Joni Perez

Joni Perez has been in Music Education in the state of Texas for 25 years and is the recently appointed Director of Bands at Moe & Gene Johnson High School in Austin, Texas. She spent 12 years prior serving as the Head Director of The Woodlands High School Band in The Woodlands, TX from 2010-2022.

During her short time at Moe & Gene Johnson HS, the top concert ensemble has been named a Mark of Excellence National Winner by the Foundation for Music Education and was most recently invited to perform at the Bands of America National Concert Festival in 2026. The marching band is a 2025 Bands of America St. Louis Super Regional Finalist and San Antonio Super Regional Finalist and also participated in the 2025 UIL 6A Texas State Marching Band Contest, marking the school’s first ever trip to the state event. Under Perez’s leadership at The Woodlands High School, the Wind Ensemble was featured at the Midwest International Band & Orchestra Clinic and was regularly named a Foundation of Music Education Mark of Excellence National Winner. During her tenure at TWHS, the marching band was a Finalist at the UIL Texas State Marching Band Contest every year they were eligible, as well as a regular finalist and champion at Bands of America Regional, Super Regional, and Grand National Championships. The band was named the 2013 BOA Grand National Champion, making Perez the first ever female head director to earn that recognition. Resulting from the accomplishments and scholastic accolades of TWHS Band, in 2013 the Phi Beta Mu International Bandmasters Fraternity recognized Mrs. Perez as the Outstanding Young Bandmaster of the Year. In 2018, the John Philip Sousa Foundation awarded the band with the Sudler Shield in 2018. They were later named a National Band Association Blue Ribbon Award Program of Excellence for the 2019-2020 school year, for which Perez was awarded the Citation of Excellence in that same year.

Perez attended the University of Houston and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Music Education in 2005. While at the UofH, she was afforded the opportunity to learn from highly respected musical influences such as Eddie Green, Tom Bennett, David Bertman, John Benzer and Nancy Goodearl. While playing as principal horn in the University of Houston Moores School of Music Wind Ensemble under the direction of Mr. Eddie Green, Perez was a part of their recording of Gustav Holst's The Planets—the first college wind ensemble recording to be honored with a Grammy nomination.

Perez is a horn player and marched as a mellophone member with the Cadets of Bergen County Drum & Bugle Corps. She aged out on the year of a DCI World Championship victory in 1998 under the direction of Donnie Van Doren, Frank Sullivan and Matt Harloff. She was an original cast member of the Tony Award-winning and Emmy-nominated production, Blast!, and performed in the show from 1999-2003 while learning from Jon Vanderkolff, Wayne Downey, Jim Moore and Rosie Miller Queen. As an original London cast member, she toured four years performing on both horn and mellophone. She also completed two separate US performance tours and was a featured solo performer in both the Broadway and Disney productions.

Perez has served as a DCI brass-staff member for several organizations over the last two decades. She was a brass instructor for the Blue Knights from 2003-2007, the last two years of which as the Brass Caption Supervisor. She was also a brass instructor for the Cavaliers and Madison Scouts from 2008-2012, and has most recently served as a brass ensemble specialist for the Cavaliers in 2023 and as a consultant for the Bluecoats during their ’20 & ‘23 seasons.

Joni Perez is a member of the Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Bandmasters Association and the National Band Association. She is currently serving or has recently served on the UIL Marching Band Rules Committee, the BOA Advisory Board, the US Bands Texas adjudicator selection committee, the John Philip Sousa Sudler Shield Jury Panel, and the TMEA Audition Committee. Currently, she is serving as the Region 18 Band Chair in Central Texas. Perez works as a guest conductor, an instructional coach and consultant for dozens of band programs across Texas, offers leadership workshops to high school students, and is an active adjudicator across the country for various circuits and organizations, including BOA & UIL. Perez resides in Austin, TX with Brian Perez, her husband of twenty years, and their three kitties Ziggy, Biskitt & Diddle.

joni.perez@hayscisd.net