Rabbi Cantor Gershon Silins

The Trustees were delighted to announce that Rabbi Cantor Gershon Silins joined TLSE asInterim Rabbi on 1st December He previously served as Assistant Rabbi at the West London Synagogue for British Jews. He was on the Rabbinic Team of Liberal Judaism. Rabbi Gershon led Liberal Jewish communities in Lincolnshire, Norwich, Stevenage and Manchester. He was the first (and so far only) Rabbi Cantor in the United Kingdom.

Prior to arriving in the United Kingdom, he was cantor of Temple Sinai Congregation, Toronto; at Temple Avodah, Oceanside, New York; Anshe Emeth Memorial Temple, New Brunswick, New Jersey; Beth Emet The Free Synagogue, Evanston, Illinois and Temple Emanuel, Kensington, Maryland. He also taught cantorial studies at the Abraham Geiger College Cantorial School in Berlin and the Levisson Institute in Amsterdam.

Rabbi Gershon was ordained as a rabbi by Leo Baeck College in July 2019 and has been a member of the London Philharmonic Choir since 2019. He has been a soloist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra in Toronto, and the Music of the Baroque Concert Series in Chicago, and sang with many professional choruses, including the Chicago Symphony Chorus and the New York Choral Artists. He received the degree of Master of Sacred Music from the School of Sacred Music of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New York, where he was ordained as a cantor. In 2015, he was awarded the degree of Doctor of Sacred Music (honoris causa) by Hebrew Union College, in honour of his service to the American cantorate.

Rabbi Gershon attended our recent Chavurah Supper along with Rabbi Charley Baginsky of Liberal Judaism. His first official engagement was at the Chavurah Supper on Friday, 2nd December, where many of the congregation attended to welcome our new Rabbi.