Alondra de la Parra has taken the world’s concert halls by storm. Born in 1980 in New York, she decided early on she wanted to become a conductor. Her great dream has taken her on a long journey - and it is not over yet, by any means.

Alondra de la Parra’a roots are in Mexico – but her orchestras and her audiences are to be found all over the world. Alondra de la Parra is one of those trailblazers who has made history by being appointed the first conductor and music director of the Queensland Symphony Orchestra in 2017.

She began playing the piano at age 7 and the cello at 13. After she studied in England and the United States – with mentors such Kurt Masur and Kenneth Kiesler, she founded the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas (POA) at age 23 in 2004. Meanwhile she has conducted more than a hundred orchestras in twenty different countries.

Her spellbinding and vibrant performances have gained her widespread attention. Part of her unique approach to classical music is the way she infuses her cultural heritage into the world of classical music in a way that is not commonly seen: “I’ve always been an advocate that Mexican and Latin American music belongs in the core repertoire of every philharmonic orchestra.”

Alondra belongs to the generation of professional musicians who need to master many different skills that are absolutely necessary in today’s world, like fundraising, public relations, social media and everything that completes a complete package in the music industry. On top of that, she is an artist who doesn’t only need to focus in mastering her artistic craft, but she is also the mother of two children.

Clearly breaking barriers is standard fare for Alondra. However, her approach to this aspect of her job is multi-dimensional, not just dictated by gender or any single title. “I am a woman, I am a Mexican, but that is just part of the many ingredients that make me who I am. We bring to the podium everything that one is. One can only be who one is and nothing else, it’s the experiences of your life that you share with others.”

Aside from her musical prowess the documentary portrait traces the multiple facets of Alondra’s life, giving insight to the beginnings of her career, her background and family in Mexico, and accompanies her to Brisbane working with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, as well as to Germany, leading the Bamberger Symphoniker and Die Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen.