Texas New Music Ensemble

06/04/2026

¡Acompáñanos en una semana de conciertos, clases magistrales y música contemporánea internacional como parte del Texas New Music Festival 2026 en la Ciudad de México!

Concierto Puentes 1
Ensamble Puentes
Chad Robinson, Director
Viernes, 12 de junio 7pm-8:30pm
El Instituto Italiano de Cultura de Ciudad de México

Masterclass de composición con Rob Smith (Profesor, University of Houston)
Sábado, 13 de junio 12pm-3pm
Universidad Panamericana
La Escuela de las Bellas Artes

Concierto Puentes 2
Yan Shen, solo piano
Domingo, 14 de junio 7pm-8:30pm
El Instituto Italiano de Cultura de Ciudad de México

Masterclass de composición con Chad Robinson (Profesor, Texas A&M University-Kingsville)
Lunes, 15 de junio 3pm - 6pm
Universidad Panamericana
La Escuela de las Bellas Artes

Masterclass de composición con Francisco Cortés Álvarez (Profesor, Universidad Panamericana)
Miércoles, 17 de junio 3pm - 6pm
Universidad Panamericana
La Escuela de las Bellas Artes

Concierto de Compositores Internacionales
Ensamble Puentes
Chad Robinson, Director
Viernes, 19 de junio 7pm-8:30pm
El Instituto Italiano de Cultura de Ciudad de México

**Todos los eventos son gratuitos y abiertos al público

**All applications are reviewed on a rolling basis each week. For the best chance of a successful application, we highly encourage applying as soon as possible**

06/02/2026

🤩 Meet Texas New Music Festival 2026 Music Director, Chad Robinson!! .r.obinson 🎉

Composer, music director, and founder of Texas New Music Ensemble, Dr. Chad Robinson is passionate about connecting performers, composers, and audiences through contemporary music. His works have been performed internationally, including at Carnegie Hall, and he has collaborated with leading ensembles and soloists across the United States and abroad.

As Artistic Director of Texas New Music Ensemble, Chad is dedicated to supporting emerging artists and building creative opportunities through performances, festivals, and international collaborations.

Join Chad and Ensamble Puentes this June at the Italian Cultural Institute of Mexico City :

🎻 Conciertos Puentes
Ensamble Puentes
Chad Robinson, director
📅 Friday, June 12th | 7:00 PM

🎹 Conciertos Puentes
Yan Shen, solo piano ( )
📅 Sunday, June 14th | 7:00 PM

🎼 Concierto de Compositores Internacionales
Ensamble Puentes
Chad Robinson, director
📅 Friday, June 19th | 7:00 PM

📍 Italian Cultural Institute of Mexico City

06/02/2026

🌟 Meet Texas New Music Festival 2026 CDMX Festival Guest Artist - Miguel Ángel Vences Guerrero 🌟

Nació en la Ciudad de México el 25 de mayo de 1986. Inició sus estudios musicales a la edad de 13 años como autodidacta. Posteriormente ingresó al curso propedéutico en la Facultad de Música (FAM) de la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), bajo la tutela del maestro Víctor Hugo Peñaloza y posteriormente con el profesor Juan Carlos Laguna.

Ha participado en festivales como el Cervantino, el Festival Internacional de Guitarra en Zacatecas, la Semana Internacional de Guitarra de la UNAM y el Festival de Guitarra de Taxco, entre otros, y se ha presentado como solista en diversas salas de la FAM, casas de cultura, museos y teatros de la Ciudad de México, Morelos y Guerrero.

Ha recibido clases magistrales con reconocidos maestros de la guitarra clásica, entre los que destacan David Russell, Oscar Ghiglia, Pablo Garibay, Paul Galbraith, Giampaolo Bandini y Marcin Dylla, entre otros.

Es integrante del terceto de guitarras “Cuicacalli”, fundado en 2006, agrupación con la que ha obtenido importantes reconocimientos, realizado giras por Europa y Sudamérica, y grabado el disco Kuikayotl Ixachitlan – Música de América. También forma parte del dueto Ome junto con la soprano Blanca Rodríguez.

Actualmente es pasante del programa de maestría en interpretación musical en la Facultad de Música de la UNAM, director de la Compañía de Música del Tecnológico de Monterrey Campus Santa Fe y director general del Aula Musical Cuicacalli.

06/01/2026

🌟 Meet TNMF 2026 CDMX Festival Guest Artist - Violist 🎻 Maddy Nicolescu!

