Early Life
His mother died when he was only 6, and his father struggled to support him and his three other siblings. His mother's dying wish was that none of her children would pursue music as a profession, knowing how hard life is for a musician with meager earnings (she was an opera singer).
Thus, Cayabyab initially took up Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in the University of the Philippines, Diliman. But at the same time, he looked for a job in order to support his studies, and eventually landed with then-Senator Salvador Laurel as accompanist for the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) Chorale Ensemble. Noticing Cayabyab's exceptional talent on the piano, Laurel offered Cayabyab a scholarship which would allow Cayabyab to shift his course and pursue an education in music.
And so Cayabyab later graduated from the UP College of Music earning a Bachelor of Music, Major in Theory degree. After that, he became a full-time professor for the Department of Composition and Music Theory in the UP Diliman for almost two decades.
At the turn of the century, Cayabyab was about to bring his family and migrate abroad, but when offered by Danding Cojuangco (President of the San Miguel Corporation) a command post that would give him full access in producing and performing new music that would bring forth a fresh wave to the Philippine music scene, Cayabyab accepted the offer. Today he is currently in his 7th year as Executive and Artistic Director of the .
Read more about this topic: Ryan Cayabyab
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