November 24, 2025 | Alana Carithers became the permanent Executive Director of the Williamsburg Symphony Orchestra on November 20 after a three-month stint as Interim Executive Director. Carithers has been a member of the Williamsburg Symphony’s violin section since 2005 and, for the past decade, has served as Principal Second Violin—making her appointment a remarkable blend of artistic excellence and deep organizational insight. She brings more than 20 years of leadership in nonprofit and arts organizations around the country. Her combined artistic and administrative expertise uniquely positions her to guide the Williamsburg Symphony Orchestra in its fifth decade of performance and service.
“As Board Chair, I can say that the Williamsburg Symphony Orchestra sought an Executive Director who truly reflects our core values of integrity, community, and collaboration—and Alana Carithers does exactly that. She embodies these qualities in every way. When you add her deep knowledge, extensive experience, passion for music, and her exceptional leadership and managerial skills, it becomes unmistakably clear that she is the right person for this role. We are absolutely thrilled to welcome Alana, and we are confident that she will not only secure the future of our symphony but will help propel it to new heights as an even stronger cultural force in our community.”
- Jon E. Krapfl, Chair, The Williamsburg Music Association Board of Trustees
“I am deeply honored and profoundly grateful to accept this new role with the Williamsburg Symphony Orchestra—an organization that has been a meaningful part of my musical life since 2005. It is a true privilege to continue serving a mission and a community that I care about so deeply.
The Williamsburg Symphony is fortunate to have a dedicated and visionary Board, and I stand on the shoulders of the many individuals who have worked tirelessly and given of themselves in so many ways to shape the WSO into the remarkable organization it is today. Their passion, perseverance, and belief in the power of music have created a legacy that inspires us all.
We are extraordinarily fortunate to have access to live orchestral music featuring world-class musicians and internationally acclaimed guest artists right here in our own community. As we look to the future, we are excited to continue building on this rich foundation—finding new ways to inspire, educate, transform, and connect through the power of great music and artistry.
I am delighted to lead the WSO into its next chapter and look forward to all that we will accomplish together.”
- Alana Carithers, Executive Director, The Williamsburg Symphony Orchestra
Alana Pritchard Carithers is an accomplished violinist, educator, and arts leader whose career spans orchestral performance, chamber music, international festival and guest solo appearances, and nonprofit artistic administration. In 1999 she earned a double Master of Music degree in Violin Performance and Pedagogy from Northwestern University, where she served as Assistant Concertmaster and Principal Second Violin of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago and Principal Second Violin of the Northwestern Symphony Orchestra. During this time, she performed under the batons of renowned conductors including Daniel Barenboim, Pierre Boulez, Michael Tilson Thomas, Thomas Wilkins, and Victor Yampolsky. She was also a founding member of MusiCorp, a grant-funded chamber music education program that took live music and training into inner-city schools and churches throughout Chicago.
Carithers began her professional orchestral career in 2000 as Associate Principal Second Violin of the Colorado Springs Symphony. She joined the Richmond Symphony in 2003 and became Principal Second Violin of the Williamsburg Symphony Orchestra in 2015 after serving for 10 years as a section violinist.
Carithers’s performance career has taken her around the world, including guest soloist, clinician, lecturer, and concertmaster engagements with the Yellow River Symphony Orchestra, Zhengzhou New Year’s Orchestra, Hunan Symphony, the Williamsburg Symphony Orchestra, Bob Jones University Symphony Orchestra, and the Masterworks Festival Orchestra. Carithers has performed in major concert halls around the world, including Carnegie Hall; Symphony Hall, Chicago; the Kimmel Center, Philadelphia; the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.; Boettcher Concert Hall in Denver; the Barbican Centre in London; the Harbin Music Center; and the Henan Arts Center in China.
A committed advocate for chamber music and contemporary composition, Carithers performs regularly with the Oberon Quartet, the Atlantic Chamber Ensemble, and Classical Revolution RVA, and has been a member of the DaVinci String Quartet and the Hausmusik Quartet.
In addition to her extensive performance career, Carithers has held leadership roles in several nonprofit and arts organizations for the past 20 years, serving as artistic director, treasurer, development officer, programmer, personnel manager, music librarian, guest artist manager, and operations administrator. She has received multiple grant awards —including support from the Alan Blank Foundation—to commission new works for the Atlantic Chamber Ensemble, a mixed chamber ensemble recognized with an ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming.
Alana Carithers currently resides in Richmond, Virginia, where she teaches, coaches, performs, and shares a life with her husband, Jamie Carithers, and three children.
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Questions | Contact Camille Cadman at 757.229.9857 or camille@williamsburgsymphony.org
