On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Hazzan Alisa Pomerantz-Boro, cantor of Congregation Beth El in Voorhees, NJ, discusses the spiritual significance of music in the high holiday liturgy.

Summary of conversation assisted by AI

Rabbi Richard Address engages with Hazzan Alisa Pomerantz-Boro to explore the profound impact of sacred music in Jewish tradition, particularly during the High Holidays. They discuss the emotional connection that music fosters within the community, the legacy of musical practices, and the evolution of Jewish music as a melting pot of cultural influences. Alisa shares her personal journey and the importance of creating a meaningful prayer experience that resonates with congregants of all ages. The conversation highlights the challenges and joys of being a cantor, the significance of improvisation in prayer, and the hope for healing and connection in a broken world.

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About the Guest



Hazzan Alisa Pomerantz-Boro

Hazzan Alisa Pomerantz-Boro grew up on Mercer Island, Washington, in a rabbinic home, instilled with a love of Judaism and music. From an early age, she knew she would continue the long family line of rabbis and cantors.

She was ordained as a Hazzan and earned her degree in Sacred Jewish Music from the Cantors Institute of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in New York, where she was awarded the Jacobson Memorial Prize in Hazzanut. She was selected as the speaker when she received her honorary Doctorate from JTS.  She holds a B.A. in Near Eastern Studies and Music from the University of Washington.

Hazzan Pomerantz-Boro has served as Beth El’s cantor since 2004. For 13 years before that, she served at Tifereth Israel Synagogue in San Diego, California. While in Cantorial school, she broke new ground as the Assistant Cantor at New York’s Park Avenue Synagogue, that shul’s first female member of the clergy. She was among the first 14 women to be inducted into the Cantors Assembly in May 1991, an international organization she ultimately served as President.

Among numerous recognitions, Hazzan Pomerantz-Boro received the 2011 Hiddur Mitzvah Award presented by Masorti Olami/World Council of Conservative Synagogues to “pillars of leadership in the Conservative Movement”.  She was the first recipient of The Cantors Assembly Hazon – Visionary Award and most recently received Hadassah’s coveted Myrtle Wreath Award.

Hazzan and her husband, Stephen, have two beautiful children, Rebecca and Joshua. She hopes and prays that by lifting our voices together, we will continue to build a better world.

The post Seekers of Meaning 9/27/2024: High Holy Days Music with Hazzan Alisa Pomerantz-Boro appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.