Dr. Hana J. Cai, Musical Director
Dr. Hana J. Cai is a conductor and music director based in Cambridge, MA. She currently serves as the Associate Director of Choral Activities at Harvard University after previously serving on the faculties of Ithaca College and Lehigh University.
Cai has enjoyed an eclectic career as a conductor, pianist, and singer. At Indiana University, she was one of three conductors selected to assist with preparing the chorus for a performance of the Penderecki St. Luke Passion where the composer was in attendance. She also served as the associate chorus master for the university premiere of Mason Bates’ The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs and Wagner’s Parsifal for the Indiana University Bicentennial.
In March 2019, Cai was the winner of the ACDA Conducting Competition in Kansas City, MO. In fall 2023, she was one of the invited presenters for the National Collegiate Choral Organization conference at Morehouse College and has presented at several ACDA state and division conferences. She was also a finalist for the 2023 American Prize Dale Warland Award in Choral Conducting.
She made her Carnegie Hall debut in spring 2024 conducting Mozart’s Coronation Mass with the New York City Chamber Orchestra. Her diction guide for Mandarin Chinese for singers and conductors is published in The Choral Scholar and American Choral Review.
Dr. Cai holds degrees from the University of Maryland, Eastman School of Music, and Indiana University.
History of the Metropolitan Chorale
Formerly known as the Brookline Chorus, the group had its first rehearsal with 16 singers in the summer of 1979 and its first full concert in the spring of 1980. Since then, it has grown to an organization of 100 voices committed to performing with musical excellence and building a welcoming community.
The Metropolitan Chorale prides itself on performing a diverse variety of musical styles, time periods, and themes. Concerts have explored works by many of today’s leading American and British composers, as well as major choral masterworks, including Mendelssohn’s Elijah, Bach’s Mass in B minor, Vaughan Williams’ Sea Symphony, and Handel’s Israel in Egypt. Programs feature important artists of our day from bass-baritone Justin Hopkins and Estelí Gomez, a lead artist with the Grammy Award-winning Room Full of Teeth, to Robin Young, host of NPR’s nationally syndicated program “Here and Now.” Commissions include works by Kirke Mechem and Boston-based composer Thomas Vignieri. One of our most ambitious undertakings was the commissioning of Sh’ma, by Andy Vores, a piece memorializing Holocaust victims and survivors. The piece received recognition by The Boston Globe as one of the best new works of 1996.
In addition to performances at All Saints Parish in Brookline (Massachusetts), the Chorale can be heard throughout the Boston area at such prestigious venues as New England Conservatory’s Jordan Hall and Sanders Theatre at Harvard University. In December 2013, the Metropolitan Chorale made its Boston Pops debut under the direction of conductor Keith Lockhart on a seven-concert tour of major cities on the East Coast.
It was founded as an initiative of the Brookline Music School, growing to over fifty members in its first year. Early Music Directors included Anne Watson-Born, who directed the chorus for nine years, William Cutter, and Scott Allen Jarret. In 2004, the Chorus recruited Dr. Lisa Graham as its Music Director, who led the Chorale for 21 years. Current Music Director, Dr. Hana Cai, joined the organization in 2026.
In 2005, the Chorus formally separated from the Brookline Music School to become its own 501c(3) corporation. The Brookline Chorus changed its name to the Metropolitan Chorale at the beginning of the 2011-2012 Season. The Chorus operates under the leadership of its Board of Directors and an Operations committee.
The Metropolitan Chorale is a member of the Greater Boston Choral Consortium, a cooperative association of diverse choral groups in Boston and the surrounding areas. To learn more, visit http://www.bostonsings.org/. The Chorale membership and Board are thankful for generous support provided by the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
The Metropolitan Chorale’s reviewed financial statements and other governing documents are available upon request, or upon searching the charity name “Brookline Chorus, Inc.” on the website of the Office of the Massachusetts Attorney General.
Accolades
The Metropolitan Chorale was recently praised by The Boston Musical Intelligencer for “its fine blend and well-shaped phrasing,” as well as its “sophisticated but equally heartfelt” interpretations.
In a review of its debut appearance with The Boston Pops in December 2013, Broadway World applauded the ensemble for its “outstanding vocal talent [and] exceptional charisma.”
“The quality of the Chorale’s singing exudes confidence, insightful musical values, and—perhaps most importantly—an unabashed joy in singing. Any chance to experience the magic of the Metropolitan Chorale and Lisa Graham is to be treasured!”
– Charles Hamlen, Artistic Advisor, Orchestra of St. Luke’s, New York, NY
What Our Members Love About Us
“Because of the Chorale I have been introduced to interesting pieces and composers I was unaware of, and gained a broader and deeper understanding of music in the classical tradition, performing at a level where I was always proud of how we sing.”
“I love that there are people of all ages in the Chorale! Recent college graduates, young professionals, and on up thru people in their 70’s. It mirrors and, I think, creates the spirit of the group. Wide ranging, ready to try anything, fun – and with tons of talent and with commitment to the material, to the group, and to high-quality performances.”
“My favorite thing about the chorale is the fact that in my experience we take the music seriously, but we don’t take ourselves too seriously. The high quality sound is important to me, but just as important to me is the fact that we laugh at every single rehearsal.”
“Music and laughter are tops in my book in terms of the essentials of a good life, and my 25 years in the Metropolitan Chorale have helped me develop both a deeper love of choral music and deeper laugh lines!”
“Even though this is my first year in the Chorale, I was never treated like a newbie: I was simply welcomed with open arms. Walking into a rehearsal, you can’t tell who has been with the group for one season or 17.”