Ryan Cayabyab’s life and beautiful music on exhibit
HOW can a visual presentation on music ever be possible?
The question is not hard to answer when the subject is musical genius Ryan Cayabyab.
Named National Artist for Music in 2018, and the only Filipino among the revered Ramon Magsaysay Awards honorees in 2019, Cayabyab is recognized for “showing us all that music can indeed instill pride and joy and unify people across the many barriers that divide them.”
On January 16, the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde School of Design and Arts (DLS-CSB SDA) opened a special exhibit on Cayabyab with the music master personally gracing the event himself.
Titled “Kay Ganda Ng Ating Musika, An Exhibit on the Life and Work of National Artist for Music Ryan Cayabyab,” the extensive display is currently on view at the SDA Gallery, 12th Floor, School of Arts and Design Campus, DLS-CSB, Pablo Ocampo Street, Malate, Manila. It is up until April 18.
“The exhibit is designed to create awareness and celebrate Cayabyab’s music, showcasing milestones of his life and works by highlighting his career as a composer, arranger, musical director, conductor, choir master, host and music educator. His projects that include concerts, recordings, theater performances, films and television shows are likewise spotlighted,” co-curator and Center for Campus Art (CCA) Director Architect Gerry Torres said.
Produced by DLS-CSB CCA under the Office of Advancement, the exhibit is co-curated by one of the earliest students of the Maestro — Aji Manalo of the AB Music Production.
The gallery features a grand piano used to stage Cayabyab’s music on opening night and, with an accompanying timeline presented in text, images and videos throughout the exhibit. Moreover, his songs are heard through curated playlists and a karaoke room for those who wish to listen or sing along with his melodic compositions.
CSB students from the AB Music Production program presented several acts to the delight of Mr. C (Cayabyab’s term of endearment in the industry) and guests who attended the launch.
Tapestries and lounge chairs inspired by Cayabyab’s compositions designed by Architecture and Interior Design undergraduates — under the mentorship of Architect Walther Ocampo and Interior Designers Kat Correa and Lheng Vito Cruz — further adorn the venue. According to Torres, “Kay Ganda Ng
Ating Musika” is the first Center for Campus Art (CCA) exhibit on music, but, nonetheless, is aligned with its objective to spotlight National Artists — recipients of the highest recognition granted by the Philippine government upon Filipino artists, designers, dancers and musicians.
“The CCA has generated showrooms on National Artists Ramon Valera, Lino Brocka and Ishmael Bernal and hosted the pieces of National Artists Manuel Conde, Carlos ‘Botong’ Francisco and Salvador Bernal,” Torres informed The
Sunday Times Magazine in an interview. “But this was very challenging because music is intangible,” he added.
Grateful
In acknowledging the tribute, Cayabyab — who has mentored hundreds of Filipino musicians and instructors, among them DLS-CSB pedagogues – said that he had “closed his ears” to praises but appreciates them whenever they are still given.
“I have my ears closed. I don’t want to hear [people] talking about Mr. C being a genius because I don’t think I am. I just enjoy myself — even if you ask my family, my children. Life is so much fun... But [these] things come, opportunities come, they drop on your