MORE ON ALONDRA: You might have caught a story on Alondra de la Parra by yours truly that aired this morning on KERA (90.1). I only had two minutes to tell her story on the air, but there’s a lot more to this 30-year-old Mexican conductor, who founded her own orchestra when she was 23. During our interview, she spoke extensively about how much research her job requires. And when you listen to her talk about a piece she is conducting, you can tell she’s put in the time. In this video, de la Parra discusses Arturo Marquez’s Danzón No. 2, one of the pieces she will perform with the Dallas Symphony beginning tonight during the Latin Masterworks concert. (If you like the piece, it’s on her album of Mexican music.) You can catch other videos with her on the DSO’s YouTube channel.

THE BEST AND BRIGHTEST: The Dallas Observer has named the nine finalists for its inaugural Mastermind Award, which honors local creative types. Three winners will pocket $2,000 to spend on whatever they chose. Among the finalists are Today Marks the Beginning co-founder Karen Blessen, Kettle Art’s Frank Campagna and La Reunion TX executive director Sarah Jane Semrad. Winners will be announced next week.

BRICK BY BRICK: A new Legoland Discover Center is opening at Grapevine Mills in April. And in an attempt to fit into the neighborhood, the place will include renderings of North Texas landmarks made out of Legos. Which buildings should be included? I’m thinking a Lego Winspear might be pretty sweet, but the smart money is on Lego Reunion Tower and Lego Southfork. You can help decide what gets made here.