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Community Corner

Cantor Faryn Kates Joins Temple Beth-El Community

Rabbi Sidney Helbraun is not alone in feeling a “natural sense of harmony” working with Cantor Faryn Kates, who joined Temple Beth-El in Northbrook this summer. As he and the new Cantor prepare for the High Holy Days in September, Rabbi Helbraun readily points out the Cantor has quickly “fostered a great spiritual collaboration to the tremendous benefit of our synagogue community.”

 

Cantor Kates, born and raised in New Jersey, recently served as the student cantor at North Country Reform Temple, in Glen Cove, NY, from 2010 until her ordination in 2013.  She has been passionate about Judaism since kindergarten and uniquely blends her love of the religion, Jewish values, music, learning, prayer and friendship into her new Cantorial role at Temple Beth-El.

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“My first cantorial mentor taught me how to bring prayer to life and connect with a congregation through music” explains Cantor Kates. “This has been a foundation of my work as a cantor. Very few things in life give me as much pleasure as leading a community in prayer and song,” she added.

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 “My experience as a worship leader is enhanced when I see the lips of my congregants moving, when I hear the music coming from the community, and when congregants share with me the joy they received during tefillah because they were connected to the music and, therefore, the text.”

 

Cantor Kates believes that services should be inclusive and inviting, and should provide people with meaningful and prayerful experiences.  “I also strongly believe that music is one of the pathways to prayer,” she explained. “Therefore, my style of leading is driven by musical selections that are engaging, warm, inviting, and that evoke textual love and understanding.”

 

A Vernon Hills resident, Cantor Kates is engaged to be married in October to her fiancé, Jack Rudnick. In the past few months Cantor has been successfully finding her way within and outside the Temple Beth-El community.  “As the school year begins, I hope to create a presence in the Hebrew school and religious school,” she said.  “I want the students and families to see me as a cantor, teacher, and friend, more than just the person who prepares the students for their Bar or Bat Mitzvah.”

 

Cantor Kates also has a strong desire to make sure that Temple Beth-El meets the needs of people with disabilities. “I plan to continue the advocacy work I have done with the Union for Reform Judaism, at Hebrew Union College, as a teacher, and through my thesis research, to help make the Jewish community more accessible to those with disabilities.  I hope to use my passion to advocate for people with disabilities both within and outside of our congregation.”

 

Rabbi Helbraun is clearly proud of his collaboration with the newest member of his spiritual team. “She is an outgoing, warm, welcoming woman, who connects well with young and old alike. She is a wonderful musician and enjoys using guitar to bring spirit and energy to services. Cantor has a beautiful, strong voice. She reaches out to others and invites them to join her whether it is for singing, worship or fellowship,” he added.

 

There was a good sense early on that Cantor Kates would be an excellent match with Temple Beth-El, recalls Andy Baker, a member of the Cantorial Search Committee.  A Glenview resident and a Temple Beth-El member for ten years, Baker said, “When the Cantor visited for her interviews, I picked her up at the airport.  As I drove up to the curb, she was standing there with her guitar case and a big smile, really excited and tons of energy to meet with us. If I were to use a few words to describe Cantor,” Baker continued, “she brings a very high level of maturity, expertise and creativity to our synagogue and that is tremendous for our community.”

 

Recalling that moment, Cantor added, “I felt instinctively that Temple Beth-El would be a great place to grow and learn as well as a wonderful place to make a home.“

 

Cantor Kates holds a Bachelor’s of Music in Music Education from Miami University in Ohio, a Master’s of Fine Arts in Music Education from Montclair State University in NJ, and a Master’s of Sacred Music and Cantorial Ordination from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York City. 

 

Before beginning her cantorial studies, Cantor Kates was a tenured music educator in the Oakland Public School District in NJ.  Cantor began her music career as a flutist, studying flute for more than 15 years, and boasts that she can play more than a dozen instruments (though in public she’ll only sing or play flute or guitar).

 

 “I welcome the opportunity to meet one-to-one with our members and prospective new members,” Cantor Kates emphasized. Cantor Kates may at be reached at cantor@templebeth-el.org or at Temple Beth-El:  847-205-9982 extension 206.



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