Ernest was introduced to the violin at the age of nine in his home country of Nigeria after a short stint with the clarinet. He has since studied with several notable tutors and performers from around the world including Rachel Barton-Pine (American violinist), Sir Godfrey Amoah (Ghanaian violinist), Louis Jones (British violinist), Agnes Nagy (Hungarian cellist), and Thomas Kanitz (cellist of the Reger String Quartet and Dortmund Symphony Orchestra), to mention a few.

In addition to his mainstream classical background, he found an appreciation for more contemporary musical styles and thus began an exploration of the jazz genre. Shortly afterwards, his performance at the 2008 HipHop World Awards in Lagos, Nigeria with ace producer Cobhams Asuquo registered the violin as a “soulful” instrument; an attribute mostly associated with non-classical instruments in the country. In 2011, he performed at the African Leadership Conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with the illustrious Bez. Later in 2012, he was on the Nigerian contingent to perform at the African Showcase of the SXSW in Austin, TX. He has since opened for such acts as Richard Bona, Mike Stern, Marcus Johnson, Marsha Ambrosius, and Anita Baker.