the Greater Washington area for our expertise and hands-on management of the music entertainment for special events,” Kevin explained.

In addition to working closely with their clients, about 50% corporate and 50% social, such as weddings and bar/bat mitzvahs, Olivera Music Entertainment also distinguishes itself by the way it works with musicians. “Too often,” Kevin said, “musicians are left guessing about the necessary and basic arrangements of an event. That does not happen when they work with us.”

Several days in advance of every event, whether that’s a wedding for 500 guests at one of Washington’s grand hotels or a cocktail party at the boss’s home for twenty of their employees – and every other event that needs music entertainment – the office sends an email to the performers with precise details on the event – when to arrive, where to park, contact names and phone numbers, the performance times, special music requests – no detail is left out of the email.

Both of the Olivera’s mentioned their special relationship with the pool of more than 1,000 musicians and musical groups they regularly work with. As Kevin noted, “Our musicians appreciate how we make it possible for them to concentrate on what they do best, entertaining our clients. We take care of our musicians. As professional musicians ourselves, we know how important that is. We also know that if we take care of them, they will, in turn, take care of our clients. The musicians perform for other booking agencies and they tell us no one else does what we do – for them as musicians and for the clients for which they perform.”