Club Free Time Blog

Membership Has Its Privileges

Gail Wein
October 29, 2014

If you like free concerts - and hey, who doesn’t? - you'll be interested to know about some of the venues in New York that offer free concerts to those who pay an annual membership fee.

Americas Society asks for $100/year (there are discounted memberships for students and seniors), and in exchange offers free admission to all of their Culture programs, including around twenty concerts throughout the season (non-members usually pay $20). Their offerings coming up include concert pianist Ana Cervantes (November 17), Brazilian new music group Camerata Aberta (December 11), and early music from Peru by The Bishop's Band (December 29). Most of their performances are held in the crystal-chandeliered salon of their gracious building at 680 Park Avenue (The Bishop's Band performance is at Trinity Wall Street). There's often a reception free for members after the performance, where you can meet the performers and enjoy a sip and a schmooze.

Le Poisson Rouge, the Greenwich Village hotspot, offers several membership levels, beginning at $50 per year. They guarantee at least ten free events each month. (You'll still need to purchase a minimum of two food or drink items if you're seated at a table). Plus, they give away a pair of tickets to every show to members. Another perk is the members table - it's open to all members at every show, so if a show is almost sold out and you get standing tickets, you can still have a seat at the members table. Free For Member shows coming up are Terry Reilly's "In C" (November 4), "The Threepenny Opera" (November 16) and concert pianist Chad Lawson (November 23).

Roulette in Brooklyn offers an All-Access membership for $250 per year. This membership is well worth the bucks if you're a regular at Roulette - you'll get in to every show at Roulette for free. There are lower-priced membership levels which include some free entry passes and discounted tickets, too. John Zorn's Cobra (November 29), the inimitable Henry Threadgill (December 4 and 5) and Annie Gosfield with JACK Quartet (December 7) are a few of the many performances coming up in the next few weeks.

Not really a membership program, but also of note to younger music-lovers: The New York Philharmonic has just begun Philharmonic Free Fridays. They're giving away 100 free tickets to every Friday evening subscription concert, to folks age 13-26. You can reserve your ticket online beginning on Monday the week of the concert, or show up on the day of the concert to snag one of a limited number of tickets that the box office holds. Either way, all tickets must be picked up at the Avery Fisher Hall box office, and you'll have to show your ID. Box office pick-up hours are 5:30–7:30pm for 8:00 p.m. concerts and 5:00–7:00pm for 7:30pm concerts. Performances coming up feature violin soloists Joshua Bell (November 14) and Hilary Hahn (November 28) and a Dvorak Festival program (December 12).