Born in Long Island, New York, Ryan Whitson is currently obtaining his Master’s Degree in Bass Trombone at The Juilliard School, studying with bass trombonist John Rojak. He received his Bachelor’s of Music in Bass Trombone Performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music in 2025, where he studied with bass trombonist Randall Hawes. Currently, he is the bass trombonist of the Metropolis Brass Quintet, as well as a Juilliard Pre-College Mentor.  

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Ryan is well-versed in classical, chamber, jazz, and contemporary styles of music. He has freelanced and performed with the San Diego Symphony, Youngstown Symphony, Mansfield Symphony, and Chopin Institute of Ohio Orchestra. Ryan received a fellowship for the upcoming 2026 season of Aspen Music Festival, and was the bass trombone fellow for Miami Music Festival in 2024 and Lake George Music Festival in 2023. He was an original member of the Lake Effects Trombone Choir from Cleveland, Ohio. ​He has also played in the Ira B. Liss Big Band Jazz Machine.

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Not only does Ryan perform on bass trombone; he can also be found performing on contrabass trombone, tenor trombone, bass sackbut, euphonium and bass trumpet. 

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Ryan can found on multiple platforms of social media, with over 1.6k followers on Instagram, 2.4k followers on TikTok, and over 1.1 million views on YouTube. You can also check out his Apple Music/Spotify Artist page.