James Villani returns to the podium for his fifth season as conductor and music director for the symphony. Mr. Villani has been involved in community musical organizations since coming to Northern Virginia in 1986. He was associate conductor and clarinetist for the Reston Chamber Orchestra for 10 years and served on that orchestra's board of trustees. Mr. Villani was active as a conductor and clarinetist for several Manassas Choral Society productions, and he conducted a series of concerts at St. Matthew's Presbyterian Church in Silver Spring and Rockville, MD. Recently, he was an invited judge for the College of William and Mary Concerto Competition in Williamsburg.

Mr. Villani received a Master of Music in Conducting from Northwestern University, where he studied conducting with John P. Paynter and was a graduate assistant for the university wind ensembles. Mr. Villani was also a student of Clark Brody, former principal clarinetist of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and Alan Stout, renowned contemporary composer. A native of New Castle, PA, he earned Bachelor's Degrees in Clarinet and Music Education from Penn State University and taught in the public schools of Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Virginia. Mr. Villani is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Northern Virginia Community College and has recently completed nine years of service on the Board of Directors for the Penn State Arts and Architecture/ Performing Arts Alumni Society. In addition, he is a Senior Software Engineer at ASSETT, Inc., in Manassas, VA. He and his family live in Gainesville, VA.