Your Destination Guide to New York City

New York City is known for its outstanding cultural attractions, events, festivals, music & more. We've picked the top must-see music festivals and events for 2011. And the cool part? Most of them are free!

1. Central Park SummerStage: June - August, 2011

The 26th annual Central Park SummerStage season kicks off on Tuesday, June 7th, 2011 at the SummerStage Main Stage. The 2011 season will feature over 300 artists and over 100 performances in all five boroughs. In addition to the stellar lineup, the Brooklyn Flea has signed a 3 year agreement with SummerStage, and will be back in Central Park, making it that much easier for our audiences to eat and drink well while enjoying great performances. Most performances are FREE.For more information, visit: www.summerstage.org or connect on Facebook.

2. Celebrate Brooklyn!: June - August, 2011

Celebrate Brooklyn! is one of New York City's longest running, FREE, outdoor performing arts festivals. Over its history, the Festival has presented over 2,000 artists and ensembles reflective of the borough's diversity, ranging from internationally acclaimed performers to emerging, cutting-edge artists. The festival attracts upwards of 250,000 attendees from across New York City to the Prospect Park Bandshell each summer. The opening night Gala kicks off on Friday, June 10th, 2011 at the Prospect Park Bandshell. For more information, visit: www.bricartsmedia.org/performing-arts/celebrate-brooklyn or connect on Facebook.

Photo © Celebrate Brooklyn! on Facebook

3. River to River Festival: 2011 Dates TBA

From May to August in various venues around New York, enjoy performances by some of the top musicians, dancers, and poets from around the country. Some locales include Battery Park, South Street Seaport, World Financial Center, and Clinton Castle. And the best part, is it's FREE! As an added bonus, concession stands are conveniently located around the city. The River to River festival, like the Tribeca film festival, was started to invigorate the arts in Lower Manhattan after 9/11. For more information, visit: www.rivertorivernyc.com or connect on Facebook.

4. NBC's Today Show Summer Concerts: 2011 Dates TBA

The Today Show FREE Summer Concert Series annually takes place Friday mornings at 7am on the plaza at Rockefeller Center (between 49th and 50th St. near 5th Ave.). If you want a decent view, you'll need to arrive as early as 6am. Viewing is on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information, visit: today.msnbc.msn.com/id/3041478/

5. Good Morning America' Summer Concerts: May - September, 2011

Like The Today Show Summer Concert Series, Good Morning America's FREE Summer Concerts also take place Friday mornings at 7am in Rumsey Playfield in Central Park (near the park entrance at Fifth Avenue and East 69th Street). Lady Gaga will kick off the Good Morning America Summer Concert Series with a performance on May 27th, 2011 in New York City. If you want a decent view, you'll need to arrive as early as 6pm. Viewing is on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information, visit: abcnews.go.com/GMA/SummerConcert/

6. Naumburg Orchestral Concerts: June 20 - August 22, 2011

Naumburg Orchestral Concerts has continuously presented FREE, outdoor classical music concerts to New Yorkers since 1905, and is the oldest free outdoor concert series in the US. Concerts will take place on Monday June 20th, Tuesdays July 26th and August 9th, and Monday August 22dn, 2011. All concerts are at 7:30pm. The Naumburg Bandshell is located on the Concert Ground in Central Park (Map) south of the 72nd Street cross-drive. For more information, visit: www.naumburgconcerts.org

7. Washington Square Music Festival: July 12 - August 2, 2011

Washington Square Music Festival kicks off its 58th season of FREE concerts on Tuesday, July 12th, 2011 with Michael Spierman conducting Festival Chamber Orchestra in W.A. Mozart's The Impresario & Schubert's Unfinished Symphony. Concerts take place in front of the Holley statue in Washington Square. All concerts take place Tuesday evenings at 8pm. For more information, visit: www.washingtonsquaremusicfestival.org

8. Mad Square Music: Oval Lawn Series: June 15 - July 6, 2011

Madison Square Music the Conservancy's outdoor concert venue and one of the best ways to enjoy FREE world class performances in New York City. The series runs on Wednesday evenings throughout the summer and presents nationally touring acts. The upcoming festival kicks off on Wednesday, June 15th, 2011 and runs through July 6th, 2011. For more information, visit: www.madisonsquarepark.org/music

