Frequently Asked Questions

Why are your ticket prices lower than those of other concert series?
We deliberately set our ticket prices a notch or two lower than the prevailing rates, to make them as accessible as possible to our audiences. We view the audience as our friends, and want to maintain long-lasting relationships with them.

But do the lower prices mean that the artists are of lesser quality?
By no means. Our artists are of the top rank, including such artists as Sarah Chang, Richard Goode, the Beaux Arts Trio, the Emerson Quartet, and the Tokyo Quartet.

Why are your concerts only in the spring, and not the fall?
When we founded the organization, we had very little money for advertising and promotion, and decided that we could have more of a “presence” if we spent our precious dollars in a shorter space of time. That principle still holds, and now that we are servicing three cities, it would be a major undertaking to expand our concerts to a full 8-or-9 month season.

Why is the Full Series so inexpensive?
Attending nine concerts between February and May is a real commitment, and we want to make it as attractive as possible—we hate empty seats, and love to gain loyal subscribers! Time and again we see subscription forms where the patron starts out choosing four or five concerts and then, when they realize that for only $20 or $30 more they could see all nine concerts, they scratch out their previous order and choose the Full Series.

How can I get the best seats?
The first step is to subscribe: that is, buy a package of four or more concerts. When we do the subscriber seating, we try to be as fair as possible, and to honor seating requests as available. In terms of priority, we seat our major donors first, then our Full Series subscribers and smaller supporters, and then our returning patrons, based on how many seasons they’ve been with us. New subscribers gain seating priority based on how early they subscribe. Single ticket buyers might get good seats, but it's a matter of availability and luck.

What is your ticket exchange policy?
Subscribers can exchange tickets to other performances, pending availability, with no extra fee: you pay only the difference in ticket price, if it is higher.

I bought a subscription—does that get me any other discounts?
Yes indeed, this is a major perk. You can buy unlimited additional single tickets to any performance based on your subscription rate. For example, if you buy the Full Series at $29 per concert, you can buy as many additional seats as you like at any concert (regardless of its regular price) for only $29 per seat!

Why do you have so few program notes and pre-concert lectures?
This is a matter mostly not of philosophy, but of practicality. We put all our time, energy and funds into the actual presentation of artists.

Why do you need donations?
Like most nonprofit concert series of our size, we earn only 40% of our income from ticket sales and the other 60% must come from contributed support. If you like what we do and want us to succeed, please consider helping us with a donation.