Sebastián Serrano-Ayala joins the faculty at University of the Pacific’s Conservatory of Music in the fall of 2025 as assistant professor of practice in orchestral conducting. He will direct Pacific Orchestras and teach coursework in conducting.

Colombian-born conductor Serrano-Ayala has led professional and student orchestras across the U.S., Latin America, the Philippines, and the Netherlands, blending cultural perspective with artistic excellence. He is recognized for his inclusive leadership, international reach and innovative, fresh programming.

Serrano-Ayala most recently served as director of orchestral studies at the University of New Mexico (UNM), where he conducted the UNM Symphony Orchestra and Sinfonia, taught graduate-level conducting and redesigned the orchestral curriculum to center student artistry and diverse repertoire. At UNM, he collaborated on guest residencies with conductors Michael Sanderling and Colonel Jim Keene, composer Sérgio Azevedo and a range of distinguished soloists, including faculty artists and international performers.

As an active guest conductor throughout the Pacific Northwest, Serrano-Ayala has led the Saratoga Orchestra and Skagit Symphony and held fellowships with Symphony Tacoma, the National Orchestral Institute, Allentown Symphony, Cabrillo Festival and the Mostly Modern Festival. He has premiered and recorded new works with the American Modern Ensemble in New York and has served as cover conductor for the Seattle Youth Symphony and Yakima Symphony Orchestra.

Serrano-Ayala has also appeared with leading international ensembles, including the Royal Military Chapel "Johan Willem Friso" at the Dutch International Festival BLOW and as a semi-finalist in the World Music Contest Conductors Competition, conducting the Marinierskapel der Koninklijke Marine, Blazerensemble Helicon and the Royal Symphonic Band of the Belgian Air Force. He was a finalist at the International Conducting Competition hosted by the Denver Philharmonic and named a 2025 finalist for The American Prize in both orchestral performance and conducting.

Serrano-Ayala holds a DMA from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and degrees from Andrews University, the Adventist University of the Philippines and the Adventist University of Colombia. He has studied under Marin Alsop, Mei-Ann Chen, Cristian Măcelaru, JoAnn Falletta, Diane Wittry, Sarah Ioannides, Ankush Kumar Bahl, Mark Heron and Anna Edwards.