We’re so excited to welcome Maddy to Texas New Music Festival in Mexico City this June as part of Ensamble Puentes, led by music director Chad Robinson .r.obinson 🌟

Join us for three incredible concerts at Instituto Italiano de Cultura featuring contemporary chamber music, international composers, and a solo piano recital by Yan Shen! 🔗 More info at TNNE.ORG

🎵 Conciertos Puentes
Ensamble Puentes
Chad Robinson, director
Viernes 12 de junio | 7:00 p.m.
Instituto Italiano de Cultura, CDMX

🎵 Conciertos Puentes
Recital de piano de Yan Shen
Domingo 14 de junio | 7:00 p.m.
Instituto Italiano de Cultura, CDMX

🎼 Concierto de Compositores Internacionales
Ensamble Puentes
Chad Robinson, director
Viernes 19 de junio | 7:00 p.m.
Instituto Italiano de Cultura, CDMX

See you in CDMX! ✨

05/31/2026

🌟 Meet Texas New Music Festival 2026 CDMX Festival Guest Artist - Fernando Domínguez 🌟

Fernando Domínguez es uno de los principales intérpretes del repertorio contemporáneo para clarinete y clarinete bajo en México. Su estrecha colaboración con compositores mexicanos de distintas generaciones ha dado lugar a más de 70 obras dedicadas a él, incluyendo piezas para instrumento solo, música de cámara, conciertos y obras con tecnología.

Desde 1999 forma parte de Ónix Ensamble y, desde 2004, del dúo Duplum junto al percusionista Iván Manzanilla. Con ambas agrupaciones ha ofrecido conciertos en México y el extranjero, además de participar en numerosas grabaciones discográficas.

Realizó sus estudios en el Conservatorio Estatal de Viena y posteriormente obtuvo una maestría en clarinete bajo y música contemporánea en el Conservatorio Sweelinck de Ámsterdam bajo la guía de Harry Sparnaay. Actualmente es profesor de la Facultad de Música de la UNAM.

Ha actuado como solista con destacadas orquestas de México, Costa Rica y España, incluyendo la OFUNAM, la Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional, la Orquesta Filarmónica de la Ciudad de México y la Orquesta Filarmónica de Málaga. Entre sus grabaciones destacan Negro Fuego Cruzado (2016) y Energía (2019), ambos editados por el sello Urtext.

Fernando Domínguez es artista patrocinado por Vandoren, Veerkamp y Buffet Crampon.

05/30/2026

🌟 Meet the Texas New Music Festival 2026 CDMX Festival Guest Artists - Ensamble Puentes! 🌟

We’re thrilled to welcome violinists Andrés Becerril .becerril.v and Helena Muntaner Payeras , violist Maddy Nicolescu , and cellist Manuel Garnica to this year’s festival!

Come hear them perform at two exciting concerts:

Conciertos PuentesEnsamble Puentes
Chad Robinson, director (.r.obinson )
Friday, June 12th | 7:00 PM

Concierto de Compositores Internacionales
Ensamble Puentes
Chad Robinson, director
Friday, June 19th | 7:00 PM

05/29/2026

🌟 Meet Texas New Music Festival 2026 CDMX Festival Guest Artist - Yan Shen🌟 We’re thrilled to present pianist Yan Shen in a solo concert on June 14 at 7:00 PM in Mexico City!

Formerly a tenured piano faculty member of the Guang Zhou Conservatory of Music, China (2005 – 2010), Yan Shen holds a DMA in Collaborative Piano and Artist Diploma in Solo Piano Performance from the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music, where she works. She is currently also a resident artist of the Hong Kong Metropolitan Orchestra, on the piano faculty of Hong Kong International Concerto/Ensemble Competition and Festival, and is a distinguished Shigeru Kawai Artist.

As a prize winner, Dr. Shen has performed solo and chamber recitals internationally, including at Carnegie Hall, Xing Hai Concert Hall, Wu Han Concert Hall, Qing Dao Concert Hall, Changsha Concert Hall, Hunan Concert Hall, Fujian Concert Hall China; and Hong Kong City Hall. She has played numerous music festivals including the Texas Music Festival, the Bellas Artes Music festival, the “Polyphony” Music Festival in France, the Basel Music Festival in Switzerland, and the Olympic Music Festival in Korea. Her collaborations with leading concert artists and ensembles include work with David Campbell, Eric Varner, Sydney Carlson, Marie Pallot, Lyda Chen-Argerich, Vagram Saradjian, Shuhan Ye, and musicians from the Houston Symphony, Houston Opera, and Houston Ballet.

