WHEELING — New and old leadership will be at the helm during the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra’s next season with Music Director John Devlin, who received a four-year contract extension, being joined by newly hired Executive Director Sonja Thoms.

Since his start with the symphony in 2019, Devlin has focused on innovating the concert format and bringing in a high caliber of guest artists.

Devlin’s time as a music director has also won him and the symphony accolades, including the Solti Foundation Career Assistance Award, given to young conductors with exemplary skill and leadership.

“Over the next four years I look forward to continuing to support the works of living American artists, reinventing what it feels like to be an audience member at orchestra concerts and featuring the incredible stories of our musicians,” Devlin said.

Devlin described finding the “perfect physical and musical home” in Wheeling and said he was happy that his four-year contract extension was the “small news of the day,” as he is thrilled Thoms will join him in leading the orchestra.

Thoms worked in operations for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra for nine years.

At the PSO she participated in concert production, long-term season planning and leading multiple international tours.

Thoms moved to the Nashville Symphony to lead the operations department in 2015.

Her projects for the Nashville Symphony include the annual Summer Community Concert Series, hosting the League of American Orchestras’ Annual Conference in 2019 and producing the world premiere performances of Hannibal Lokumbe’s fully staged opera “The Jonah People: A Legacy of Struggle and Triumph.”

“We could not be happier to welcome Sonja to the team and our community,” said Mary Hanley, president of the WSO Board of Directors.

As a Pittsburgh native, Thoms sees coming on board at the WSO as a “return home” and is ready to “immerse” herself in the community.

“As I have gotten to know John Devlin and this organization, I have seen that they love art and the community,” Thoms said.

On the future of the symphony, Thoms wants to build upon the “many great things” the WSO is doing now while focusing on connecting the community further through the orchestra.

“I want this organization to be something that celebrates the life of Wheeling and the community,” Thoms said of her vision for the WSO. “I want the community of Wheeling to see orchestral music as a part of their lifestyle, as it’s essential to mine, and it can bring such joy and unity to a community.”

Devlin described being “aligned” with Thoms’s beliefs on how orchestras can impact communities.

“The fact that we share these beliefs is very powerful to me,” Devlin added.

The first undertaking of Devlin and Thoms will be the WSO’s 2023-24 season, details of which will be announced by the end of July.

“We have commissioned music that we have paid for the commissioning of so there will be brand new compositions given life here at the Capitol Theatre,” Devlin teased about the next season. “We also have big-name guest artists that we will be very proud to present as part of our Capitol series.”