Bargemusic

Bargemusic is a gem. The quality of the music is top-​notch and the talents who perform there really let themselves be carried away by the music they play. The space is cozy; the small room, the dark-​wood panels and the lighting give an intimate feeling. My husband and I took the ferry there and the boat was right by the dock. I have read comments about the wobble but hey, you are listening to chamber music on a boat. The once-​in-​a-​while wobble added to the charm. The crowd is absolutely polite and respectful. My husband and I did not have any problems with reserving and finding our seats. For the price of $ 35 per seat, Bargemusic is a lovely, romantic and easy escape from the bustle of the city.

This place is just so darling. Small intimate space for some great classical music. Recommended for dates. Location is great as you can go for a nice walk afterwards to/​through the park that lines the water.

waves and classic music… well. what can be better! i love this place and all concerts!!! last time we were listening Cello Concert. omg. pure meditation and relax!!!

This is one of the few places in New York where you can enjoy a free performance by world class classical musicians for free. The intimate and unique venue is a beautiful 100-​foot steel barge, built in 1899, and served much of the last century as a working vessel in the New York harbor, delivering hand-​loaded sacks of coffee for the Erie Lackawanna railroad.
On Saturdays at 4 pm, admission is free for a one hour show.

Had a lovely date night attending a concert at Bargemusic last night. I got tickets from the bf for Christmas, which was much to my excitement as I walk by this place all the time but never knew much about it.
Tonight was a showcase of contemporary classical pieces, performed mostly by soloists. It was a great group of musicians and a very interesting selection of compositions. The barge interior is a pretty intimate space and I appreciated that each performance was preceded by a few words from the musician, and on a few occasions, from the composers who happened to be in attendance.
You will notice the sway of the facility bobbing on the East River currents, but unlike other reviewers I didn’t find this to be a deterrence. The music was exciting and lively, and the view behind is gorgeous, so it didn’t really bother me to be occasionally reminded that we were in a floating building. The facility isn’t exactly in the best shape (it’s no Radio City after all) but I’m guessing they probably could use a bit more funding but just don’t have the same visibility as other, bigger concert venues.
Noticed in the program that Bargemusic offers great student and senior discounts for concerts, and that they even offer free family-​friendly performances on Saturday afternoons a few times per month. I am hoping I can come back when the weather’s nicer to attend one of these shows.
Definitely recommend this as an off-​the-​beaten-​path NYC/​Brooklyn experience!

Classical music in the covered section of a barge. What’s not to love. The performance was really fun — an actor read a comedy interspersed with a violinist and quartet playing music related to the story. It takes about 2 hours total.

We were so immensely impressed by the quality of the performance of this string ensemble and the Violin soloist Peskanov. Peskanov is also the Director of the venue but his playing is world class. Google him. He also has a conspirationally charming stage presence. Stop reading my gibberish and just go!

This is one of those only in New York places. Someone decides to buy an old barge, moor it on the Brooklyn waterfront with a fabulous view of the Manhattan skyline, and present classical chamber music concerts. Why? Why not? I enjoyed the slight rocking motion from the waves. As a friend said, you can feel tipsy here without the bar tab.
I was privileged to hear a concert devoted to the fabulous music of David Del Tredici, with the composer himself performing the piano in one of them. The works, one for solo guitar and the other for voice and piano, were entitled Love Addiction and Fatal Attraction – is there a theme here? Both were engrossing, eminently listenable, and beautifully performed. Plus you are close to the performers – this is an intimate space.
My only tip is get here by walking across the Brooklyn Bridge or taking the East River Ferry to Dumbo Park, steps away. It will enhance your evening.

beautiful venue, i saw the very talented Gilles Vonsattel on the piano with my sister and it was a phenomenal experience. the one thing is that i do get a little bit of motion sickness, so i was eating mints the entire time to keep my mind off of it so i could truly enjoy the mindbending acoustical experience.

