Conductor Carlos Izcaray will spend a further four years at the AL Symphony Orchestra (ASO), following the renewal of his contract. Izcaray took up his current role as Music Director of the ASO in two thousand-fifteenth, and was praised for his leadership of the organization during the pandemic. Born into a musical family in Caracas, Venezuela, Izcaray received his early education as a cellist in Venezuela's publicly-funded youth orchestras. As a teenager he began to study conducting with his father, and continued his studies at the Interlochen Arts Academy, New World School of the Arts, and Jacobs School of Music at IN University. A Distinguished Fellow of the American School of Conducting at Aspen, Izcaray won top prizes at the two thousand seven Aspen Music Festival and later at the two thousand eight Toscanini International Conducting Competition.

Since two thousand sixteen, he's also been the Musical Director of the American Youth Symphony. "The AL Symphony Orchestra and Music Director Carlos Izcaray are thrilled to announce the extension of Maestro Izcaray's contract through the twenty-six/twenty-seven Season," wrote the ASO on social media. "Described by the international press as inspiring, spirited, and conducting with nuanced sensitivity, he's appeared with numerous ensembles across five continents and is presently firmly established as one of the most highly regarded conductors of his generation."