Samuel Kuffuor-Afriyie a highly accomplished and dynamic artist, known for his exceptional talent and unwavering dedication to the craft of organ performance and choral directing. Hailing from the vibrant city of Brooklyn, NY, Samuel has established himself as a rising star in both fields.
In the fall of 2023, Samuel was appointed as the Music Director & Organist at St. Philip's Episcopal Church in Brooklyn, NY. Prior to this, he served as the Organ Scholar at one the world’s largest Cathedrals; The Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in Upper Manhattan's Morningside Heights from 2020 through 2023. During his tenure, he had the opportunity to regularly accompany and conduct the professional Cathedral Choir and congregation in regular weekly services. He also played a pivotal role in directing and spearheading the reboot of the Cathedral Schola Cantorum, an auditioned ensemble comprising students in grades 6-12 from the community. Samuel has held various other church positions at Mother AME Zion Church in Harlem, St. Leonard's Anglican Church, and Ghana Wesley United Methodist, both in Brooklyn, as well as at Grace Episcopal Church of Syracuse. He has also served as the Director of Music for the Syracuse University Catholic Campus Ministry. Additionally, he is currently employed at the Union Theological Seminary in New York City as one of the directors of their Seminary Choir.
A distinguished graduate of Syracuse University, Samuel earned his B.M. in Organ Performance under Dr. Anne Laver, and an MBA degree, showcasing his well-rounded approach to his career. Samuel actively pursues private conducting studies with the renowned Dr. Malcolm Merriweather, a GRAMMY-nominated conductor and Director of The New York Philharmonic Chorus. Currently, Samuel is pursuing his M.M. at the esteemed Manhattan School of Music, studying in the studio of Dr. Andrew Henderson.
Throughout his academic journey, he received numerous accolades and scholarships, including the prestigious Brooklyn chapter of the American Guild of Organists scholarship award and the Gregory R. Keefe Memorial Scholarship presented by the Syracuse Chapter of the American Guild of Organists. Samuel was also honored as an E. Power Biggs Organ fellow through the Organ Historical Society.
Samuel's Ghanaian heritage has played a significant role in shaping his artistic endeavors. He embarked on two groundbreaking projects that received widespread acclaim. With the generous support of a grant from Syracuse University's THE SOURCE foundation, Samuel conducted extensive research on Ghanaian traditional music and used his findings to compose a set of organ pieces based on Traditional Ghanaian music. This pioneering project was presented in a captivating lecture presentation in 2020, and Samuel is currently in the process of publishing these works as an organ suite, further solidifying his reputation as an innovative force in the fusion of diverse musical influences.
In addition to his creative pursuits, Samuel founded and coordinated The Accra Organ and Choral Music Institute, now known as the Yaa Asantewaa Foundation, in August of 2019. This visionary initiative was a weeklong workshop hosted in Accra, Ghana, led by guest clinicians from Syracuse University, Brooklyn College, and Yale Institute of Sacred Music. The organization is currently planning a second iteration of this festival to take place in 2024.
