Ernest “EJ” Harrison, MA, DMA

Ernest Harrison is a poet, musician, and teacher. He is a proud graduate of Tuskegee University, where completed his Bachelor of Arts in English Liberal Arts in 2010. He later received his Bachelor of Arts in Vocal Performance from Auburn University in 2014, where he studied voice with world-renowned professors such as composer Rosephanye Powell and conductor William Powell. He then received his Master of Music in Choral Conducting from the University of Missouri in 2016 under the tutelage of R. Paul Crabb. Ernest received his Doctor in Musical Arts (DMA) in choral music at the University of Southern California under the direction of Jo-Michael Scheibe.

Ernest became a member of the international Grammy-winning choral ensemble Conspirare in 2019. He was an associate conductor for the Grammy-winning National Children’s Chorus from 2017 to 2022, and the conductor of the Pasadena Conservatory of Music’s Cantare Chamber Choir from 2019 to 2022. Ernest is now the music director and head of education and outreach at the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles. Ernest has also taught as an adjunct professor at Pepperdine College, the University of Southern California, and Columbia University.

He is currently teaching voice, as well as music and social justice, at Loyola Marymount University. Ernest is dedicated to the fight for social justice, equity, and inclusion in the choral classroom, on the concert stage, and in the world. Whether it be as a conductor, composer, arranger, vocalist, choral clinician, poet, or lecturer, his passion for people is the guiding light in every facet of his music-making.