June 17, 2025
As a girl growing up in Milwaukee, Nancy Abramson couldn’t imagine a woman serving as a cantor. Today, she is one of the most respected voices in Jewish sacred music—and a guiding force for the next generation.
In this Voices of Change interview, Cantor Abramson reflects on the evolution of her own path and the broader shifts in the cantorate that she helped to trailblaze. It's an incredible journey from exclusion to becoming the first woman to direct the H.L. Miller Cantorial School at JTS and, ultimately, serving as the first female president of the Cantors Assembly. And she isn't done yet.
Discover Cantor Nancy Abramson’s moving portrait of perseverance, serendipity, and how the cantor’s voice can shape both prayer and progress in this candid, story-filled interview.
Read the Full Interview
Miriam Gideon (1906–1996) was a pioneering American composer celebrated for her innovative blend of extratonal and pantonal styles. Deeply inspired by literature, she often set poetry and prose to vocal chamber music, incorporating multilingual elements. Her notable Jewish works include Psalm 84, Adon olam, and two major Sabbath services: Sacred Service and Shirat Miriam L’shabbat. Gideon left a lasting legacy in Jewish music through both composing and teaching, including teaching Cantor Nancy Abramson.
In his latest “Conversations” blog, Jeremiah Lockwood discusses the appeal of an “old world” aesthetic in new klezmer through an album released on June 3 by aces Jake Shulman-Ment and Abigail Reisman.
