Abraham Lubin
Encyclopedia
Hazzan Abraham “Abe” Lubin (born 1937) is a London
-born American
Conservative Jewish
Hazzan
and former President of the Cantors Assembly, who currently serves at Congregation Beth El
in Bethesda, Maryland
.
, their birthplace. In 1950, his family returned to England
, where he continued his education at the Etz Chaim Yeshivah
in London and then the London School of Jewish Studies (then called Jews' College) Cantorial School, where he graduated as a Hazzan. He also received the Associate of the London College of Music Diploma (A.L.C.M.) from the London College of Music
, a Bachelor of Music degree from the College Conservatory of Music of the University of Cincinnati
, a Master of Music degree from DePaul University
, and a Doctor of Music degree from the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
.
Hazzan Lubin and his wife, Sandy, now live in Bethesda, Maryland. They are the parents of Dr. Harlan Lubin, Stephanie Lubin, and Sharyn Lubin Levitt, and the grandparents of eight grandchildren.
. At age thirteen, he conducted the services at leading synagogues in the area, and at age fifteen, he sang his first High Holy Day
service. At seventeen he was Hazzan at the Jubilee Street Zionist Synagogue in London, and at nineteen he became Hazzan at the Bayswater Synagogue in London, where he was inducted into office by the Chief Rabbi
Israel Brodie
.
Lubin came to the United States in 1958, and served for ten years with the Beth Abraham Synagogue in Dayton, Ohio
. Then, beginning in 1968, he served as Hazzan at Congregation Rodfei Zedek and Anshe Amet Synagogue in Chicago
. And since 1990, Lubin has served at Congregation Beth El in Bethesda, Maryland. At the end of June 2011, he retired as Hazzan and became Hazzan Emeritus at Beth El.
In 1987, Hazan Lubin served on a special ten-member fact-finding committee appointed by Cantors Assembly President Saul Hammerman to explore the ramifications of allowing women to become cantors, a decision that the Assembly reached shortly thereafter. From 1995 to 1997, Lubin served as President of the Cantors Assembly.
Lubin served as editor of the Journal of Synagogue Music and contributed articles on Jewish music in various periodicals, among them “The Influence of Jewish Music and Thought in Certain Works of Leonard Bernstein
.” He contributed to Mark Slobin
’s 1989 book Chosen Voices: The Story of the American Cantorate. And he served on the five-member editorial committee for the 2002 edition of Siddur Sim Shalom
for Weekdays.
In 1989, Lubin was one of the first two Cantors to participate in a joint project by the Cantors Assembly and the National Conference on Soviet Jewry to encourage missions of Hazzanim to travel to the Soviet Union
to teach, conduct services, and to hold discussions on musical and liturgical subjects. And Lubin was one of 70 Cantors who participated in a 2009 Cantors Assembly mission, "Poland
to Israel: A Journey Through Time," which included a chance meeting at a concentration camp with a group of Israeli soldiers.
In 2001 Lubin was featured on the PBS
television program Religion & Ethics Newsweekly
.
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
-born American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Conservative Jewish
Conservative Judaism
Conservative Judaism is a modern stream of Judaism that arose out of intellectual currents in Germany in the mid-19th century and took institutional form in the United States in the early 1900s.Conservative Judaism has its roots in the school of thought known as Positive-Historical Judaism,...
Hazzan
Hazzan
A hazzan or chazzan is a Jewish cantor, a musician trained in the vocal arts who helps lead the congregation in songful prayer.There are many rules relating to how a cantor should lead services, but the idea of a cantor as a paid professional does not exist in classical rabbinic sources...
and former President of the Cantors Assembly, who currently serves at Congregation Beth El
Congregation Beth El (Bethesda, Maryland)
Congregation Beth El is a synagogue located in Bethesda, Maryland. Beth El is an egalitarian synagogue providing diverse worship in the Conservative tradition....
in Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda, Maryland
Bethesda is a census designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Meeting House , which in turn took its name from Jerusalem's Pool of Bethesda...
.
Personal life
Abraham Lubin was born in London in 1937. As a child, he returned with his parents to IsraelIsrael
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, their birthplace. In 1950, his family returned to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, where he continued his education at the Etz Chaim Yeshivah
Etz Chaim Yeshiva (London)
Etz Chaim Yeshiva is an Ashkenazi Orthodox yeshiva in Golders Green, London, England. It is associated with the Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations.- History :...
in London and then the London School of Jewish Studies (then called Jews' College) Cantorial School, where he graduated as a Hazzan. He also received the Associate of the London College of Music Diploma (A.L.C.M.) from the London College of Music
London College of Music
The London College of Music is a music school which is part of the University of West London in England.The LCM was founded in 1887 and existed as an independent music conservatoire based at Great Marlborough Street in central London until 1991...
