I am from the Philippines and at the moment plays for two latin bands here. One is with Mai Castro y Ritmo Latino which plays every wednesdays and sundays at Cafe Havana in Greenbelt, Makati City and the other one is my own band Cubanila and we play a variety of caribbean music in general. I have been playing a great variety of cuban and brazilian music for almost 5 years now and is still researching and studying. I didnt have the opportunity to study in a school but was taught first-hand by teachers who are and who was able to study traditionally.