LEARN MORE ABOUT OUR CANTOR
Cantor Alisa Forman joined Temple B’Nai Darom in 2024 succeeding Rabbi Harold Jaye, who had served as the temple’s rabbi for more than 30 years.
Cantor Alisa has served as a reform cantor in temples and synagogues for over 15 years. She returns to the reform movement after having most recently served as a cantor at a conservative synagogue in central Florida.
She was ordained in 2003 as a Cantor at the Reform Movement’s Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music, which is part of Hebrew Union College in New York City. She earned a Doctor of Ministry from Hebrew Union College in 2019. Cantor Alisa received an undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia, majoring in Philosophy, minoring in Religious Studies and also fulfilled academic requirements for an acting minor. She received a Master of Arts in Teaching at Columbia Teachers’ College.
She has lived in Israel, New York City, Park Slope, Brooklyn, Cherry Hill, NJ, Spring Lake, NJ, Vero Beach, FL, and Inverness, FL.
She comes from a long line of rabbis and says her family can trace their rabbinic lineage back to the 1500’s.
She recently wrote: “As a Cantor I especially enjoy bringing new and familiar music to the congregation. But I have found that being a Spiritual Leader fits my interests and abilities quite well. I enjoyed the expressive davening that I could convey, the Torah services I sculpted to be exciting opportunities for learning and for hearing dramatically rendered Torah readings, officiating at lifecycle ceremonies, and teaching classes.”
Temple B’Nai Darom welcomes Cantor Forman and looks forward, as — in her words, “we pray, learn, sing and grow together. We will step-by-step learn from each other to create a fulfilling religious experience for all.”
