Ryan Howells began his banding career at the age of eleven when he joined the Goodwick Brass Band on cornet. Two years later he developed a neurological condition known as Bells Palsy, which affects the facial nerve, causing the left side of his face and lips to become paralysed. He lost the ability to play cornet but moved to euphonium for a time to allow his muscles to recover as much as possible. After some improvement of function, he finally progressed on to tenor horn – the instrument he currently plays.
As well as being an active member of Goodwick Brass Band, Ryan played solo horn in both the National Youth Brass Bands of Great Britain and Wales for a number of years and was twice principal composer for the National Youth Orchestra of Wales, where he was awarded Welsh Young Composer of the Year. During his time in youth music, he was awarded a number of prizes including the Vivendi Student Composition Award at Music for Youth, Dyfed Young Composer of the Year, and first place in the Urdd Eisteddfod’s composition contest. His piece, Welsh Fantasy, won the 2014 Ty Cerdd Composition Prize, and was premiered by the National Youth Brass Band of Wales later that year.
Ryan began composing at the age of fifteen when someone gave him a copy of Sibelius and he learned by trial and error, finally producing his first complete piece for brass band at the age of nineteen, since then he has enjoyed fulfilling a number of commissions. Ryan is currently studying to become a dentist at Barts and the Royal London School of Medicine and Dentistry and enjoys composition as part of a range of extracurricular activities.