Conversation with Alfonso Leal del Ojo

Tell us a little bit about yourself and your career -- where are you from, where are you based now, and what is your current position?

I'm from Spain -- from Seville, a small town in the South. I come from a big family and I always wanted to explore the world and discover who I was outside of that circle. So I moved to the UK to do my degree in music as a performer. And that's what I've done, what I still do -- but I’ve always kept a curious mind, and I always wanted to explore things beyond a career as a performer.

So during my studies I was an usher and then house manager at Wigmore Hall in London. And then I focused more of my time on my performing career -- I'm a viola player – and I was soon appointed Principal Viola at the English Concert. And I really loved it, but that was in my mid-twenties and I thought, my God, you know, now I'm a principal at a big orchestra and what am I going to do for the rest of my career? So then I had the opportunity to start managing orchestras and eventually went to work for the Dunedin Consort in Scotland, where part of my role was to expand the organization’s international profile. And that’s when I joined ISPA as a Fellow.

I really enjoyed my time at the Dunedin Consort and spend ten years there, but then the Chief Executive position with the English Concert became available –that’s where I was Principal Viola – I thought it probably was a good idea to apply. It was a very competitive process and I like to think that my membership of ISPA in that context helped to articulate to the panel my breadth of connections and how as a manager I was able to build those relationships at international level. That was in 2019 so I got the job just a few months short of the pandemic. Wow. Which was fun.

You joined ISPA as a Fellow and now you are Vice Chair ISPA board -- how have you been involved in the organization since your Fellowship?

A few years after my Fellowship had come to an end David asked me if I would join the Finance Committee. Years ago when I was managing the Irish Baroque Orchestra I had to learn a lot of finance skills – accounting and reporting and all of that -- and I like to think that I was quite helpful to ISPA in that role. And having done my work on the finance committee, David invited me to chair the Fellowship Committee, which was very fascinating actually. Being able to see the breadth of ambition, what people are doing in the world was really quite humbling -- people are doing pretty extraordinary work out there.

And then I was honored to be asked to join the board and to help the community and the network advance its mission, and when David asked me if I’d consider becoming Vice Chair I was even more honored to have the opportunity to serve the membership in that way. I have only just started in this role of Vice Chair but, um, I think it's a privilege.

What caused you to want to remain an ISPA member when your Fellowship came to an end?

For me it was a no brainer. First off, there’s the financial incentive – when your Fellowship ends your membership is discounted for the first couple of years. It’s an investment in continuing to build those connections and friendships and the confidence that I had gained. ISPA is unlike any other network – it is many different art forms and genres and a wide spectrum of countries. You never know where the people that you meet through ISPA will end up – they might go from running a small troupe to one of the most important venues – and having that connection and being able to pick up the phone and say “hey if you have time for a quick chat I’d love to pick your brain about something or connect about this or the other” – it’s obviously very helpful.

I would also say that for those Fellows who have not been able to attend an in-person congress because of the pandemic – I think it is worth strongly considering maintaining the relationship with ISPA and that they will find that the experience of an in-person congress is so different from what you can experience through a small screen.

How has being an ISPA Fellow and subsequent member affected you and your career?

I think if I could sum up in one word what ISPA has given me, beyond the example I gave about the position at the English Concert, I think the word that comes to mind is confidence. I remember the first year of my Fellowship I was absolutely terrified. I arrived in New York for the congress, which was this city bustling with energy, and there were all these big heavyweights of the industry there. I was intimidated but at the same time I decided to take on this opportunity and actually try to make friends -- and that's what I did. People call it networking, but it really is about friendships with a very particular network of professionals who obviously have a lot of significance in the field, but at the same time, are very welcoming.

And now I feel able to say, you know what, I deserve a place at this table and to be part of the discussion and I do have something of value to add. I have learned a lot from ISPA but at the same time I have learned what I can contribute. Had I not been a Fellow and then continued with ISPA I don't think I would have this confidence. And, you know, that confidence is something that you carry with you everywhere and that you're able to translate to and make use of in many other aspects of your life.