Past Event: Common Ground Bluegrass Band Coffeehouse Concert
Saturday May 14, 2022
1100 Celebration Ave.
Celebrity Room, suite 101
Moneta, VA 24121
SMAC Members $10
Non-Members $15
About the Band
Common Ground Bluegrass Band isn’t a fresh new face on the bluegrass circuit by any means. The band began over 30 years ago, right here in our hometown of Moneta, and has traveled the United States and Canada spreading their music all over, while winning many awards along the way.
Not only has the band made their name in Traditional and Modern bluegrass, but so have the members themselves.
Sargent Terry Mills of the Air Force has been playing Bluegrass Banjo for over 30 years and assists with Tenor harmonies. Currently a teacher at Patrick Henry High School as a ROTC teacher, along with being the Golf Coach- he somehow finds all the time to play Bluegrass Music and does a fantastic job at it too!
On the Upright Bass, and baritone vocals Daniel Pruitt has been a professional bluegrass musician for over 40 years! His stage presence has been called Wild, Electrifying, and High Octane! We like to call it just his personality! You never know if he will walk off stage with his Upright and mingle around the crowd while playing or put on quiet a flat footing performance during a great Bass solo! He keeps even his band mates guessing!
Switching between Fiddle, Guitar along with lead and harmony vocals on most shows we have Laura Ellis Maxfield– playing for over 18 years at just 26 old now, Laura has carried on the family tradition by placing at numerous competitions in Fiddle, along with winning 1st place Guitar at the 2021 Maury River Fiddlers convention along with the Gene Burus award for the Best All-around Bluegrass musician.
This takes us to the heart of the band and the leader of the band Mr. Ricky Ellis– playing mandolin since he was 9 years old, and winning WORLD CHAMPION Mandolin player FIVE TIMES beginning at the age of 14 years old! Ricky has traveled the US playing bluegrass music, and even began as a child with his family band BG Express (also a World Champion band!)
Common Ground brings an entertaining, family friendly, high powered Bluegrass performance right to the stage. Loving the Bluegrass music native to our area, along with the tradition of entertaining allows for a fantastic show everyone will love!
