“A violist unlike any other” (Stir Vancouver), Canadian Ryan Davis has swiftly emerged as a singular creative force. Davis commands praise for his presence as a composer-performer under the moniker Radia, unifying his extensive classical training with the inspiration of folk, electronic, and hip-hop music. An “electronic Wunderkind” (OperaRamblings), he delights in redefining the viola’s profile and seamlessly blending in between creative spaces. His unique sound has garnered attention and has been featured in diverse spaces, including in Toronto’s Koerner Hall, The Violin Channel, in Los Angeles’s Skid Row, and on ABC Channel 7 News LA. Of Glow & Abandon, his debut EP, was released on all major platforms in December 2021, “showcasing multitudes of colours and possibilities, with much skill and imagination” (The WholeNote). He was named one of “30 Hot Canadian Classical Musicians Under 30” by CBC Music in 2021.

Davis was named an Artistic Partner with the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra (SSO) for their 2022-2023 season. This partnership featured his performance of the rarely heard Cecil Forsyth’s Viola Concerto In G Minor on opening night; as well as the premiering of Radia’s orchestration of Of Glow & Abandon, an original work for viola, electronics, and the SSO musicians. He has enjoyed a fruitful collaboration with The Gryphon Trio, joining them in eclectic performances in Halifax, Salt Spring Island, Toronto, Vancouver, and Victoria. Their Halifax performance has been nationally broadcast on CBC Radio’s In Concert program. His duet Lavender Jump was released on violinist Mayumi Seiler’s new album Six Degrees, and the premiere of his trio Diamond Up, Diamond Down with violinist Kerry DuWors and pianist Katherine Dowling was featured in Winnipeg’s Groundswell series in 2023. Davis was also a featured soloist with the Canadian Chamber Orchestra’s inaugural concert, and was elected as the 2022-2023 Young Artistic Associate of Toronto’s Confluence Concerts.

Some other recent highlights include an appearance on former Toronto Raptors forward and NBA Champion Serge Ibaka’s Instagram Live show How Talented Are You?, a performance with The Gryphon Trio and vocalist Patricia O’Callaghan as a featured guest artist in Kingston’s Isabel Bader Theatre, a solo curation called Chromatophores as part of the Banff Centre’s Evolution Classical festival, and the performance of Christos Hatzis’s The Mega4 Meta4 as an invited solo artist as part of 21C Music Festival at The Royal Conservatory of Music. Davis was chosen as the principal violist of the string ensemble Les Jeunes Virtuoses in Montreal, as part of the Montreal Chamber Music Festival. He had a solo concerto debut with ensemble Prairie Virtuosi in January 2016, and has since returned in that role in 2020. He was the principal violist of the Colburn Orchestra’s 2018 tour of Scotland and Ireland, and was selected by the Lucerne Festival Academy Orchestra as their principal violist for the 2017 summer festival, with featured performances in KKL Luzern, Kolner Philharmonie, and Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie. As a guest violist, he joined the Toronto Symphony Orchestra for their 2023 tour performances in Carnegie Hall and Chicago Symphony Center.

WATCH: Lavender Jump Davis’s duet composition with Mayumi Seiler

Davis has collaborated in chamber music performances with many world-renowned musicians, including Martin Beaver, Jonathan Crow, Steven Dann, Roberto Diaz, Mark Fewer, Matt Haimovitz, Charles-Richard Hamelin, Barbara Hannigan, Ernst Kovacic, Joel Link, Anthony Marwood, Johannes Moser, Eric Nowlin, Marina Piccinini, Erika Raum, Wolfgang Redik, Mayumi Seiler, Lara St. John, Yekwon Sunwoo, Andrew Wan, She-e Wu, and Time For Three. He has worked under conductors including Edo de Waart, Gilbert Varga, Gustavo Gimeno, John Adams, Kent Nagano, Ludovic Morlot, Matthias Pintscher, Peter Oundjian, Stephane Deneve, and Valery Gergiev.

Festival appearances include the Banff Centre for the Arts, BigLake Arts, Creative Dialogue France, Edmonton Summer Solstice, Festival of the Sound, Orford Arts Center, Ottawa Chamberfest, McGill International String Quartet Academy, Montreal Chamber Music Festival, Music Toronto, Napa Valley Music Festival, Ritornello Chamber Music Festival, and the Toronto Summer Music Festival.

His passion for community engagement has led to working closely with Street Symphony, focused within the Skid Row neighbourhood of Los Angeles. Along with trombonist Jared Dickerson and violinist Simone Porter, he created the media co-op The Upnote, a platform and podcast focused on the exploration of young artists in an ever-changing music industry. After over 50 episodes, The Upnote was selected as the inaugural Entrepreneurs In Residence at the Colburn School for the 2019-2020 academic year, and the trio was awarded the Grand Prize at the New Venture Competition.

Davis completed music studies at McGill University, Yale University, and The Colburn School, under the tutelage of Andre Roy, Ettore Causa, and Paul Coletti. He was the first ever violist Rebanks Fellow in 2019, in the Rebanks Family Fellowship & International Performance Residency Program in Toronto.