Iñaki Sandoval, new general director of the Liceu Conservatory Foundation

BarcelonaChange at the helm of the Conservatori del Liceu. Maria Serrat, who has been its general director since 1999, hands over the reins to Iñaki Sandoval (Pamplona, 1974), who is currently the dean of the Hong Kong Music School. "I will join the conservatory in December," Sandoval announced at a press conference at the Ca l'Isidre restaurant, in Barcelona's Raval neighborhood. For Sandoval, this new responsibility is like "a return home." "My connection with the Conservatori del Liceu is intimate and foundational. I started my musical studies in Pamplona at the age of 8, but it was a scholarship from the government of Navarra that allowed me, as a young person, to travel to Barcelona. Here I supplemented my higher studies in classical piano at this very institution, and I began my training in jazz at AULA de Música Moderna. Years later, I had the privilege of directing it, of founding the Jazz Department of the Conservatory and of promoting its postgraduate studies. Barcelona is a city I deeply love and where I have experienced some of the happiest moments of my life," explained Sandoval, who has also undertaken academic work in Estonia.

“Iñaki Sandoval not only brings first-class international management experience from leading institutions in Asia and Europe, but he also possesses a deep understanding of our local DNA and an artistic sensitivity that guarantees excellence will remain our guiding principle,” said the president of the Fundació Conservatori Liceu, Sergi Ferrer-Salat. "There is no one better than him," he added.

Sandoval considers his new role as general director of the conservatory to be "a vital and professional turning point." "The Conservatori del Liceu has an extraordinary history, but our goal now is to project it strongly towards the challenges of tomorrow. I want to say this clearly and ambitiously: the Conservatori del Liceu must be one of the great European and global benchmarks for musical education in the 21st century," proposes Sandoval. The challenge, he says, is to "train excellent musicians with a great capacity for adaptation." "I will work diligently to consolidate our projection and strengthen the conservatory's leadership. We will do this in classical music, jazz, electronic music, as well as in new music and trends in the creative industries. We will combine artistic excellence and pedagogical innovation with a radical international openness," he adds.

The new director of the Conservatori del Liceu also considers that in a technological environment marked by the impact of artificial intelligence, "it is more necessary than ever to enhance the humanistic component, sensitivity, and critical thinking." I want the conservatory to translate into an open, inclusive, multicultural, and multidisciplinary space; an authentic laboratory of entrepreneurial minds where we can experiment with the diversity of artistic perspectives. An environment of freedom and growth that is only possible through respect for individual and collective liberties, zero tolerance, and transparency in the face of any inappropriate conduct. Likewise, we guarantee unconditional support for the student's safety, their personal and professional development, and the construction of rich and healthy relationships," he said, anticipating a question about the case of a former teacher at the Conservatori del Liceu accused of sending nudes to students and touching them.

Regarding the internationalization of the center, Sandoval emphasizes that "internationalizing ourselves does not consist solely in attracting foreign students" to higher education, but in being "an active part of the great global networks of knowledge, research, and artistic creation." Barcelona has all the ingredients to become a major international hub for musical talent, and the conservatory must be its epicenter," he says. One of the objectives is to attract talent that has left. "I would like to invite many musicians and graduates who trained at the Conservatori del Liceu and who one day left to work abroad, like myself, to return home. I will place a very special focus on attracting this local talent that has developed internationally to invite them to return to pour their knowledge here and be mentors and inspiration for new generations," he assures.