Praised for his "immense virtuosity and musicality," Ryan Corbett (b. 1999, Glasgow, Scotland) is one of the leading performers of his generation. A BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artist, Royal Over-Seas League Gold Medallist, and Classic FM Rising Star, he is the first accordionist ever selected for the prestigious BBC scheme since its launch in 1999.

 

Ryan has appeared as a soloist at major venues including Konzerthaus Berlin and London’s Wigmore Hall, with further performances across Europe, Mexico, and China. In the United Kingdom, he is a frequent guest at major festivals such as Cheltenham, Bath, Lammermuir, Ryedale, and Norfolk & Norwich. He has also given more than sixteen hours of radio broadcasts on Radio 3, Radio 4, BBC World Service, Classic FM and Scala Radio, and was featured in BBC television coverage of the Scottish Coronation of HM King Charles III.

 

Committed to expanding the accordion’s repertoire, Ryan has created hundreds of arrangements and has premiered new works for the instrument. In 2024 he gave the world premiere of Daniel Soley’s Accordion Concerto with Britten Sinfonia and the UK premiere of Mikhail Pletnev’s Accordion Concerto, later recording it with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Andrew Litton. In 2025 Ryan premiered Jay Capperauld’s Galvanic Dances with the National Youth Orchestra of Scotland, touring the UK and Germany. One critic remarked that his performance in Berlin “shone with technical perfection and subtle tonal nuance. In his encore - a moving Bach arrangement - he once again revealed his musical depth”. (Berlin Morgen Post)

 

Ryan collaborates widely with leading ensembles and artists, including the BBC Symphony Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Berlin Symphony Orchestra, and prominent soloists such as Geneva Lewis, Kevin Zhu and Santiago Cañón-Valencia. His duo with accordionist Djordje Gajic was described as “musically unified and utterly compelling” (Seen and Heard International).

 

He won first prize at the 2022 Bromsgrove International Musicians’ Competition and is a prize-winner of international accordion competitions in Italy, Germany, and China. He was nominated for the 2024 Royal Philharmonic Society Young Artist Award and has been highlighted by BBC Music Magazine, The Scotsman, and Scala Radio as “one to watch”.

 

Having performed twice before for King Charles III, Ryan was invited to Balmoral Castle in August 2025 to perform for the King, the Queen, the Princess Royal, and the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh.

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Ryan studied at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland with Djordje Gajic. He performs on a Bugari Spectrum classical piano accordion, made in Castelfidardo, Italy. This was made possible by private sponsors, the John Mather Trust, and Dewar Arts Awards. 

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Updated 09/2025, please do not alter without permission.

 

Review excerpts:

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“The star of the evening was accordion virtuoso Ryan Corbett. At just 26, [he] commanded the keys and buttons with the highest brilliance, conjuring through contrary movements and tremolo effects a mystical, magical atmosphere. He seamlessly wove together everything that a listener might associate with the instrument, from Parisian musette to Argentine tango.”

Frederik Hanssen, Tagesspiegel 7th August 2025

 

“At the centre stood the accordion, played with virtuosity and expressiveness by Ryan Corbett. The young Glaswegian shone with technical perfection and subtle tonal nuance. In his encore - a moving Bach arrangement - he once again revealed his musical depth.”

Mario-Felix Vogt, Berliner Morgenpost 7th August 2025

 

“Immense virtuosity and musicality”

Andrew McGregor, BBC Radio 3 10th June 2024

 

“Think accordion in Scotland and the chances are it’s traditional tunes that come to mind. Yet there is a whole other world of music out there for this most versatile of instruments, given even more range in shading and contrast when seven of them play together in tightly bound ensemble, as heard in St Magnus Cathedral on Midsummer Night. Whether the one voice clarity of a Bach Fantasia, arranged by lead accordionist Ryan Corbett, the tour de force that is Russian composer Vladislav Zolotaryov’s Rondo Capriccioso, or the visceral edginess of the waltz from Khachaturian’s Masquerade, each piece from this Royal Conservatoire of Scotland group amazed and astonished anew.” 

Carol Main, The Scotsman ***** 22nd June 2023 

 

“There’s never any doubt about the technical skill on show here. Corbett with his quiet manner, and witty knowledgeable commentary is a splendid ambassador for the accordion. What a revelation this concert has been!”

Kate Calder, Edinburgh Music Review 24th July 2022

 

“I am not clear how it is possible to achieve the variation in voice, as well as tone and dynamics, we heard in his approach to music written for organ and piano, but it was certainly audible. And the visual advantage of the front-facing accordion is that his remarkably dextrous technique could not have been easier to admire.”

Keith Bruce, VoxCarnyx 25th July 2022

 

“Stravinsky’s jagged cross-rhythms and biting syncopations sounded far better on two accordions than you have any right to expect. The nerve-jangling rawness of the climax was every bit as full as you would normally get in a concert hall and, if this arrangement is a bit of a curiosity, then it’s one I am really pleased to have heard.”

Simon Thompson, Seen and Heard International 15th September 2021