Ryan Barski, Jazz Drummer

What Ryan has learned on these stages is exactly what he teaches: how to listen, how to keep time under pressure, and how to make a room feel something.

Ryan is a jazz drummer whose career continues to expand through meaningful collaborations, acclaimed festival performances, and national touring.

He has worked with a number of celebrated artists, including Grammy Award-winners Maria Schneider, Christian McBride, Dafnis Prieto, and John Clayton, as well as Grammy-nominated musicians Ryan Keberle and Reuben Rogers. These collaborations have had a lasting impact on his artistry, influencing both his musical language and his approach to ensemble playing.

From 2017 to 2024, while studying at the Eastman School of Music, he performed regularly with the school’s premier jazz ensembles.

Highlights from this period include appearances at Kilbourn Hall with Dafnis Prieto and Ingrid Jensen, Hatch Hall performances with Reuben Rogers and John Clayton, and the premiere of a new work with Maria Schneider and the Eastman New Jazz Ensemble. He also shared the stage with Ryan Keberle and Billy Harper as part of the Eastman Lab Band, deepening his experience in large and small group settings.

Ryan has been a fixture at the Rochester International Jazz Festival for over a decade, performing annually since 2013. Notable appearances include the 2019 “Live at the Library” Elvin Jones Tribute, the 2023 Chick Corea Scholarship Concert, and collaborations with Mike Cottone and John Hasselback III.

His career has also reached national stages, with performances at the BottleRock Festival in Napa and the Lilac Festival in Rochester alongside singer-songwriter Sage Bava. As co-founder of the jazz quartet Side Step, formed in 2022, he released the group’s debut album Blues Clues in February 2025 and has since toured across the U.S., while also contributing to a growing list of studio projects with artists such as Braxton Cook, Haik Demirchian, Shane McCandless, and Jordan Lerner.