Ryan Kerwin is a music educator and trumpeter from Morgantown, West Virginia. As a teacher, Ryan is passionate about improving the accessibility of music teaching and learning. Ryan currently serves as Graduate Assistant in Music Education at West Virginia University, Associate Instructor of Trumpet and Jazz Improvisation at the WVU Community Music Program, and Jazz Port Townsend Festival Intern for the Centrum Foundation. Ryan has served as clinician and adjudicator for West Virginia Music Educator’s Association and for several K-12 schools in WV. His students have received high ratings in Solo and Ensemble contests in WV and NY, have been selected participants in the WVMEA All-State Band and the WVU Honor Jazz Bands. Ryan has formerly served as Adjunct Professor of Music at West Virginia Wesleyan College and as an Administrative Intern with the West Virginia Governor’s School for the Arts.
In addition to these responsibilities, Ryan maintains an active performance calendar as a classical and jazz trumpet player. He has performed with professional ensembles including the Stephen Phillip Harvey Big Band, the WV Brass Quintet, and the Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra. As a student and professional, he has had the opportunity to perform alongside noted jazz artists Michael Davis (HipBone Music), Nadje Noordhuis (Maria Schneider Orchestra), and Sean Jones (International Jazz Soloist). His playing is featured on the NewStream Brass album, “A Step Forward,” Monongahela Brass' EP Mon Brass Plays Michael Kahle, and his jazz septet project, “Gratitude,” all available on Spotify and Apple Music. Ryan received a B.A. in Music from the Ohio University Honors Tutorial College, an M.M. in Jazz Performance from the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami, and is currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Music Education from West Virginia University. At Frost, he studied jazz composition and arranging with keyboardist Martin Bejerano and Dr. Stephen Guerra respectively. Ryan’s primary mentors on trumpet include John Schlabach, Dr. Robert Sears, and multi-Grammy winner Brian Lynch. |