If you’d like to see what we’re about before joining, just email enquiries@bristolclassicalguitarsociety.org to introduce yourself and then come along to one of our monthly meetings to see if this is for you.
Membership Types
We welcome both playing and non-playing members. Joining as a member entitles you to a range of exciting ways to engage with the classical guitar.
Non-Playing Member
£35 per year
Don’t play the guitar, don’t feel confident playing with others yet, or not interested in the ensemble? Perhaps you’re a guitar maker or passionate fan of hearing guitar music, but playing isn’t your focus? Join as a Non-Playing Member to get access to all the other benefits of membership, without any pressure to play.
🎵Attend monthly meetups
🎵 Guest lectures and concerts by visiting artists
🎵 Listen to Playing Members perform, and hear Members’ talks
🎵 Convert to a playing member at any time.
🎵 Non-playing members don’t pay any other fees (for attending meetings)
Playing Member
£35 per year
Do you already play some classical guitar? Can you read basic music notation? Do you want a safe space to practice your performance and play solos you’re working on, knowing you’ll be supported no matter how simple they are or how badly it goes? Would you like to participate in summer and winter concerts (ensembles, small groups, solos)?
🎵 Everything included with Non-playing Membership plus…
🎵 Performance opportunities (solo, ensemble) both at monthly meetups and the Summer and Winter Members’ Concerts
🎵 Join the BCGS large ensemble, under direction of Francisco Correa
For each meetup you attend, there’s an additional £7 fee to pay, which helps cover costs for our ensemble leader, hall rental and guest artists
BCGS Concert Series Season Ticket Holder
£36 per year (adult) or £20 per year (student)
Pre-purchase a BCGS Concert Series Season ticket and attend all 3 BCGS Concert Series concerts in 2025 for the price of 2
Pavel Ralev, Sat 15 Mar 2025
Eden-Stell Duo, Sat 14 June 2025
Frequently Asked Questions
How experienced do I have to be to join as a Playing Member?
We welcome guitarists of all levels, from beginner to advanced. To join the large ensemble, we expect that you can read basic music notation, but don’t worry — you don’t have to be a brilliant sight reader. The music is sent out ahead of time for you to look at. Parts cover a range of difficulties, and our artistic director takes your current level into account when assigning parts. We’re always happy to produce a simplified part for you if you want to join in but find the music too challenging.
In meetups and Members’ Concerts, performances cover a wide range of abilities every month. You will be guaranteed a safe, supportive atmosphere and enthusiastic applause, no matter how your performance goes or how “difficult” the music you play is. We want you to feel that you can proudly showcase your hard work, no matter where you are in your guitar journey!
Do you offer lessons, or teach members how to play the guitar?
Sorry, we don’t. You will pick up lots about ensemble playing and learn tips from members’ talks and guest lectures, but we don’t specifically do lessons during meetups. Please arrange lessons with a teacher or learn via other resources (online, books etc). We’re happy to make some local recommendations for teachers (see the Local guitar teachers page).
Why do playing and non-playing memberships cost the same?
The purpose of the non-playing membership is to allow fans of the guitar to participate without feeling any pressure to play if they don’t want to. Our non-playing members cover a range of profiles, including family of playing members who just want to support someone, people who have stopped playing for health or time reasons, beginners who don’t feel confident enough to play with the group yet but want to participate, composers and guitar makers.
Apart from having no pressure to play if you don’t want to, there’s nothing about the society you can’t access that a Playing Member can, and of course, you can switch to a Playing Membership any time you want.
Playing members also have to pay £7 when they attend a session, which helps cover the costs of our ensemble director, hall rental and costs for visiting artists. We waive this for Non-playing members, since we’re trying to encourage uptake of this membership option.
Are there any additional fees after joining as a member?
We ask playing members to pay £7 for each meetup they attend, to cover the cost of the hall rental and artist fees. You don’t need to pay this for the months where you can’t attend. We waive this £7 fee for Non-playing members, since we’re trying to encourage uptake of this new membership option.
You also need to buy tickets to attend BCGS Concert Series concerts by big artists, since these cost the society a lot to host (venues, artists fees etc.). We may offer member discounts for these events. Why not take advantage of the Season Ticket and get 3-for-2 prices for tickets?
Can I attend a meetup to see if this is for me before joining?
Of course! Just email enquiries@bristolclassicalguitarsociety.org to introduce yourself and then come along to one of our monthly meetings. You don’t need to pay anything to try out a meetup.
Can under-18s join?
Yes! But if you’re under 16, you’ll have to be accompanied by an adult (a condition of our public liability insurance).
I’m a fan of the classical guitar and I see I’ll be in town during a meetup. Can I come and say hi?
Yes please do, we’d love to meet you! Just email enquiries@bristolclassicalguitarsociety.org to introduce yourself first, to make sure we’re expecting you. You don’t need to pay anything to visit us 🙂