Jon coming into his own

He is a scion of the famed Vera-Perez clan that built Sampaguita Pictures. But while his family’s legacy is in film, Jon Vera-Perez, grandson of the legendary star-maker “Doc Perez” and son of Mary Anne Meer and the late Bobby Vera-Perez, is making tracks of his own in another field — specifically, in music.

Born and raised in Manila, Jon — who once tried acting as part of Repertory Philippines where his mentors included the late Zeneida “Bibot” Amador, Baby Barredo, Joy Virata, Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo and Audie Gemora — has always wanted to do music for as long as he can remember. “When I was three years old, I could already sing an entire song before I could even form sentences,” he recalls. “I also learned to play the piano by ear before I was trained to read notes.”

After moving to the US for high school, he went on to college there and graduated with a double Bachelors’ degree in Music (Theory and Composition) and Government (Political Theory) from Dartmouth College, an Ivy League Liberal Arts institution in New Hampshire. He completed his graduate studies in Composition and Vocal Performance at the New England Conservatory of Music and the Longy School in Boston, Massachusetts.

Despite the length of time he spent in the US, Jon has always maintained strong ties with his family and the way of life in Manila. He is part-owner of Rank One Productions, a music production company which is now getting ready to go into film and theater. Negotiations are ongoing with producers and promoters in Europe and Canada, whom he says, have great faith in the Filipino talent.

He has several projects in Manila. “I have always felt a responsibility to find the right means for my creative expression, and to share that with the world,” he says. He bares plans to put a show together for the opening of the new events space at the Vera-Perez Gardens, breathing new life into the theme songs of the classic Sampaguita Films as well as presenting some of his original work in the spirit of that tradition.

Of late, Jon has been spending his time and energy on creating as much original material as possible, focusing on songwriting. He writes comfortably in Tagalog and English. He draws inspiration from famed Original Pilipino Music (OPM) greats like George Canseco and Willy Cruz, as well as Rey Valera. “My dream is to be able to contribute to the establishment of a new golden age of OPM,” shares an excited Jon.

Jon is open to working with other Filipino musical artists as well. He has worked with Gian Magdangal, Timmy Pavino, Victor Robinson and Marian Santiago, and with a lot of established artists in the musical theater industry. He also dreams of collaborating with Sharon Cuneta and Basil Valdez. “It would be nice to explore new treatments of their classic hits, as well as create new material for them,” he says. “I have always been a fan of Louie Ocampo’s work as well, and am collaborating on a project with him. I am also a fan of the work of Gerard Salonga and Maestro Ryan Cayabyab. My focus now is on contemporary pop music, though I’d like to be able to explore writing more for the musical theater and in a more classical contemporary vein in the future.”

He also has some projects for which he has to be in the US, including an electronic dance music project set for release in July. But overall, Jon is a great believer in Filipino talent and here is where his heart will remain. “There is a lot of singing talent here in the Philippines, as singing is even considered a national pastime,” he says.

In the future, we can expect a lot more from this brilliant young composer-songwriter-musician and music producer. His talent will shine bright, and that of our Filipino talents right along with him.