UTRGV’s School of Music to host open house

Student ensembles will be featured in the UTRGV School of Music’s open house Wednesday.

A reception will take place starting at 5 p.m. in the Music, Science & Learning Center courtyard on the Brownsville campus, where a marimba ensemble and a drum line will perform. Finger food will be available for the public. Throughout the event, tours will be given of the music side of the building, located next to the Main Building.

The $54 million building opened this semester and measures 102,551 gross square feet.

The event is open to the public and will showcase the new facilities, said Kurt Martinez, director of the School of Music.

“Basically, just so the community can, you know, come and see the new facilities we have and celebrate with us the, you know, the acquiring of these new facilities,” Martinez said.

At 7 p.m., a recital will feature performances by a choir, a guitar ensemble, the Bravo Opera Company, a pianist and a jazz band.

The new facilities are state of the art and allow for better teaching, giving students the tools to grow as musicians, according to Martinez.

“Acoustically, the sound of the new building is, you know, state of the art, so you can hear, in your lessons for example, you can hear everything better …,” Martinez said. “When the professor’s demonstrating to you or when you yourself are performing, even in the practice rooms, you can hear better.”

Aaron Bocanegra, a music education junior, said the new facilities are a better change and more accessible since they are open on weekends and until midnight on weekdays.

“We have more space in our practice rooms and we have bigger ensemble rooms so we’re able to, like, rehearse for concerts and it’s much … easier since we have lots of gigs close to the front of the school,” Bocanegra said.

Martinez said there are plans for new programs in the music department. The department is seeking approval of a music technology degree, which is important for students because it encompasses aspects of music, such as marketing and recording.

“As a musician, you really have to be more than a musician in this day and age,” he said. “You gotta be a business person, you gotta be able to know how to sell yourself, record yourself. There’s so many aspects of being a musician now. It’s not like just playing your instrument.”

Martinez also said that students are excited about the new facilities, and the new building has made a huge difference in their educational experience.

“We have such a strong School of Music in terms of faculty and students,” he said. “The students are sounding great. The faculty here are all world-class faculty.”

Deborah Rodriguez, a music education senior, said UTRGV is a good starting point for incoming undergraduate students because professors are caring and help students get connections.

“The teachers here are super nice and they’re very caring and they’ll look out for you,” Rodriguez said.

Martinez encourages the public to attend the open house and see the activities going on.

“People can just see, you know, all the things that are going on here and they can get excited about, and, hopefully, students will realize they don’t have to go anywhere else. They can get everything they need here at UTRGV.”