American conductor John Gennaro Devlin is known for compelling performances across a wide range of repertoire and for artistic leadership that connects orchestras more deeply to the communities they serve. Currently in his eighth season as Music Director of the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra (WSO), Devlin is only the ninth conductor to hold that title since the orchestra’s founding in 1929.

In 2025, he became Music Director of the Lancaster Festival Orchestra, whose musicians are drawn from more than 45 orchestras across the country.

Devlin’s artistry and versatility have led to guest engagements with orchestras across the nation, including the National Symphony Orchestra, Utah Symphony, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Louisville Orchestra, North Carolina Symphony, Sarasota Orchestra, Colorado Springs Philharmonic, Columbus Symphony, Hawai‘i Symphony Orchestra, Princeton Symphony Orchestra, Allentown Symphony Orchestra, and Greenville Symphony Orchestra, among others. Of his debut with the National Symphony Orchestra and violinist Joshua Bell, Anne Midgette of The Washington Post wrote that Devlin “led the evening with flair … and was visibly in his element.” Devlin is a recipient of the Georg Solti Foundation Career Assistance Award.

During his tenure in Wheeling, Devlin has led a period of artistic and institutional growth, with attendance for both Masterworks and Pops concerts increasing by more than 30 percent. He has expanded opportunities for young musicians, created a community choir and conducting fellowship, and launched the Festival of Ideas, an annual initiative connecting orchestral music with the history, people, and ideas of the region. This work was recognized by Wheeling Mayor Glenn F. Elliott with the Mayor’s Award for “distinguished service, loyalty, and dedication to our city.”

Devlin is an ardent advocate for new music, having premiered and/or commissioned more than 50 works by composers including Clarice Assad, Eric Nathan, Adolphus Hailstork, Arlene Sierra, Leanna Primiani, Michael-Thomas Foumai, and Quinn Mason. His commissioning work has also included the world premiere of Robert Orledge’s completion of Debussy’s unfinished work La Saulaie, for solo baritone and orchestra. The WSO’s commitment to new American music during his tenure has twice been recognized with the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation Award through the League of American Orchestras. Devlin also serves as Co-Chair of the League of American Orchestras’ Conductor Constituency Leadership Team.

Devlin’s passion for presenting music both old and new in unexpected ways delights critics who call the performances “powerhouses of unstoppable momentum … that bring sold-out houses to their feet, cheering.

The Washington Post

The breadth of Devlin’s work is reflected in his collaborations with leading artists across classical music and popular traditions. His collaborators include Yo-Yo Ma, Joshua Bell, Chris Thile, Sasha Cooke, Time for Three, Tessa Lark, Stefan Jackiw, Shara Nova, Third Coast Percussion, and Maxim Lando. Devlin has also collaborated with leading Broadway artists including Sutton Foster, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Sierra Boggess, Morgan James, Hugh Panaro, Michael Maliakel, and Capathia Jenkins. He is active as a conductor of films with live orchestra, including the Harry Potter and Star Wars series, Jurassic Park, and projects from Disney.

From 2015 to 2018, Devlin served as the National Symphony Orchestra’s exclusive Cover Conductor, assisting Music Directors Christoph Eschenbach and Gianandrea Noseda, as well as the orchestra’s distinguished guest conductors. He accompanied the NSO on its historic 2018 tour of Russia. Devlin served concurrently as Assistant Conductor of the Princeton Symphony Orchestra, working alongside Music Director Rossen Milanov.

Devlin completed his master’s and doctoral degrees in orchestral conducting under the tutelage of James Ross at the University of Maryland School of Music. At Emory University, he was a Robert W. Woodruff Scholar and Beinecke Scholar, graduating summa cum laude with a double major in Clarinet Performance and Latin. His formative musical experiences included the New York Youth Symphony, the Boston University Tanglewood Institute, and the Pierre Monteux School. Devlin divides his time between New York City and Wheeling, West Virginia, with his wife, Camille Cintrón Devlin, and their beloved dog, Arya.

For more information, please visit www.JohnDevlinMusic.com.

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For more information, including recordings and upcoming concerts, please visit www.JohnDevlinMusic.com.

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John Devlin

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