MANILA -- “It is the most exciting time for Filipino music.”

It can actually be said that Ryan Cayabyab, noted songwriter, arranger, performer, and National Artist for Music, has seen it all. After all, he is celebrating his 50th year in the music industry.

“I began playing the piano for a chorale group right after my graduation from high school in 1970,” he said of his journey to a life-long love affair with music.

One would think that even at age 66, Cayabyab would not be active in the music scene more so open to modern music. And yet, the National Artists is never more entrenched and never busier.

The man they call “Mr. C” just got off a press conference where the finalists from the Visayan and Mindanao clusters of the Philpop Songwriting Festival 2020 were announced. He jumped into another nearly hour-long interview with this writer, and yet, he remained as giddy as a kid toting a loot bag out of a toy store.

“You should see the entries,” gushed Cayabyab. “We just finished our Philipop conference and sobrang daming magagaling na songwriters na ang gagaling sa Visayas and Mindanao. What makes it exciting is they are using their language. These different languages will open your ear and mind to new melodies because these languages have different inflections as compared to Tagalog and English. Along with their colloquial use of the language, it gives a different feel or sound.”

“When people say, ‘Visayan pop’ it is said in a cultural context. I am not saying it is not bad or isn’t beautiful but rather, is evokes a different era. The new pop music coming from Visayas and Mindanao is exciting because it will take Filipino music to a new level.”

And although the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has closed down a multitude of performing venues, it has also given rise to improvisation.

“This is the right time to think of new ways to entertain and perform,” extrapolated Cayabyab. “We do not know the future. Since we need to work and earn for our families, we need to improvise. We are improvising and devising ways to host online shows and concerts.”

“How do we level up? Nung nagsimula kami ng Bayanihan Musikahan gamit lang namin ay camera at cellphone. Ngayon mga singers bumili na ng components for mixing and better microphones. At nagbilihan ng ringlight.”

And Mr. C has embraced these new challenges and more. Aside from Philpop, Mr. C was also involved in the recently concluded Linggo ng Musikang Pilipino (August 19-28), and active songwriting.

"In the past 10 years, I must have written about only three songs because I was busy promoting OPM,” admitted Cayabyab whose mind has been ablaze with creativity and ideas. “But during this pandemic, because I, like everyone else, is at home, I have become busier. I have written 10 songs, two of which are on Spotify.”

More to that, Mr. C hopes to fulfill something on his musical bucket list. “I promised to do a piano concerto before,” he bared. “Now, we are looking at finally making it happen.”

Cayabyab’s life has seen one milestone after another. As a youngster, working as a pianist with a chorale group opened doors to working with notable singers and performers such as Pilita Corrales, Jose Mari Chan, Basil Valdez, Celeste Legaspi, the New Minstrels, and many others.

“I felt I was living a dream,” he looked back.

Included among those milestones was his winning the MetroPop Festival where his song “Kay Ganda ng Ating Musika” won the grand prize.

“We went to Korea to compete as well, and we won the grand prize in the Seoul Music Festival,” recounted Cayabyab. “I graduated from a pianist to an arranger and producer, and that affords you a lot of work.”

A second milestone is becoming a professor at the University of the Philippines. “I never thought I would last almost 20 years teaching music theory and composition, and this was very enjoyable,” he said.

"I parlayed that working with young musicians with what I would consider the third milestone in my career which is having done 'Ryan Ryan Musikahan.' Again, I never thought I’d have my own show on television which last for almost six years on ABS-CBN. That paved the way for creating a television venue for the Filipino musician. I was able to share my expertise and vice versa.”

From television, Mr. C pointed to the famous pop group Smokey Mountain as the fourth feather in his cap-full of achievements. “I keep saying, ‘I never thought’ but it is true. I never thought that producing a group like Smokey Mountain would see my songwriting geared towards a younger audience. The group won a grand prize in the Tokyo Music Festival in 1992 and it was mind-blowing. The usual winners of that festival are always big names in the music world. Suddenly, you have Smokey Mountain. Beyond 'Paraiso' and the 'Da Coconut Nut' – that song would catapult into a bigger thing as you have people all over the world singing it and using it.”

“You have American choirs singing 'Da Coconut Nut,' and now it was licensed to an American liquor company, Malibu Rum, using drinks with coconuts. Now it is a campaign jingle and nakakatuwa,” gushed Cayabyab.

The fifth milestone, according to Mr. C, was his work as the executive and artistic director for the San Miguel Foundation for the Performing Arts and under that, the Philharmonic Orchestra and the San Miguel Master Chorale. “I produced a lot of orchestral and chorale music in a span of six years, and I liked what we were doing. And you can add to that my being artistic director of the Elements Music Camp and being part of the PhilPop Foundation as one of the board of directors.”

Most would have one or two of what Mr. C has achieved, but the maestro isn’t one to boast about it. “I fell in love with music and I have given it a lot. I am grateful for what it has given me because it allowed me to help Filipino music and to provide for my family.”

With the conclusion of Linggo ng Musikang Pilipino, PhilPop is shifting to a higher gear, and the Filipino musician finding his voice in this pandemic, Ryan Cayabyab is excited for the direction of OPM.

“Kay ganda talaga ng ating musika,” he concluded with a smile.