About the Artist

Leonela Alejandro is an award-winning classical guitarist from San Juan, Puerto Rico. She has garnered attention as a soloist, captivating audiences with her powerful and energetic performance style. She has been invited to perform in numerous venues in the USA and Europe, and has placed in over a dozen competitions in the United States, with more than ten first-prizes including the 2024 Guitar Foundation of America International Artist Competition.

Leonela formally began her musical education at seven years old. Following her work with various Puerto Rican teachers including Jomel Rivera, Julio Reyes, and Rey Nieves, she was accepted into the Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico in 2016, at just 16 years old, studying with world-renowned performer Iván Rijos. After two fruitful years, she transferred to the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee and completed her undergraduate degree with Cuban virtuoso René Izquierdo in 2020. Leonela recently completed her graduate studies with Dr. Andrew Zohn at Columbus State University.

Leonela has also established herself as a soloist in orchestral settings. She has performed multiple concerti with the Puerto Rico Symphony under the direction of Roselin Pabón including Antonio Vivaldi’s Lute Concerto in D major, RV 93, and Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s Guitar Concerto No.1 in D Major, Op.99. She was the soloist in the recent premiere of Atanas Ourkouzounov’s Concertino for Guitar, Percussion and Strings, and has appeared as a solo mandolinist with the Schwob School of Music Wind Ensemble in Ottorino Respighi’s Roman Festivals.

Leonela is an Augustine Strings Ambassador; her strings of choice are Paragon Reds. She performs on a 2019 Stephan Connor guitar and a 2023 Martin Blackwell guitar.

www.leonelaguitar.com