9. Lincoln Center Festival: July 5 - August 14, 2011:

The 2011 Lincoln Center Festival will have 116 performances by ensembles and artists from some 20 countries, and will include 6 World, U.S., and New York premieres unfolding in seven venues on and off the Lincoln Center campus. The Mariinsky (Kirov) Ballet joins the previously-announced Royal Shakespeare Company and The Cleveland Orchestra to complete the trio of leading performing ensembles coming to New York this summer as part of Lincoln Center Festival 2011. Nigel Redden, Festival Director, today announced the complete Festival schedule, which runs from July 5th through August 14th, 2011. For more information, visit: www.lincolncenterfestival.org

Photo © Lincoln Center

10. Cityparks Concerts: 2011 Datess TBA

The Cityparks Concerts present a broad range of FREE arts, sports, and education programs in 750 New York City parks citywide. Their programs and community building initiatives reach more than 600,000 people each year, contributing to the revitalization of neighborhoods throughout New York City. Programming will kick off in early June, 2011. For more information, visit: www.cityparksfoundation.org

11. New York Philharmonic in the Park: 2011 Dates TBA

The Great Lawn in New York's Central Park has long been a stomping ground for various concerts, performances, and events. One of these annual pastimes, featuring the legendary New York Philharmonic, is a FREE concert in public parks each July. Each of the five boroughs takes part, boasting free concerts at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx, Prospect Park in Brooklyn, and indoor concerts in Staten Island and Queens. For more information, visit: nyphil.org

12. Metropolitan Opera in the Parks: July & August, 2011

If you're interested in checking out opera but not sure where to start or don't have the cash, look out for the FREE concert series held by the Metropolitan Opera every summer. The Met announced in a statement that the soprano Angela Meade, the mezzo-soprano Jennifer Johnson Cano and the tenor Dimitri Pittas would perform on July 11th, 2011 in Central Park and on July 13th, 2011 in Brooklyn Bridge Park. Three other singers would present programs in Crotona Park in the Bronx (July 19th, 2011); Clove Lakes Park on Staten Island (July 21st, 2011); Socrates Sculpture Park in Long Island City, Queens (July 26th, 2011); and Jackie Robinson Park in Harlem (July 28). Metropolitan Opera will also present FREE outdoor screenings of its HD broadcasts from Lincoln Center from August 27th to September 5th, 2011. For more information, visit: www.metoperafamily.org

13. RiverRocks Concerts at Hudson River Park: 2011 Dates are TBA

As if a festival with a Hudson River sunset as the backdrop could get any better, RiverRocks Concert is a FREE show featuring some of the hottest bands. For more information, visit: riverrocksnyc.com or connect on Facebook.

14. Clinton Sunset Concerts Series: 2011 Dates TBA

Beginning August 1st and partying through mid-September, the Clinton Sunset Concerts Series introduces a cornucopia of FREE music events ranging from electric jazz to rock, and hosts these shows in a casual and friendly block party environment. For more information, visit: www.fohrp.org

15. International Salsa Congress Dance and Music Festival: August 31 - Sept. 5, 2011

Originated to educate viewers in Salsa skills, the International Salsa Congress Dance and Music Festival has evolved into a hands-on, hip-shaking, musical experience. Join in on some of the dances, socialize with salsa experts, and listen to live Latino music. The New York International Salsa Congress features six action packed days and evenings of Latin Dance workshops, youth and adult professional performance showcases, concert series, a professional championship, a lot of salsa fun. For more information, visit: www.nycsalsacongress.com

16. CareFusion Jazz Festival New York: 2011 Dates TBA

George Wein's New York Jazz Festival is a 10-day multivenue summer event presenting dozens of concerts at landmark venues, such as Carnegie Hall, Jazz at Lincoln Center, Central Park, and at essential jazz nightlife hotspots. Started in 1972 by Wein, the event was the city's first major jazz festival, and continues to be the city's only major large-scale jazz event. Legendary festival artists include Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, and Sara Vaughan. Recent highlight artists include Herbie Hancock, Wynton Marsalis, Diana Krall, Ornette Coleman, Esperanza Spalding, and Chris Botti. The event has also featured crossover artists such as Lauryn Hill, Spike Lee, Savion Glover, and Lou Reed. Wein, who still produces the event and who also started numerous festivals worldwide, pioneered the concept of sponsored music events. For more information, visit: www.nycjazzfestival.com