, a Bachelor of Music degree from the College Conservatory of Music of the University of Cincinnati
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati is a comprehensive public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, and a part of the University System of Ohio....
, a Master of Music degree from DePaul University
DePaul University
DePaul University is a private institution of higher education and research in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th century French priest Saint Vincent de Paul...
, and a Doctor of Music degree from the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
Jewish Theological Seminary of America
The Jewish Theological Seminary of America is one of the academic and spiritual centers of Conservative Judaism, and a major center for academic scholarship in Jewish studies.JTS operates five schools: Albert A...
.
Hazzan Lubin and his wife, Sandy, now live in Bethesda, Maryland. They are the parents of Dr. Harlan Lubin, Stephanie Lubin, and Sharyn Lubin Levitt, and the grandparents of eight grandchildren.
Career
At age eight he sang solo with the Rivlin Choir in Jerusalem. During his school years, Hazzan Lubin sang in many leading synagogues in England and ScotlandScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. At age thirteen, he conducted the services at leading synagogues in the area, and at age fifteen, he sang his first High Holy Day
High Holy Days
The High Holidays or High Holy Days, in Judaism, more properly known as the Yamim Noraim , may mean:#strictly, the holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur ;...
service. At seventeen he was Hazzan at the Jubilee Street Zionist Synagogue in London, and at nineteen he became Hazzan at the Bayswater Synagogue in London, where he was inducted into office by the Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities...
Israel Brodie
Israel Brodie
Sir Israel Brodie KBE was the Chief Rabbi of Great Britain and the Commonwealth 1948–1965.He was educated at Balliol College, Oxford. He served as a Rabbi of Melbourne Hebrew Congregation in Australia from 1923-1937, was evacuated from Dunkirk, and finished the War as Senior Jewish Chaplain...
.
Lubin came to the United States in 1958, and served for ten years with the Beth Abraham Synagogue in Dayton, Ohio
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
. Then, beginning in 1968, he served as Hazzan at Congregation Rodfei Zedek and Anshe Amet Synagogue in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. And since 1990, Lubin has served at Congregation Beth El in Bethesda, Maryland. At the end of June 2011, he retired as Hazzan and became Hazzan Emeritus at Beth El.
In 1987, Hazan Lubin served on a special ten-member fact-finding committee appointed by Cantors Assembly President Saul Hammerman to explore the ramifications of allowing women to become cantors, a decision that the Assembly reached shortly thereafter. From 1995 to 1997, Lubin served as President of the Cantors Assembly.
Lubin served as editor of the Journal of Synagogue Music and contributed articles on Jewish music in various periodicals, among them “The Influence of Jewish Music and Thought in Certain Works of Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, author, music lecturer and pianist. He was among the first conductors born and educated in the United States of America to receive worldwide acclaim...
.” He contributed to Mark Slobin
Mark Slobin
Mark Slobin is an American scholar and ethnomusicologist who has written extensively on the subject of East European Jewish music and klezmer music. He is a Professor of Music and American Studies at Wesleyan University....
’s 1989 book Chosen Voices: The Story of the American Cantorate. And he served on the five-member editorial committee for the 2002 edition of Siddur Sim Shalom
Siddur Sim Shalom
Siddur Sim Shalom may refer to any siddur in a family of siddurim, Jewish prayerbooks, and related commentaries on these siddurim, published by the Rabbinical Assembly and the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism....
for Weekdays.
In 1989, Lubin was one of the first two Cantors to participate in a joint project by the Cantors Assembly and the National Conference on Soviet Jewry to encourage missions of Hazzanim to travel to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
to teach, conduct services, and to hold discussions on musical and liturgical subjects. And Lubin was one of 70 Cantors who participated in a 2009 Cantors Assembly mission, "Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
to Israel: A Journey Through Time," which included a chance meeting at a concentration camp with a group of Israeli soldiers.
In 2001 Lubin was featured on the PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
television program Religion & Ethics Newsweekly
Religion & Ethics Newsweekly
Religion & Ethics Newsweekly is an American weekly television news-magazine program which airs on PBS-History and content:Premièring in 1997, it is the only television program devoted entirely to the news of religion and spirituality, along with major ethical issues...
.