Showing 1-19 of 19 results
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Beijing Concert Hall
The grand 2000-seat Beijing Concert Hall showcases performances of classical Chinese music as well as international repertoires of Western classical music.
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Buddha Bar
Its name in Chinese is a clever play on the word 'not big' or 'small'. This is no longer the reclusive bar it once was, but is still worth visiting for the South American tunes that dominate the house stereo.
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CD Jazz Café
A mainstay on the Běijīng jazz scene, this place has regular live performances on Fridays and Saturdays. No cover charge, but the drinks are expensive.
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Centro
Hot jazz, cool colourful décor and the best martinis around. The place of choice for business people to wheel and deal or just impress the hell out of their dates.
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D-22
A hub for student filmmakers and musicians, D-22 lets bands doing everything from jazz to rock to 'experimental' music plug into their awesome sound system. Movies (foreign or Chinese) are screened at on Wednesday and Thursday.
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East Shore Jazz Café
Cui Jian's saxophonist, whose quartet play here, opened this chilled venue by Qianhai Lake. It's a place to hear the best local jazz bands, with live performances from Thursdays to Sundays, in a more authentic atmosphere than other venues. Expect lengthy jam sessions in the wee hours of the morning. There's no cover charge and the drinks are reasonably priced.
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Jiangjinjiu
Situated between the Drum and Bell Towers, this friendly café/bar puts on lots of folk and ethnic minority, particularly Uighur , bands. No cover charge.
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Lan
Despite its incongruous location in an anonymous shopping mall opposite the Silk Market, this Philippe Starck-designed bar and restaurant is far from ordinary. Its eccentric, eye-catching look, extending through a number of rooms: Paintings dangle from the ceilings, giant mirrors are everywhere and the private dining rooms are done in the style of Mongolian Yurts. None of it comes cheap though. There's live jazz and DJs and a big wine list.
The toilets are the most extravagant in Běijīng.
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Latinos
Salsa has taken off in a big way in Běijīng in the last couple of years and this is one of the busiest clubs in the city. There's a big dance floor to show off your moves, the house band is from South America and guest DJs spin the latest Latin sounds.
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Nameless Highland
All sorts of groups, from folk to death metal via Brit-pop clones and punk acts, take to the stage here. It's a rare night when they don't have a band on. It's one of Běijīng's larger, better-organised venues. You'll need to take a taxi to get here.
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Poly Plaza International Theatre
Located in the Poly Plaza right by Dongsishitiao subway station, this venue hosts a wide range of performances including ballet, classical music, opera and traditional Chinese folk music.
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Propaganda
Loved as much for its meat-market reputation as for its hip-hop soundtrack, this club is a long-time student favourite and is packed with dancers on weekends.
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Red Moon Bar
Arriving at the Red Moon, customers are met by a svelte female attendant and ushered through a looking-glass door to a gorgeous lounge bar blessed with a huge selection of wines. The lighting is subdued, soporific jazz wafts over the chilled-out clientele, and the evening's live music goes down well with those not in a rush to go elsewhere. The overall effect is particularly seductive and the perfect antidote to some of Běijīng's rawer bar spots.
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Sanwei Bookstore
Opposite the Minzu Hotel, this place has a small bookshop on the ground floor and a teahouse on the second. It features music with traditional Chinese instruments on Saturday night. On other evenings, you can hear live jazz here.
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Star Live
It's a great space but eccentric management make this place a bit hit and miss. Yet it's the only venue in Běijīng where you'll see visiting international bands not big enough to play the stadium circuit.
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Stone Boat Bar
Set up in a real-life stone boat on one of Ritan Park's large ponds, this low-key bar serves all the standard cocktails, spirits, beers and café-style food. To get in after the park closes, just tell the guards at the south gate where you're going and they'll let you in.
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Tree
Another refugee from the old Sanlitun South Bar Street, where it was known as the Hidden Tree, the Tree is a long-term favourite of expats, locals and tourists. There's a fine selection of Belgian beers (from around Y40 ), decent pizzas cooked in a wood-fired oven (from around Y45 ) and low-key live music by a Filipino band. It gets busy, but has a more chill vibe than some of the surrounding bars. It's off the courtyard of the You Yi Youth Hostel.
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Vics
Vics is not the most sophisticated nightclub in the world but it remains a favourite with the younger crowd. The music is mostly standard R&B and hip-hop, but the sounds are not the only reason people come here. There's an infamous ladies night on Wednesdays (around Y30 and free drinks for women before ) and weekends see it rammed with the footloose and fancy-free. If you can't score here, you never will.
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What? Bar
If you like to get up close and personal with the bands you go and see, then this is the place for you. That doesn't mean it's groupie heaven here; rather it's just that this venue is so small that the audience might as well be on stage with the musicians. It's a good place to hear up-and-coming local talent. Just north of the west gate of the Forbidden City.
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Showing 1-19 of 19 results
