‘Age may have slowed the 60-year-old Gary but not his ever vibrant spirit.’
When the Maryknoll /Miriam College Alumni Association (MMCAA) was planning on a fundraiser for their projects and the school’s centennial celebration in 2026, one fundraising event was top of mind: a concert of Gary Valenciano at the college’s Marian Auditorium.
Maryknoll College or Miriam College (MC), as the school is known since 1990 when the Maryknoll Sisters formally completely turned over the school to lay administrators, holds a special place in Gary’s heart. His wife, Angeli Pangilinan-Valenciano, is a graduate of Maryknoll. So were Angeli’s sisters. Gary was a favorite guest performer at the school’s variety shows back in the 1980s. Returning to MC was like coming home. And thus, on Oct. 11, 2024, MMCAA and Manila Genesis Entertainment (Angeli’s company that manages the career of Gary) presented “Gary V Back @ MC” — to the delight of the Miriam College community. The band Rythmn & Babes and Miriam College High School’s award-winning dance troupe Sayawatha were the front acts that heralded a night of enjoyable music.
A new arrangement of the upbeat “Eto Na Naman” proved to be the apt opening to underscore the theme of homecoming. For the next two hours, Gary regaled the audience of mostly Maryknoll alumnae with his mesmerizing performance and funny, heartfelt stories. Like how, when, he was starting in show biz, he was mistakenly recognized as Ric Segreto.
There was also a variety show at Maryknoll where Gary guested and Martin Nievera performed before he was called to the stage.
“And I’ll never forget how he stepped out on this stage and I heard screams just like I heard you,” Gary said of Martin.
“There he was doing his three songs and the last song was one of the songs I was meant to sing… His arrangement was especially made for him by none other than Homer Flores, the musical director of ‘ASAP’… so you can tell what kind of excellent musical arranger he is…
“And me? My minus one was bought from Unimart!” he confessed with a chuckle.
But judging from the screams of the ladies — whose ages ranged from teenagers to early 60s — that filled the more than a 1000-seater Marian Auditorium, there was no doubt who was the concert king in the hearts and minds of the Knollers.
Every number that Gary performed was met with thunderous applause and loud cheers.
Other highlights of “Gary V Back @ MC” were the rendition of Al Jereau’s “Spain” (“I Can Recall”), “Reaching Out” (wherein Gary walked from the stage to the audience), “Sana Maulit Muli,” and a medley of ‘80s English songs that included “You Are the Sunshine of My Life.”
Gary disclosed that “Sana Maulit Muli” was a reworking in Filipino of “Why’d You Close Your Eyes So Soon?” that he composed for the family of the late Julie Vega whose untimely death in 1985 also affected action king Fernando Poe Jr. “I could not believe how a new artist (Julie) could make that kind of impact on a senior artist (FPJ),” said Gary.
The iconic singer turned pensive as he sang “I Will Be Here and “The Warrior Is a Child.” At this part, he requested the audience not to take photos and videos so they could fully appreciate and reflect on the message of the songs.
Gab Valenciano, son of Gary, shared the stage with Mr. Pure Energy for “Babalik Ka Rin” and “Shake It Off,” a song about rising above adversity that Gary wrote way before Taylor Swift composed a tune with the same title.
Before the night was over, Gary gave the extremely happy ladies more reasons to get up from their seats and dance by way of “Shout for Joy” and the finale composed of his hits “Hataw Na,” ” Huwag Mo na Sanang Isipin,” “You Got Me Working” and “Di Bale Na Lang.” The medley was given an EDM style arrangement to appeal to the younger members audience, and Gary was backed up by the ManoeuvresIgnite.
“They’re the fourth or fifth generation of the Manoeuvres,” Gary said with a smile.
For his encore, Gary sang “How Did You Know.”
With the amazing way that Gary performed, it didn’t seem like it had been four decades since he performed in the Maryknoll variety shows.
The MC community thanked Gary with sincere claps, loud trills and special gifts — one of which was a portrait of the singer by Marijo Fran.
Age may have slowed the 60-year-old Gary but not his ever vibrant spirit. As he announced his concert “Gary V Pure Energy One More Time” to be held on December 20 and 22, 2024 at the Araneta Coliseum, he also expressed hope in performing in what he described as “more intimate venues” like Miriam College. “I wouldn’t mind coming back here again and again,” Gary promised the MC community.