04/24/2026
Tomorrow, ACDA is happy to welcome Ernest Backus, a choral director at Vestal Senior High School! Ernest Backus (he/him/his) is a vocalist, percussionist, conductor, composer, and educator from Binghamton, New York. He currently directs the Concert Chorus at Vestal Senior High School, where he also teaches Music Theory and International Baccalaureate Music, and is also the K-12 Music Department chairperson. He is an active performer and presenter in the Binghamton area, most recently as a featured soloist for the Madrigal Choir of Binghamton and the Endless Mountain Choral Society, as a member of the Southern Tier Singers’ Collective, as the double tenor pannist in the Island Hoppers steel drum band, and as a clinician for the NY ACDA Conference at Ithaca College and for various BOCES Fine Arts Days in the Southern Tier and Syracuse Area. He holds a Master of Music in Vocal Music Education and Bachelors of Music in Percussion Performance, Instrumental Music Education, and Music Theory from Ithaca College, as well as a Master of Arts in Ritual Chant and Song from the University of Limerick, Ireland. He currently resides in his hometown of Binghamton with his family.