I went for my anniversary with my boyfriend on the night of Bach’s solo violin sonatas and the performance was exquisite. It was a brother sister duo and they were really wonderful. The venue itself is pretty intimate — nice lighting, big windows towards the front which provide a nice cityscape view under the Brooklyn bridge and a nice area on top of the barge that you can hang out at before and after the performance as well as during the intermissions. It was pretty romantic since the overall location is right on the water, lots of cutesy urban landscaping to walk around in, an outside wine/​drink bar a few feet away from the barge. Word of caution though — it can get extremely hot in the barge… I was damn near sweating towards the end and the weather outside was only about 65 (and I rarely sweat!) Also, you might not want to drink before getting on the barge, especially if you’re not sure of your propensity to become seasick. Other than that, make sure you get your seats early (and up front!) and enjoy this wonderful gem for classical (or in this case baroque) music lovers! Perfect date night spot for music aficionados.

Jabba the Hutt’s sail barge did feature music but I can assure you that the Max Rebo band did not appear last night.
Both Bargemusic, the Brooklyn based floating music hall, and Star Wars debuted in 1977. Jabba’s sail barge can comfortably hold 500; Bargemusic, 130. Laser cannons are found on one of the barges, not both.
Docked at the Fulton Landing quite close to the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory, Bargemusic provides a venue for classical music that is unique amongst the City’s many performance space: you are on a barge floating in the East River so you will earn your sea legs. Any time a larger wave generating boat passes by, be prepared to brace your self for an incoming assault of bobbing up and down. The musicians take it in stride and continued performing as if they were on land.
The space is intimate. If you are in the first row you may very well be hit by the cello player’s bow. The feel is as if you are in a private living room as opposed to a concert hall like Lincoln Center. Intimacy also means you’ll be in close, closed quarters with 129 other people.
I recommend arriving early to secure your seat because there’s not much room to navigate once the seats have filled up. A bathroom is available on the barge.
The performance of Vivaldi’s «The Four Seasons» was crisp and well executed; the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto no. 2 inspirational and the Carmen Fantasy a trip to Andalusia. It was like having a chamber symphony orchestra in my living room, the creation of live music a welcome antidote to the digital distance of portable music devices or other recordings. Unfiltered, uncut, a totally raw sonic experience that was transmitted straight to my ears and stirred the emotions.
Unlike other venues, I did not hear an overabundance of coughing from the audience.
So arrive early, prepare for the boat to be rockin’ and embrace the classical tradition that is alive and well within these walls. Maybe one day Sy Snootles will appear after all…

If you’re looking for a non-​traditional classical music experience, here it is. Those with motion sickness need not apply! The boat will rock a bit, but if you’re not bothered by it, it’s pretty fun. In the middle of our Beethoven quartet, it started raining, and the echo over the hull was magical. When we went, there was no problem getting in at the door, and there was plenty of seating available.

You may get sea sickness. The music is a bit too new agey for me, but the experience was great

I like Bargemusic, but it’s not for everyone. First of all, if you are even remotely susceptible to motion-​sickness, you should avoid this venue.
I’ve been here four times in the last three years or so. So it’s fair to say I’m not a regular. But nor have I only gone to one performance either. I would say it’s been 2 for 4, as far as satisfying experiences go. When Bargemusic is bad, it feels like I’ve just paid $x to go see an open rehearsal. Twice I’ve seen programs that were so unpolished I have to wonder whether the musicians are simply sight-​reading for us. In my mind that is unacceptable.
I will think twice before spending my music dollars at Bargemusic again.

Performed here for the first time. Nice location and nice idea of having a concert hall on a barge, but it was a close call making some «barf“‘music if one is not used to the «gentle rock» of the boat. The acoustics are on the dry side. There are only two bathrooms to accommodate 60+ audience + performers.

