His compositional style ranges from opera, art song, and choral music to chamber ensemble and orchestral works.
Previous teachers include Alexina Louie, Lothar Klein, Mariano Etkin, Boyd McDonald, and Owen Underhill.
In 2018, Ryan's work "Angeline on Ossabaw" was performed as part of the Luminous Voices concert in Calgary.
[1] Ryan was twice nominated for a Juno Award for Classical Composition of the Year (for Quantum Mechanics in 2008 and Pangaea in 2005, the latter recorded by the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra conducted by Music Director Geoffrey Moull).
His works have also been recorded by the Bowling Green Philharmonia (Ophélie), the Hannaford Street Silver Band (She Threw It Down, Anathema), the Penderecki Quartet (String Quartet #3), the Canadian Chamber Choir (Angeline on Ossabaw and After Storm), and Tyler Duncan and Erika Switzer (the song cycle Everything Already Lost).