17. Lincoln Center Out Of Doors: 2011 Dates TBA

Lincoln Center Out Of Doors is an annual festival featuring three weeks of FREE music and dance on the plazas of Lincoln Center. The festival annually features a diverse range of music, dance and street performance events by dozens of international, U.S. and local artists. For more information, visit: new.lincolncenter.org

18. Summer in the Square: 2011 Dates TBA

Summer in the Square is Union Square Partnership's FREE weekly entertainment and programming series in the park during summer months. Running every Thursday from mid-June through mid-August in the South Plaza, the series offers a vibrant mixture of activities, including yoga, "Kids in the Square" and "Music in the Square," featuring rock, jazz, folk, and latin concerts. For more information, visit: www.unionsquarenyc.org

19. Summergarden at MOMA: 2011 Dates TBA

The Museum of Modern Art established Summergarden in 1971 to enhance the artistic life of New York City during the summer. In keeping with MoMA's history of presenting jazz and classical music in The Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Sculpture Garden, this year's Summergarden series once again welcomes the participation of two constituents from Lincoln Center: The Juilliard School and Jazz at Lincoln Center, with concerts on alternating Sundays. New Music for New York presents four evenings of adventurous contemporary music, with premieres each night. For more information, visit: www.moma.org

Photo © Ian Muttoo on Flickr

20. Harlem Meer Performance Festival: 2011 Dates TBA

The Harlem Meer Performance Festival features the best in local established and emerging artists in the genres of jazz, Latin, gospel and world music. Some chairs are provided, or bring a blanket and picnic lunch to enjoy the music from one of the Park's nearby lawns. Performances take place each Sunday afternoon from 2pm to 4pm at the Charles A. Dana Discovery Center in Central Park's northern end. This event is FREE! For more information, visit: www.centralparknyc.org

21. The Charlie Parker Jazz Festival: August 27 & 28, 2011

The Charlie Parker Jazz Festival annually assembles some of the finest musicians in the world who reflect Parker's musical individuality and genius. The two days of FREE concerts take place in neighborhoods where Charlie Parker lived and worked, in Harlem's Marcus Garvey Park on August 27th, 2011 and the Lower East Side's Tompkins Square Park on August 28th ,2011. On both days, the music starts at 3pm. For more information, visit: www.summerstage.org

22. Rockaway Beach & Boardwalk Sunset Concert Series: June - August, 2011

The Rockaway Beach & Boardwalk Sunset Concert Series presents FREE summer music concerts for the family. The musical genre will include smooth jazz, R&B, Oldies, Gospel, Country Rock, Caribbean & Latin. The event will be held the first Friday of each month starting on June 3rd, 2011 and ending on August 5th, 2011. For more information, visit: www.nycgovparks.org

23. Blip Festival: May 19 - 21, 2011

Blip Festival showcases the best creations in art, music, and culture using retro game and computer hardware at Manhattan's Eyebeam. The festival showcases an international chip community that stands at a crossroads. Now firmly entrenched in mainstream culture with chipsounds and pixel art finding their way into television, motion pictures, and ironically enough, modern video games, Chip musicians and artists find they are no longer expected to educate their audiences but, instead, are free to innovate. For more information, visit:: blipfestival.org/2011/

24. Northside Festival: June 16 - 19, 2011

Taking place in the walkable radius of Williamsburg and Greenpoint and presented by L Magazine, Northside Festival is a four-day showcase of music, art, film, and beer for the third year in a row. Badges to the festival start at $60 (early bird admission), and will grant you access on a first-come, first-served basis to every show taking place during the festival — that includes both shows at McCarren Park — in addition to all Northside ideas, art and film events. To top it off, tons of neighborhood bars and restaurants will be offering discounts to badge-holders on food and, for those 21 and older, booze. For more information, visit: www.thelmagazine.com

25. Siren Music Festival: Date TBA

The Village Voice independently produces the Siren Music Festival each year. Set against the backdrop of Coney Island, this FREE, all ages, all day music festival showcases renowned and emerging artists on two outdoor stages. Last years Siren Music Festival at Coney Island, NYC once again drew 100,000 music fans throughout the day to the annual free event. The upcoming event is TBA. For more information, visit: siren.villagevoice.com/2010/