Robert Xavier Rodríguez, Director
Mikhail Berestnev, Piano

Students from the University’s Advanced Orchestra and Chamber Music Ensemble perform with UT Dallas faculty and other professional musicians under the direction of composer-conductor Robert Xavier Rodríguez.

Musica Nova: Beethoven Meets the Tango

Friday, May 8, 2026 – 7:30 p.m. in University Theatre – FREE

UT Dallas Students & Guest Artists

Piazzolla: Fuga y Misterio, Primavera, Oblivion, Otoño, Libertango
Beethoven: Piano Concerto III in C Minor, Op. 37

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Bios:

Music by Robert Xavier Rodríguez has been performed by conductors such as Sir Neville Marriner, Antal Dorati, Eduardo Mata, James DePriest, Sir Raymond Leppard, Keith Lockhart, Andrew Litton and Leonard Slatkin and by such organizations as the New York City Opera, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Vienna Schauspielhaus, Dallas Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Vienna Schauspielhaus, Israel Philharmonic, Mexico City Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra and the Seattle, Houston, Dallas, Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, Baltimore, St. Louis, National, Boston and Chicago Symphonies.  He has received a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Goddard Lieberson Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Prix Lili Boulanger and the Prix de Composition Prince Pierre de Monaco.  Rodríguez has served as Composer-in-Residence with the San Antonio Symphony and the Dallas Symphony.  Twenty CDs featuring his music have been recorded (1999 Grammy nomination), and his music is published exclusively by G. Schirmer.  He is Professor of Music at the University of Texas at Dallas, where he holds an Endowed Chair of Art and Aesthetic Studies and is Director of the Musica Nova Ensemble.

Pianist Mikhail Berestnev studied at the Russian Academy of Music, TCU (Artist Diploma) and SMU (Performance Diploma).  He has won prizes at the Delphic Games and the Stanislav Neuhaus Competitions in Russia, the Sydney International Competition, the BNDES International Piano Competition in Rio de Janeiro, and the Maria Canals International Piano Competition in Barcelona.  He was also a semifinalist in the Queen Elisabeth International Piano Competition in Brussels.  He has performed with many Russian orchestras as well as the TCU, Sydney, San Angelo and Brazilian Symphonies, the Royal Chamber Orchestra of Wallonia and the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.  He is also active in chamber music, including performances with musicians from leading Russian Orchestras such as the Symphony Orchestra of the Bolshoi Theatre and the ensembles Moscow Virtuosi and Musica Viva.

Watch previously streamed Musica Nova performances

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Directions to University Theatre at UT Dallas 

Driving:  In Richardson, from the corner of Campbell Road (east/west) and Floyd Road (north/south), go north on Floyd, and turn left (west) onto Bryce Jordan Drive (on the right, it says North Lookout Drive).  Turn right on North Loop Drive, and follow it west through the campus.  Turn left (south) into Parking Structure 3 and park in levels 2-5.  There will be Shuttle Service available to the Theatre for those who need it. 

Walking:  From the Parking structure, take the walkway south toward the center of campus.  Go left to the west entrance of the Jonsson Academic Center.  Upon entering Jonsson, you will be on the ground floor, which is floor three.  Walk forward and, before you get to the elevator, look for a door on the left leading to stairs.  

Take those stairs down to the second floor, walk straight ahead and turn right to go outside onto the mall, then look for the entrance to the Theatre, which is on the right, facing east.  

Alternatively, to avoid stairs, walk forward from the Jonsson entrance to take the elevator up to the fourth floor, turn right and a quick right again (east) to find the elevator which is on the right before the walkway to the Green Center. Take it down to the second floor and turn right to go outside onto the mall, then look for the entrance to the Theatre, which is on the right, facing east. 

Parking for University Theatre:

Use Google Maps to navigate to Parking Structure 3 (PS3) and park in either a Gold or Orange space. Once parked, visit our Venues page to obtain turn-by-turn walking directions to University Theatre.

If you'd like to avoid using the interactive campus map, simply walk south from PS3 and turn left before you reach Jonsson Academic Center (JO). This route avoids stairs. If you turn after you've walked past JO, you'll need to walk down the stairs along the side of the building.

The entrance to University Theatre is on the east side of JO and faces east. There are picnic tables in front of the entrance.

For special assistance please contact the ADA Coordinator by phone at 972-883-5331 or email at ADACoordinator@utdallas.edu.