Ray Steelman seeks to share the life of joy that music has brought to them. Their musical journey has encompassed multiple genres, fueled by a deep passion for beautiful and moving sound. They are an avid singer, composer, teacher, and all around musician and music lover.
Originally singing in their community children’s church choir, Ray also spent their formative years performing in their school and community musicals, competing in competitions for classical solo & ensemble, and composing music. They sang, played, and wrote music for their house band “New Gold,” which focused on indie-alt and indie-folk styles. Ray composed the score to the original musical “Spelling Happiness,” story and libretto written by their collaborator Mason Williams. They co-directed and performed in the premier performance in 2017.
Ray continued to explore their passion for music at St Mary’s College of Maryland as they earned their Bachelor’s degree in Music alongside their Bachelor’s degree in Psychology. Alongside multiple art song and soloist performances, Ray debuted in opera with the Principal role “Dido” in Dido & Aeneas in 2019. Simultaneous to their introduction to classical music, Ray was welcomed into the world of jazz. Ray performed as a guest artist and soloist with the St. Mary’s College of Maryland Jazz Band, performing at the National Oyster Festival in 2019. They were also the front singer for the Chesapeake Jazz Band, and co-founded their own jazz quintet named “No Time Five,” which performed from 2019-2021. Ray also began teaching voice and music in multiple genres, founding their own voice studio in 2018. Ray was recognized for their skill and dedication to music with the Barbara Bershon Arts Alliance Award in Music in 2020, the Roberts Music Award in 2019 and 2020, and the Mattie M. Key Award in Music in 2021.
Pursuing their love further, Ray was accepted into the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University in 2021. Studying with soprano Ah Young Hong, Ray earned their Masters of Music in 2023.In the time of their degree, Ray premiered multiple new works, including the operas “Zwischenspiel” by _____and “Shadow Stretches” by _____.
They also premiered multiple new songs such as “Yet When the Sun Downfalls,” and “Sanctus” by Colin Wu, and [songs from the etudes semester and astronomy concert]. As a section leader and soloist with the Peabody Camerata, Ray helped to premier new choral works, and explore a variety of choral genres. With the Peabody Opera Department, Ray performed as “Eurydice” in Orpheus and Eurydice by Ricky Ian Gordon, as well as in Cendrillon, and in scenes from Hotel Casablanca and La Liberazione di Ruggiero.
Ray’s passion for community and sharing music continued to blossom as they performed at the Johns Hopkins Hospitals as a solo artist as part of the “Music for a While” program in 2022-2023, and continued to teach in the Maryland and DC areas.
They engaged in musical theatre at Peabody as “Phoebe” in A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, “Martha” in Company, and [from the trio gay one]. In 2022, Ray made their international debut in Tuscany, Italy as “Prima Cercatrice” in Suor Angelica. By graduation in 2023, Ray earned the Ruth and Arno Drucker Scholarship and the Fraser Gange Memorial Scholarship, both in 2022, and the Annie Wentz Memorial Prize in 2023 in recognition of their talent and dedication to music.
In 2023 and 2024, Ray began teaching and performing full time. Beyond their personal studio, Ray has been a consistent instructor at Music on the Hill in DC and at the School of Rock in Columbia, MD. They actively teach voice in multiple genres, as well as drums, guitar, keys, and early childhood music. When teaching, Ray focuses on embracing and encouraging student’s natural interests, building confidence, trust, and skill in their instrument through technical exercises, knowledge, and performance in order to reach and surpass each student’s musical goals. They believe that every voice is a flexible instrument can engage and shine throughout countless genres and passions.
When not teaching, Ray has continued performing as a vocal artist. In 2023 they were the principal role “Aline” in the Victorian Lyric Opera Company’s performance of The Sorcerer. They were a soloist with the St. Mary’s College of Maryland performance of Messiah in 2023, and have performed in multiple recitals and gigs throughout 2023-2024.
Ray is currently performing with their jazz group, “The Green Room Trio,” which was founded in 2024.
They debuted in the Oak Crest Summer Concert Series “Basie to Bublé,” and recently performed a full show at An Die Musik, which has been voted one of the top 100 jazz venues in the world and is found in the Historic District of Baltimore Maryland.
