Alondra de la Parra | |
|---|---|
 Alondra de la Parra in 2014 | |
| Born | New York City |
| Occupation | Conductor |
| Years active | 1999–present |
| Website | alondradelaparra |
Alondra de la Parra (born 1980[1][2]) is a Mexicanconductor.
Alondra de la Parra was born inNew York City, the daughter of Manelick de la Parra, a writer and editor, and Graciela Borja, a sociologist and educator.[1] Her father was a film student atNew York University and her mother a sociology student atThe New School at the time of her birth and early childhood, through to the age of three.[3] Her grandmother was the writerYolanda Vargas Dulché, and her aunt is the actressEmoé de la Parra. Her brother isMane de la Parra.[citation needed]
The family subsequently moved toMexico City, where de la Parra began her piano studies at age seven and the cello at age 13. She also developed an interest in conducting around age 13. After a year of study atSt Leonards-Mayfield School,[3] she studied composition at the Centre of Research and Musical Studies in Mexico City.[4]
At age 19, de la Parra returned to New York City, to study piano and conducting at theManhattan School of Music. She obtained aBachelor of Music in Piano Performance under the direction of Jeffrey Cohen and studied conducting with Michael Charry andKenneth Kiesler, receiving anMA in Conducting in 2008. Her other conducting mentors includeMarin Alsop,Charles Dutoit, andKurt Masur.[5] She served as an apprentice conductor with the New Amsterdam Symphony Orchestra.[1]
In 2003, de la Parra founded her own ensemble, the Mexican-American Orchestra, at the behest of the Mexican Consulate, which asked de la Parra to produce a concert featuringMexican music for the Mexico Now Festival.[3] The resulting 65-member orchestra was renamed in 2004 the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas (POA).[2] The POA toured in Mexico in 2007.[1] The orchestra and de la Parra released two commercial recordings,Mi Alma Mexicana – My Mexican Soul, andTravieso Carmesí.[6] In June 2011, the POA suspended operations because of financial difficulties.[7] De la Parra was artistic director of theOrquesta Filarmónica de Jalisco from 2012 to 2013.[8][9]
In May 2015, de la Parra made her first guest-conducting appearance with theQueensland Symphony Orchestra (QSO).[10] In October 2015, the QSO announced the appointment of de la Parra as its first-ever music director and first-ever female conductor in its principal conducting post for a term of three years, 2017 to 2019.[11][12][13] She stood down from the QSO at the end of her contract in 2019.
In 2015, de la Parra was one of five conductors featured in the filmConduct! Every Move Counts, about the internationalSir Georg Solti International Conductors' Competition at theFrankfurt Opera House.[14] In January 2024, the SpanishMinistry of Culture andLa Comunidad deMadrid announced the appointment of de la Parra as the new artistic director of theOrquesta y Coro de la Comunidad de Madrid, effective with the 2024-2025 season.[15]
De la Parra has two sons.[5] Since 2019, she has lived in Berlin, Germany.[16] She is an official cultural ambassador of Mexico.[17]
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| Preceded by Héctor Guzmán | Artistic Director, Orquesta Filarmónica de Jalisco 2012–2013 | Succeeded by Marco Parisotto |
| Preceded by | Principal Conductor, Orquesta de la Comunidad de Madrid 2024–present | Succeeded by incumbent |
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