Ashleigh Ho is a passionate arts administrator with experience in stage and production management as well as marketing and media. She is a graduate of the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, where she studied stage management. Ashleigh is currently producing The Red Dust, a Chinese-Australian play for youth, with Marian Street Theatre for Young People.

Ashleigh is also a freelance social media administrator and copywriter for the education, not-for-profit and arts industries. Ashleigh enjoys involving herself in many different art forms. She plays the harp, is a keen improviser, and occasionally, will pull out her water colouring kit. In the future, Ashleigh wishes to either work as a producer or an administrator, creating brilliant marketing content for youth arts organisations. Or both!

Ashleigh Ho 2021 AYO Words About Music Participant smiles at the camera against a background of brightly coloured squares. She is wearing a canary yellow shirt and is wearing a backpack and glasses.

Q: What made you decide that you wanted a life in music? Was there a particular moment (an epiphany, if you like) that led you to this decision, or was the process more gradual?

A: Music has always been a big part of my life. My mum plays the piano, so some of my earliest memories involved me holding a Disney songbook, begging her to play so that I could sing along. 

I didn’t know that I wanted to work more closely with music professionally until university. Previously, I had just taken piano and singing lessons as a hobby and always assumed that a career in classical music existed only for the elite. In my third year, I had the opportunity to be the production manager for a double-bill opera. Working on this production made me realise that I really enjoyed the process of working with musicians – I also thought that working with conductor, Jessica Gethin, was so cool.   

Now, I get a nice balance of playing the harp as a hobby, whilst getting opportunities to immerse myself in the music industry on the administration side of things.

Q: What sort of working life in the profession are you aiming for? Do you have a picture of what you’d like to be doing in the short term? And beyond that? Has the pandemic affected the decisions you’ve made?

A: I used to be one of those people who planned their career meticulously, until their grave. But COVID changed that. Even though losing the job that I really loved was devastating, I learned to be flexible and started pursuing my other interests – particularly writing. I even made a writing portfolio! I’m now in a good place and get to work in a bunch of jobs that I enjoy. 

I don’t have a specific career path I want to go on. I have been trying producing, and am liking that, but I also love writing articles and creating marketing content. So, anywhere in those areas are enticing to me. I do know that I want to work in performing arts which involve young people. There’s something wonderful about creating shows that children can watch and be involved in. 

Q: Can you tell me about one of your favourite classical pieces, in your capacities as performer and/or listener? Can you tell me why you love this music so much? (You’re allowed to choose more than one piece!)

A: I like listening to a lot of Vivaldi. I feel that if I had lived in the 18th century, his compositions would have been the workout beats of the time – just because of how vibrant many of them are. If I had to pick one piece, it would be the Concerto for Two Violins in A Minor, Op. 3, No. 8. I feel like I also really resonate with Vivaldi’s work. It’s the music I put on when I feel like I need to tune out from the world for a while. 

I also love Debussy’s Claire de lune, but specifically played on the harp. I only started playing the harp three years ago, but one day I wish to play that piece. The piano version is okay, but the harp version brings out a completely different vibe – the sound, to me, is like windchimes. 

Q: What kind of role do you think the virtual space will play in the world of professional music-making in the next few years?

A: Music is very accessible in an online context. With so many social media sites having video features, many allowing for musicians to perform ‘live’, I believe that this has made classical music more approachable than ever, since those who normally wouldn’t come to hear a symphony in person, can now enjoy it from the comfort of their own home. I believe that social media invites those from non-musical backgrounds, and people who have never experienced classical music before, into a space which is often looked on by the public as exclusive.  

At the same time, with the current COVID restrictions, social media is a band-aid fix. But as a social media marketer, I think that finding a way to keep promoting music on these online platforms, even after the pandemic, will continue to open doors and invite a new type of audience into the concert hall.


Ashleigh Ho is an alumnus of the Words About Music program, AYO National Music Camp 2021.

Sign up for all the latest AYO news straight to your inbox

Name(Required)