About our Cantor

A gifted musician and talented Jewish educator, Cantor Elizabeth Stevens joins Rabbi Strassfeld in leading the musical portion of our services — providing a large measure of their warmth and inspiration.

As Cantor of the SAJ since 2000, Cantor Stevens continues a lifelong involvement with the congregation. She had her own baby naming at the synagogue and began leading portions of the service at the age of seven. Her cantorial career brings together her two most fervent interests — music and Judaism.

From an early age, Cantor Stevens was saturated in Jewish life in a variety of distinct communities. She attended Ramaz School, a modern orthodox yeshiva, from kindergarten through high school, and spent several summers at the Conservative movement’s Camp Ramah in the Berkshires. She graduated cum laude from Binghamton University (S.U.N.Y.) with a BA in Judaic Studies and went on to the H.L. Miller Cantorial School of the Jewish Theological Seminary. This firsthand experience with diverse modern expressions of Judaism makes Elizabeth Stevens particularly well suited to the SAJ, which brings together multiple strands of Jewish tradition and modern interpretation to create a rich tapestry of observance.

While at Binghamton, Cantor Stevens began formal voice and music training. She continued her study at cantorial school, winning several awards in areas such as composition, pulpit performance, and Judaic excellence. While attending cantorial school, Cantor Stevens served as the Assistant Cantor at Congregation Habonim in New York City, led services regularly at the SAJ, and was a guest cantor on several occasions at Town and Village Synagogue. She also performed regularly with Kolot (Voices), a women’s a cappella trio specializing in a variety of Jewish music. Kolot provided the background music for the documentary film Women of the Wall, which Cantor Stevens also narrated.

For several years, Cantor Stevens has been a soloist for and member of the Zamir Chorale, conducted by Matthew Lazar, which has given her the opportunity to sing on the great stages of New York, including Alice Tully Hall and Avery Fisher Hall. In 2004 she traveled to Israel with a Zamir Choral Foundation mission and was a soloist at an international choral festival at the Mount Scopus campus of Hebrew University. She has attended the North American Jewish Choral Festival every summer since 1998.

Cantor Stevens’s contributions to the SAJ extend beyond her excellent musicianship. She plays a key role in our Jewish education programs, guiding both adults and Hebrew School students through the challenges and rewards of prayerbook Hebrew and the language of the liturgy.