Ana Gutiérrez Ortúzar is a Mexican vocalist, music educator and researcher whose work explores transcultural music education, fiction-based frameworks, and the design of inclusive musical learning environments. ​

 

She is a fully funded PhD student in Interdisciplinary Research in Music at the University of Ottawa, where her research examines how fiction can help educators gain agency, integrate diverse pedagogical tools, and design coherent musical worlds that respond to the needs of diverse learners. ​

 

Ana is the founder of Pakinda Musik, an educational initiative dedicated to developing creative, accessible, and interdisciplinary approaches to music learning.  ​

 

Her background includes a Master’s degree in Music Therapy from the Universitat de Catalunya and studies in Vocal Performance at Musicians Institute in Los Angeles. She later specialized in South Indian classical music under the guidance of vocalist Vidushi Tejaswini M.K. and Konnakkol exponent Shri B.R. Somashekar Jois. ​

 

She began her training in South Indian music pedagogy through the Shankar Mahadevan Academy in Bangalore and later pursued further specialization with Dr. T.S. Sathyavathi. ​ Ana is a Konnakkol instructor, certified by the World Konnakkol Academy and is the author of The ABCs of Konnakkol: Introduction to Solkattu for Western Learners an introductory resource for learning South Indian rhythmic language.

 

As a writer, Ana’s interest in language and storytelling was first nurtured by her grandfather, a journalist who helped ignite her love for writing. She currently studies fiction writing under the guidance of Hugo and Nebula Award-winning author Mary Robinette Kowal. ​

 

As a singer and educator, Ana’s practice is shaped by more than fifteen years of experience working with children, adults, teachers, institutions and musicians across different learning contexts. Her musical identity is rooted in the sonic ecologies of urban popular music, Mexican sones, and Latin American folk traditions. ​