Praised for his "strong personal voice" (Globe and Mail), "masterful command of instrumental colour" (Georgia Straight), and "superb attention to rhythm" (Audio Ideas Guide), Jeffrey Ryan has emerged as one of Canada's leading composers. His varied catalogue ranges from opera, art song, and choral music to chamber and orchestral works, including commissions for the Cleveland Orchestra, Vancouver Symphony, Toronto Symphony, Calgary Philharmonic, Esprit Orchestra, Arditti Quartet, Tiresias, and Tapestry New Opera.
Ryan's music has been performed and broadcast around the world, inspired choreographers, and served as soundtrack to the dance film Fata Morgana. His busy 11/12 season includes seven world premieres, beginning with his fourth quartet Inspirare by the renowned Tokyo String Quartet in Toronto (followed by a North American tour) and continuing with premieres by such performers as New Music Concerts, the Vancouver Bach Choir, the Aventa Ensemble, and saxophonist Julia Nolan.
Well represented on disc, recordings of Ryan's music have garnered two JUNO nominations and two more from the Western Canadian Music Awards, all for Classical Composition of the Year. Most recently, Naxos Records chose an all-Ryan programme performed by the Vancouver Symphony with the Gryphon Trio to launch its Canadian Classics series. 2011 also saw the release of Triple Witching by clarinetist Cris Inguanti, with Standing Wave's recording of Burn upcoming. Ryan's growing discography includes recordings by musica intima, the Canadian Chamber Choir, pianist Rachel Kiyo Iwaasa, the Thunder Bay Symphony, the Hannaford Street Silver Band, and the Penderecki String Quartet.
Jeffrey Ryan is a freelance composer based in Vancouver, British Columbia. He was the Vancouver Symphony's Composer Laureate for the 2008/09 season, after serving as Composer-in-Residence from 2002 to 2007. Previously he was an Affiliate Composer with the Toronto Symphony from 2000 to 2002. Since 1997, he has been Composer Advisor for Music Toronto.
Born in Toronto and raised in Fergus, Ontario, Jeffrey Ryan fled the School of Business and Economics at Wilfrid Laurier University to join the Faculty of Music, from which he graduated with an Honours Bachelor of Music degree and the gold medal in music. After earning a Master's degree in composition from the University of Toronto, he went on to receive his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in composition from The Cleveland Institute of Music, where he studied with Donald Erb. Previous teachers include Alexina Louie, Lothar Klein, Mariano Etkin, Boyd McDonald, and Owen Underhill.