Moonlight and Music in Paradise

If you’ve ever wondered how the Paradise Community Hall could be so busy, just thank Glenn Miller. Well, sort of. Thank Benny Goodman too.

The Big Band era giants have inspired many of today’s musicians, and a handful of them happen to make up the Annapolis Big Band that holds a community hall benefit concert every year at Ellenhurst in Paradise.

The Moonlight Concert in Paradise is set for August 14 this year, and by 7:30 p.m. Ellenhurst, the spacious estate of Linda and David Hankinson, should be packed with hundreds of locals, visitors, and tourists ‘in the mood’ for 1930s and ‘40s big band and swing tunes. The spirits of Miller and Goodman are no doubt present as the music begins. They always seem to be.

While it may have started out as an annual get-together for band members, friends, and family, the Moonlight Concert has become so popular over the past decade that it has evolved into one of the premiere events of the summer, earning it a provincial tourism award several years ago.

Those attending offer a donation at the gate, and many bring lawn chairs, picnic hampers, umbrellas (although there is a rain date), blankets, and a fondness for good music and an atmosphere that takes them back to a different time.

Not coincidently, the dozens of volunteers who park cars, transport concert-goers to the park-like setting to the south of the Hankinson home, tend the gates, and help behind the scenes are mostly the same volunteers who keep the community hall going.

In Paradise, the community hall has become a focal centre in recent years. Those volunteers do it all and bring in everything from dance classes and quilting sessions to exercise groups and community social functions.

“Each year the Moonlight Concert donations provide the bulk of the funding for operations of the Paradise Community Hall,” said concert host David Hankinson. “As a result of the Moonlight Concert, the hall has been able to provide a focus for the community, offering a number of programs for all ages.”

The hall is booked most days of the week, and its success is directly proportional to the community’s financial ability to maintain it.

“The Moonlight Concert brings the community together in another important way,” said Hankinson, “in that many in the community are involved in setting up and running the Moonlight Concert.”

He said local businesses have been very supportive in a sponsorship role which allows most of the donations collected at the concert to go directly to programs and hall maintenance.

The Annapolis Big Band had its origin about 18 years ago when some members of the Annapolis Basin Community Band wanted an opportunity to play tunes in the style of the Big Bands of the 1930s and ‘40s.

“While players have come and gone over the years it is interesting to note that there are still five of the founding members still playing in the Annapolis Big Band,” said Hankinson.

The Big Bands of the past had a fairly standard format consisting of five saxes, four trombones, four trumpets, and a four-piece rhythm section consisting of piano, bass, guitar, and drums -- and sometimes a singer. This is the format used by The Annapolis Big Band.

The music played by the  band reflects arrangements played much the same way as the well-known bands of the earlier era. Some of the better-known tunes from the era such as In The Mood, Little Brown Jug, String of Pearls, and Sentimental Journey will be on the program along with many other wonderful tunes.

The Annapolis Big Band will play four sets with a short intermission between sets.

The August 14 Moonlight Concert runs from 7:30 to 11 p.m. with onsite free parking and admission by donation. The property is smoke free. Don’t bring pets, but Hankinson suggests you do bring lawn chairs. The rain date is August 15.

Ellenhurst is on Highway 1 on the west edge of Paradise.

By Lawrence Powell

The Annapolis County Spectator

August 5, 2010