Came here as a small group of four for the HERE and NOW series of music by contemporary composers. Warmed with wine and full with our lovely dinner from AlMar, our group was happy and receptive to the wonderful performance by Philip Edward Fisher at the piano with his unusually long, nimble fingers and acute sensitivity. The feeling of the venue was a cozy and pleasant respite from the cold, rainy night, with it’s spacious interior of ruddy wood, the gentle rocking of occasional waves rolling underneath, and the view of the lit up skyline through the large picture windows behind the piano.
The performance was exceptional, and one could sense that the pieces were played with great personal affection and delicacy. Mr Fisher also took some time to talk about the nuances of each piece before he played it, which rounded out the experience of the music.
We had reserved our space prior, and the venue had our spaces waiting for us, with calligraphic «reserved» signs in our friend’s name in the second row, a nice touch.
Altogether a very enjoyable evening.

Seriously disappointing. So disappointing, it prompted me to write my first Unilocal review ever!
My fiancé and I attended the piano & cello concert on ⁹⁄₁₇. It seems the seating is first reserved, first served — people in line behind us to pick up their tickets were seated way in front of us. This would have been good to know — I would have reserved my seats sooner, and not arrived early to pick up tickets.
Terrible customer service: An OBNOXIOUS, rude, and unhelpful woman made a huge show of running around acting like she was working hard seating people according to some list she had, while just snapping at everyone and screwing up directions — my fiancé and I watched her direct people to the wrong seats countless times (my drama-​trained fiancé pointed out that she apparently was directing people to stage left, instead of actual left. Sometimes. Oy.) The box office opened more than HALF AN HOUR late, which means a crowd of disorganized, cold, anxious people were standing on an unsteady dock for 45 minutes with absolutely no updates or apologies. And obviously, the show didn’t start on time.
Horrible venue: Yeah, the view is nice. But it’s hard to concentrate on nice music when you’re seasick — a barge is a nice idea, but doesn’t work in reality. Even worse (and preventable), the seats were tiny, horrifically uncomfortable, and WAY too close together, on the sides and in rows, not to mention staggered unevenly in tapering, unlabeled rows.
Obnoxious crowd: The prententious old man next to me kept humming along to the music, and some asshole in the front row shouted «BRAVO!» immediately after the musicians played their last note of EVERY PIECE.
Terrible people, terrible space, decent music = I will never return, and recommend highly against this place.

Horrible experience stemming from terrible customer service on ⁹⁄₁₇. An atrociously rude power hungry woman running the front of house treated everyone like a herd of cows. I made a reservation 2 months in advance for my anniversary, the first thing she says to us «Oh, you’re a problem. Please wait.» That’s all she said to us, before finally seating us in the absolute worst seats in the very back next to the bathroom. People without reservations were getting seats in front of us.
After going back to her, she threatened to kick me out if I didn’t accept this seat (and mind you, I was being VERY civil and kind). The president of the organization was much nicer, but still of no help. After pleading my case we even had other people in the place offering their seats to us feeling bad. My girlfriend flew all the way in from Chicago for this. She was crying at this point due to just how awfully we were being treated.
I feel as though it stems from the fact that we are in our 20’s and clearly do not have the funds to donate money as much as some other patrons. Therefore, we were treated like second class citizens. As a student of Performing Arts Management I can tell you that a classical music organization should be THRILLED to have young people.
At the end of the day, it all just boiled down to the horrible treatment from the woman house manager, and if I knew her name I would write it here. One person CAN make a huge difference… even if she explained the situation to us and apologized in some way I would have been more understanding.

