She is a violist who studied at the Young Artist Program at the Cleveland Institute of Music and later graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music in 1998, where she had initially been studying violin.
Working as an orchestral musician she performed as the Associate Concertmaster of the Charleston Symphony after graduation, Assistant Principal Viola with the Minnesota Orchestra for seven seasons before taking on the same position at the Philadelphia Orchestra in 2007.
She is married to the violinist William Polk and together they are founding members of the Minneapolis Quartet. She has also given performances with several local ensembles.
In the field of musical education she has been on the faculty of the Philadelphia International Music Festival and the Esther Boyer College of Music and Dance at Temple University and has been a guest artist coach at the NYS Summer School of the Arts. She also gives master classes, private tuition and is a Suzuki teacher.
Sources:
- https://www.philorch.org/your-philorch/meet-your-orchestra/musicians/kerri-ryan/
- http://www.pomusicians.org/kerri-ryan.html
- https://philadelphiamusicfestival.org/our-faculty/strings/kerri-ryan/
- https://www.chambermusicsociety.org/about/artists/strings/kerri-ryan/
- http://www.suzukialumniproject.org/kryan
- http://www.oce.nysed.gov/nysssa/orchestra/faculty/kerri-ryan-viola
- https://pimfonline.org/product/master-class-with-kerri-ryan/