How to Enjoy Tanglewood Without Breaking the Bank

The Shed at Tanglewood (photo by Stu Rosner/courtesy BSO)

(LENOX, Mass.) – A visit to Tanglewood can sometimes seem like a major financial investment, with Shed seats topping out at over $100 apiece for some concerts. But the kind folks at the Boston Symphony Orchestra make it a point to offer plenty of ways for everyone, especially year-round Berkshire residents and families, to enjoy the Tanglewood experience throughout the summer.

During the 2011 season, June 25-September 4, Tanglewood is offering a number of ticket programs designed to give visitors and Berkshire residents a wide variety of options when planning their visit to the BSO’s summer home. Ticket deals and programs include free tickets to children and young adults 17 and under and discounted tickets for students 18 and over; the Family Concert on August 20, which costs $10 for adults and is free for children and young adults under 17; the $50 Clark and Tanglewood ticket promotion and the $50 Norman Rockwell Museum and Tanglewood ticket promotion, offering discounted access to each Berkshire institution; new $10-$30 reserved-seating Saturday Morning Rehearsals; and the Grass Pass, offering discounted lawn admission to all classical concerts during the 2011 Tanglewood season. Tanglewood also offers year-round Berkshire residents a special Berkshire Resident Season Lawn Pass for $75, offering discounted lawn admission to classical concerts during the 2011 Tanglewood season. Detailed information about these programs is available at Tanglewood.

Tanglewood, the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s summer home since 1937, is located in the Berkshire Hills between Lenox and Stockbridge, MA.  The 2011 Tanglewood season opens June 25 with Earth, Wind, and Fire and closes with the annual Tanglewood Jazz Festival, September 2-4. The Boston Symphony will celebrate Tanglewood ‘s 75th anniversary season in 2012.

Free Lawn Tickets for Children and Young People 17 and Younger

Tanglewood’s Children’s Lawn Ticket Program provides free lawn seating to children and young adults aged 17 and under. All concert attendees, with the exception of young children under age three, need to have a ticket. Up to four free children’s tickets are available per parent/legal guardian per concert at the Tanglewood Box Office the day of the concert.

Student Discounts

For students 18 and over, Tanglewood offers 50% discounts on lawn tickets for Friday-evening BSO concerts. Students can obtain a lawn ticket by presenting a valid student ID at the Tanglewood Box Office on the night of the performance.

Tanglewood on Parade 2008 (photo by Hilary Scott/courtesy BSO)

Family Concert

On August 20, 2011, Tanglewood will present its annual Family Concert featuring returning artists Classical Tangent. Tickets for the Family Concert are free for children aged 17 and under and $10 for each adult and can be purchased at the Tanglewood Box Office, online at Tanglewood or through SymphonyCharge at 888-266-1200.

$50 Clark and Tanglewood Ticket Promotion

Tanglewood and the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute are offering a $50 ticket package that includes two lawn tickets to Tanglewood classical concerts, typically priced at $19 each, and two tickets for admission to the Clark, typically priced at $15 each. The ticket package is designed to make it easy and affordable for visitors to take in a variety of experiences while enjoying the scenic Berkshire Hills. Tickets for the $50 promotion may be purchased through Tanglewood online at www.tanglewood.org or by calling SymphonyCharge at 888-266-1200; tickets can also be purchased through The Clark website at Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute or by calling 413-458-0524.

$50 Rockwell and Tanglewood Ticket Promotion

Tanglewood and the Norman Rockwell Museum are offering a $50 ticket package that includes two lawn tickets to Tanglewood classical concerts, typically priced at $19 each, and two tickets for admission to the Rockwell, typically priced at $15 each. Tickets for the $50 promotion may be purchased through Tanglewood online at Tanglewood or by calling SymphonyCharge at 888-266-1200.

Saturday Morning Rehearsals

Saturday Morning Rehearsals take place on Saturday mornings at 10:30 a.m. throughout the Tanglewood season. Rehearsals provide an inside view of the final preparations before a performance, and give patrons an opportunity to see the conductor, soloists, and orchestra work together in an informal setting, as well as learn more about the program through pre-rehearsal talks. New this season, Saturday Morning Rehearsal Shed seats are reserved/ticketed seating only, not general admission. Tickets range from $10-$30 and can be purchased at the Tanglewood Box Office, online at Tanglewood or through SymphonyCharge at 888-266-1200.

Grass Pass

The Tanglewood Grass Pass allows patrons lawn admission to all classical concerts that take place during the 2011 Tanglewood season, including 22 Boston Symphony Orchestra concerts, 3 Boston Pops Concerts, Tanglewood on Parade, and performances by cellists Yo-Yo Ma and Alisa Weilerstein, violinists Joshua Bell, Gil Shaham, and Nikolaj Znaider, and pianists Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Peter Serkin, Leon Fleisher, and Emanuel Ax. The Grass Pass, priced at $200, is a non-transferable photo ID pass that needs to be purchased in person at the Tanglewood Box Office.  Patrons can purchase the Grass Pass at the Tanglewood Main Gate Box Office beginning June 17.

Lawn Pass Books

Lawn Pass Books, which include 11 undated lawn tickets, provide patrons flexibility when planning which concerts to attend through out the summer. The tickets are valid for all regular and specially priced BSO concerts and Pops concerts in the Koussevitsky Music Shed and Ozawa Hall, providing a wide range of concert experiences. Lawn Pass books are available for $180 through June 24, and $190 after June 24. Lawn tickets are individually priced from $9-21.

Berkshire Resident Season Lawn Pass

The $75 Berkshire Resident Season Lawn Pass can be purchased by year-round Berkshire County residents of Massachusetts, and allows lawn admission to all classical concerts that take place during the 2011 Tanglewood season. Patrons can purchase this photo ID pass at the Tanglewood Main Gate Box Office beginning June 17 with a valid Massachusetts license.
Blackout dates for all ticket deals include Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keillor (July 2), James Taylor (June 30, July 1, 3, and 4), Earth, Wind, and Fire (June 25), Steely Dan (July 26), Train (August 8), the Tanglewood Jazz Festival (September 2-4), and any other Popular Artist event.  For all Popular Artist concerts, free lawn tickets are only available for children younger than 2.

Tanglewood Patron Perks

Tanglewood ticket buyers can also take advantage of a number of free amenities and perks offered at Tanglewood. Perks include a free pre-concert panel discussion series called “This Week at Tanglewood” on Fridays at 7:15 p.m. in the Koussevitzky Shed, and free hour-long walking tours of Tanglewood’s grounds and performance spaces daily. Friday-evening Prelude Concerts, at 6:30 p.m. in Ozawa Hall, feature BSO musicians in small ensemble and chamber music settings. Saturday-evening Prelude Concerts, July 9-August 13, at 6:30 p.m. in Ozawa Hall, feature Tanglewood Music Center fellows in performance. Admission to Prelude Concerts is free to all BSO concert ticket holders.

“Talks and Walks,” a series of informal conversations presented by guest artists and members of the BSO family in the Tent Club on Thursday afternoons, begins with a talk at 1 p.m. and a guided tour of the grounds at 1:45 p.m.  To purchase tickets, available at $17 each or $102 for a full series, call 617-638-9391.

 

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