Ryan Ponto first discovered his love of historical performance while studying double bass and music history at the University of Oregon. There in the Collegium Musicum, Ryan was handed an old bass viol by professor Marc Vanscheeuwijck and has never looked back since. Alongside his foundational tutelage with Drs. Vanscheeuwijck and Margret Gries, he has also studied with renowned specialists including Joanna Blendulf and Mary Springfels. Ryan performs regularly with the Oregon Bach Collegium and took over for Dr. Gries as Executive Director of OBC upon her retirement in 2024. In addition to playing, he also works part-time as a luthier specializing in violas da gamba. And when he’s not playing or working on viols, he can be found cooking, gardening or camping around Oregon with his wife, Kelley. He plays on a bass viol after John Rose (ca. 1600) from the Charlie Ogle workshop and a tenor by Floris van den Voort.