Artist Bios

Kenneth Griffith, Music Director

Kenneth Griffith is the Music Director of Boston Children's Chorus. He leads artistic programs, coaches the conducting and teaching staff, teaches during the in-school program with Boston Public Schools, and conducts the flagship ensemble, Premier Choir. Kenneth is passionate about the role of music in cultivating community and positive social change. His dynamic programming and ability to unify singers across differences have led to an active career on stage, in schools, and in communities around New England, where he shares the songs and stories of underrepresented peoples.

During his time with BCC, Kenneth has led the chorus in major performances at some of the city's most prestigious venues, including Boston's Symphony Hall, TD Garden, Calderwood Hall, and the Hatch Shell for the July 4th Fireworks Spectacular with the Boston Pops. Kenneth's choirs have performed in the debut of a new musical, WILD, with the American Repertory Theater featuring Idina Menzel, the WGBH Holiday Celebration with operatic tenor Lawrence Brownlee, onstage with Leslie Odom Jr., the American Choral Directors Association Eastern Region Conference, and myriad civic performances like the Earthshot Prize for the Prince and Princess of Wales, and the investiture of a US Attorney. Kenneth has led the choir on several tours during his tenure including California, New York, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, and Canada, adding Cape Town, South Africa in 2027.

Over the years, he has assisted in preparing ensembles that have performed at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, the American Repertory Theater, and the Verbier Music Festival in Switzerland. On the professional stage, Kenneth recently prepared a chorus and ensemble for Anthony Davis' Pulitzer Prize-winning opera X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X with the Boston Modern Orchestra Project. This project's recording was nominated for a GRAMMY in 2023.

In addition to his work with BCC, Kenneth serves as Artist Faculty in Choral Conducting at the Osher School of Music at the University of Southern Maine, is Director of Music at First Parish in Cambridge, and serves on the board for the American Choral Directors Associations Eastern Region. Kenneth serves as a regular choral adjudicator, clinician, and conductor for regional and state festivals. Kenneth holds a BM in Vocal Performance from Capital University and an MM in Choral Conducting from Bard College.

Emily Howe, Conductor

Emily Howe is a versatile conductor, educator, and ethnomusicologist whose passion for community-building through music has taken her into concert halls, schools, prisons, and places of worship throughout Boston and around the world. Working with the Boston Children’s Chorus in various capacities since 2009, Emily has conducted ensembles at all levels of the organization, and is excited to work with Concert Choir during the 2025-2026 season. Outside of BCC, Emily is Associate Professor of Music at Curry College, where she leads the choral program and teaches courses in Musicology and Ethnomusicology. Emily has authored publications, given presentations, and taught university courses on topics related to music education, choral music, and world music cultures, and she continues to explore issues related to global repertoires, performance, and identity in her scholarly and creative practice. Emily holds an undergraduate degree in Music and English from Davidson College and a master's degree in Choral Conducting from Boston University, where she also earned her Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology.

Jacob Hiser, Collaborative Pianist

Jacob Hiser is a versatile pianist/violinist who performs and studies a variety of musical traditions. He aspires to create webs of connection between voices near and distant, in time and space and genre, tracing threads of musical lineages and kinship, particularly highlighting those invisible threads who tend to be overlooked or forgotten. Born and raised in southern Missouri, he grew up playing bluegrass, blues, and classical music, eventually discovering jazz as a teenager. He attended Missouri State University and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Jazz Studies. In 2014, he moved to Boston to attend New England Conservatory's Contemporary Improvisation program, completing his master's in 2016. While there, he studied with Ran Blake, Bruce Brubaker, Joe Morris, and Frank Carlberg, and performed in ensembles and concerts coached/directed by John Zorn, Jason Moran, Tanya Kalmonovitch, Anthony Coleman, and Simon Carrington.

With jazz groups, country bands, children’s choirs, Korean folk music ensembles, and classical cellists, Jacob has performed all over the United States, as well as Canada, France, Germany, Hungary, Australia, and New Zealand. In summer 2019, he was accepted into the International Workshop in Jazz and Creative Music at Banff Centre for the Arts in Alberta, Canada, where he spent 3 weeks creating music with 45 other improvising musicians from around the world and working closely with faculty Vijay Iyer, Steph Richards, Tyshawn Sorey, Okkyung Lee, and many others. He has contributed music to “Called to Walls”, a mural documentary broadcast on PBS.

Currently, Jacob is staff pianist/piano faculty for Phillips Exeter Academy and rehearsal pianist for Boston Children's Chorus. During the summers, he is a faculty member at Missouri Fine Arts Academy: a two-week summer residential program for high school student artists in visual arts, theatre, dance, creative writing, and music. He has released one album, “Seconds”, comprised mostly of original jazz compositions for quintet and trio.

Patrick Hanafin, Percussionist 

As the Director of Operations at the Boston Children's Chorus (BCC), Patrick plays a key role in shaping the organization’s strategy, vision, and planning. He oversees finance, operations, communications, and marketing, while leading the production and execution of all BCC events. A Summa Cum Laude graduate of Berklee College of Music, Patrick holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Music Business Management and Marketing. Before joining BCC, he worked in marketing for an event ticket software company, helping arts organizations bring their events to life by amplifying customer messages.

In addition to his work at BCC, Patrick is an accomplished drummer and percussionist. He performs and records with various artists, groups, theatre companies, and ensembles throughout Boston and beyond. His national tours have taken him to prestigious venues, including the Boston Opera House and the Castro Theater in San Francisco. Patrick is deeply committed to his community and a passionate advocate for the arts.