William Ravel has performed with Bobby Shew, Peter Erskine, Ernie Watts, Eric Marienthal, Brandon Fields, Don Braden, Gunther Schuller, Conte Candoli, and The Dallas Brass. Ravel has also played with local AZ musicians such as Dwight Kilian as a member of his band Bass Pursuit, Big Jim Henry, Monte Procopio (including multiple television appearances), Mike Crotty, Dennis Rowland and The Extreme Decibel Big Band, the Spherical Jazz Quartet (with Ted Beledin, Kyle Nix, and Ebbert Gepner), the Sunday night house trio at the Velvet Room Supper Club, and The Symphony of the West Valley. 

Ravel’s major teachers of jazz improvisation and piano include Chuck Marohnic, Toby Koenigsberg, and Steve Owen. Ravel has studied composition and arranging with Mike Crotty, Steve Owen, and Chuck Marohnic. He has studied piano privately or played in masterclass with Fred Hersch, Art Lande, Clare Fischer, Philip Strange, Danilo Pérez, Benny Green, and Michael Kocour. He has received two soloist awards from the Reno Jazz Festival, 3 citations for outstanding musicianship from the IAJE, the NAU outstanding performer award, the Jazzbird full-tuition scholarship to Arizona State University, a Graduate Teaching Fellowship to the University of Oregon for graduate study in jazz performance and an award for Excellence in Teaching from Pierson School Systems.

Ravel has taught at Phoenix College, the University of Oregon, and at the high school and middle school level. His students and ensembles have earned numerous awards and honors, including 1st place at the Fullerton Jazz Festival (top division), the rating of superior at multiple festivals, soloist awards, and talent-based scholarships to major university music programs.