City's free concert series expands

Milton’s ‘Bands on the Blackwater’ concert series will be lengthier with the upcoming fall lineup and an added performance n Nov. 4.

MILTON — Regular attendees of  the city’s ‘Bands on the Blackwater’ free concert series can expect more concerts and a little more variety, according to a city official.

During last week’s Milton Community Redevelopment Agency meeting at city hall, the council approved a recommendation to further expand the popular concert series’ fall lineup with a Nov. 4 concert.

Previously, the concert series was scheduled to end in October.

While regular attendees will continue to listen to classics from the 1960s and 1970s, along with country music, Parks and Recreation Director John Norton said The Astronauts will provide music from a different era. The band’s performance has not been finalized by the city at this moment.

“We are going to advance to the 80s and 90s and see where it takes us,” Norton said. “They definitely draw in a huge crowd when they perform at Pensacola’s ‘Bands on the Beach.’

The added variety can potentially attract a new demographic to the free community concert series.

Norton said the latest extension is nothing out of the norm for the concert series.

“When we started doing this we had four concerts; we are at 19 right now,” he said.

Norton said he envisions the concert series to further expand each year, due to the amount of attendees each concert attracts.

In addition to drawing a crowd in front of the main stage, attendees are also regularly spotted viewing the show from boats on the Blackwater River.

The fall lineup of the concert series is scheduled to begin with music from Oliver’s Twist. Each concert is scheduled to take place from 7 to 9 p.m. on South Willing Street in downtown Milton. 

This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: City's free concert series expands