05/20/2026

✨ Meet Texas New Music Festival 2026 CDMX Festival Guest Composer - Marcus Karl Maroney ✨

Marcus Karl Maroney studied composition and horn at The University of Texas at Austin and Yale School of Music. His principal composition teachers were Joseph Schwantner, Ned Rorem and Joan Tower . In 1999, he received a fellowship to the Tanglewood Music Center, the First Hearing award from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and an ASCAP/Morton Gould Young Composer’s award. Other awards and fellowships followed, including: a Charles Ives Scholarship from The American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Music 2000 Prize from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, further awards from ASCAP, two residencies at the Copland House, and consecutive Woods Chandler Memorial awards from Yale University. Commissions have come from such organizations and individuals as River Oaks Chamber Orchestra, eighth blackbird, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, The Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, Timothy McAllister, the Moores School Percussion Ensemble, the Texas Music Festival, and the Deer Valley Music Festival. His works have been recorded on the Innova, Albany, Centaur, and Blue Griffin labels, and are published by TrevCo, Seconda Prattica, and Ever-Fixed Music. Marcus served on the faculty of the Yale School of Music from 2002-2004. He is currently Associate Professor of Music at the University of Houston’s Moores School of Music, where he has taught since 2005. His academic pursuits include research on the music and life of Swiss composer Frank Martin, for which he was awarded a grant from the University of Houston for residency at the Paul Sacher Stiftung in Basel. He is on the Artistic Board of Musiqa, Houston‘s composer-led new music presenting group. In addition to composing, Marcus and his husband are wine connoisseurs, rescue dog fathers, and travel enthusiasts.

05/20/2026

✨ Meet Texas New Music Festival 2026 CDMX Festival Guest Composer - Rob Smith ✨

Rob Smith (Composition, Division Head University of Houston) is a texas based composer and director of the AURA Contemporary Ensemble. His highly energetic and vibrant music is frequently performed throughout the United States and abroad, receiving awards from the Aaron Copland House (Residency Award), Minneapolis Pops Orchestra New Orchestral Repertoire Project, ASCAP and the National Band Association. Commissions have come from the Texas Music Festival Orchestra, the American Composers Forum, and the New York Youth Symphony Chamber Music Program. A wide variety of ensembles have performed his music, including the Ethel and Enso string quartets, American Modern Ensemble, New World Symphony Percussion Consort, Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, Soli Chamber Ensemble, Standing Wave Chamber Ensemble (Canada) and the Minnesota Symphony Orchestra.
In 1997, Smith received Fulbright Grant to Australia, which led to a teaching position at the University of Wollongong in 1998. During his tenure at UH he has been formally recognized twice: in 2013 (Outstanding Faculty Award, Moores School of Music) and 2014 (UH Faculty Recognition Award, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences). From 2003-2014 he served as one of the artistic directors of Musiqa, a Houston-based contemporary chamber ensemble. In addition to programming and presenting 6-8 concerts a season, Rob also created three children’s programs with his colleagues at Musiqa, two of which continue to be presented annually for hundreds of public school students.

05/20/2026

✨ Meet Texas New Music Festival 2026 CDMX Festival Guest Composer - Francisco Cortés-Álvarez ✨

Winner of the Morton Gould Composition Award (ASCAP) and the Jacob Druckman Orchestral Composition Award (ASMFS), Francisco Cortés-Álvarez (México, 1983) has developed a diverse career as composer, arranger, producer and pedagogue. His music has been performed in America, Europe, Africa and Asia, including presentations at the Aspen Music Festival and School, SEAMUS, Mizzou New Music Festival (EU), Music X (Switzerland), the Foro Internacional de Música Nueva Manuel Enríquez (Mexico) among others. Francisco has collaborated with renowned soloist, ensembles and orchestras such as LA Phil conducted by Gustavo Dudamel, Alarm Will Sound, OFUNAM, National Symphonic Orchestra of Mexico, Aspen Sinfonia Orchestra, IU New Music Ensemble, IU Concert Orchestra, Michoacán Symphonic Orchestra, Volti Chamber Singers, Orchestra2001, Cassatt String Quartet, Onix, Túumben Paax, among others; he has been a fellow of the Tania León‘s Honor Scholarship (ASCAP), and multiple times of the programs for Studies Abroad and Young Creators (FONCA); and Francisco is a current fellow of the Sistema Nacional de Creadores de Arte (FONCA). Francisco has credits as co-producer, editor or composer in 12 professional record productions with Naxos, Urtext, Tempus Clásico, IU Music, Acqua Records among others. Francisco studied a degree in Musical Composition at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) where he won the Gabino Barreda medal; and Master’s and Doctorate in Music at the University of Indiana (IU) where he obtained the Dean‘s Prize and held a position as adjunct teacher and director of the Latin American Music Ensemble at IU. He is currently a full time professor and founder of the program in musical composition of the School of Fine Arts of the Universidad Panamericana, and professor at the Facultad de Música (UNAM).