One good thing about the decreasing temperatures is the prospect of warming up on a velvet-​cushioned wood folding chair in the belly of this cozy, old-​timey barge at the foot of the gothic marvel that is the Brooklyn Bridge.
I have been here in two other seasons. The first time was September 11^th of 2009, when a few grand performers gave a gratis memorial concert featuring works by Rachmaninov and original modern piano compositions. A Russian musician who looked like a princess ballerina came out and played Alexander Scriabin’s works for the left hand only… apropos for the evening’s theme of perseverance over loss. Her fingers skittered up and down the keyboard like the Thing from the Addams Family, producing a frighteningly layered sound as if possessed by four hands! Most special was the cameo by the adorably senile Olga Bloom, founder of Bargemusic. Standing strong at 100+ years, she blew kisses to the audience and was overcome by the reception. With tears still sparkling in her eyes, she joined a violinist after only a bit of coaxing for an old-​world fiddle duet that gave me chills and made me feel privy to life underdeck of a trans-​Atlantic immigrant ship in the 1800s (so what if my imagination ran away with me…). Afterwards, my companions and I grabbed ice cream cones at the nearby Brooklyn Ice Cream factory and rolled on home after watching the mist thread through the skyscrapers of Manhattan like smoke through a fine-​toothed comb. A mere tourist in New York at the time, I vowed to return for future performances, regardless of where I would find myself in the country or the world.
Lo and behold, May of this year found me living in New York City, so I convinced two friends to join me for an afternoon concert. One girl was hungover and the other was tired. This resulted in the two of them sleeping with their mouths open in the back, while I sat in the second or third row as a virtuouso violinist played an uncharacteristically face-​melting concerto by J.S. Bach.
There are many reasons why people put off the unique experience afforded at this place, but I have a rebuttal/​solution to all of them:
1. «Eh…I’m not that into classical music.»
What’s wrong with you? Open your mind. If you don’t like classical music, then enduring it for about one hour on a boat with essentially a glass wall open to an unobstructed view of the New York City skyline should turn you around.
2. «I’m feeling seasick.»
Throw back a Dramamine or just wait a minute… once the show begins, I promise that you will forget all about it.
3. «It’s so far away.»
Suck it up; it’s the first Brooklyn stop (High St.) off the A (express!) and C (local) train. It’s no farther away than Williamsburg.
4. «You have to walk a long way after getting off the train, and it’s in a confusing neighborhood.»
No, not really. Just follow the crowd towards the obvious Brooklyn Bridge. It’s a downhill walk that soon delivers you to a rather dazzling (especially at night) waterfront and a charming coterie of eateries such as Grimaldi’s Pizzeria, which is deserving of its legendary status.
5. «It’s loud and touristy in DUMBO.»
Touristy, perhaps; based on my two times there, the tourist factor seems more acute in the daytime. Concerts themselves, though, are well-​attended only by self-​selectively quiet and appreciative listeners. You will find no jostling or rushing the gates here. And inside, you will be in the still point of the turning world, subjected only to soothing strains of timeless music rendered by human hands and breath.
6. «…but tickets are expensive.»
I foolishly assumed this myself for too many years, just because I’d heard about it on a fancy-​sounding NPR Radio sound bite. Sure, the average ticket price is listed as being in the vicinity of $ 20 to $ 40, but seniors get a discount and students only need to pay $ 10 to $ 20 with an ID (and yes, schools other than NYU and Columbia do count!). If this still doesn’t fit your range, you can attend one of the free afternoon concerts. The program will remain a mystery until the day of the concert, but you can rest assured that nothing will be shaved off the quality of the experience. If you DO actually have money, this is a charity worth supporting; the perpetuation of big music in intimate settings for anyone who stops by.
So GO! Only a heartless and artless asshole could ever regret it.

Are you ready to class up your life to previously unimagined levels? Because strap yourself in, and get ready to rock with Bargemusic.
No, not that kind of rocking… I’m talking about the kind that you experience when you’re on a boat, and you feel the waves underneath you. See, as the name implies, you’re at Bargemusic to enjoy some quality classical while docked under the Brooklyn Bridge in an old converted barge.
The place is intimate, and nicely set up. When I went, a three piece group composed of cello, violin and piano performed pieces by Mozart, Beethoven and Hayden — all against a beautiful backdrop of the financial district across the river. I’m not big into classical music, but I couldn’t help myself from thoroughly enjoying the evening.
The tickets are fairly inexpensive, and I can’t think of a nicer way to class up a night in Brooklyn.