26 | AUGUST 24 • 2023
OUR COMMUNITY
A
s a child, Temple Emanu-El’s new
cantor, Rosalie Toubes, loved
going to Hebrew school. “I want-
ed to be there all the time,
” she recalls.
At some point, the synagogue where
her family belonged in her hometown
of Kansas City, Missouri, began experi-
menting with holding Hebrew school on
Saturday instead of Sunday.
For Toubes, who grew up in a
Conservative Jewish household, it was a
welcome change. “I liked being there for
services on Saturday mornings,
” she says.
Toubes was particularly drawn to the
singing of the cantor, a man named Chaim,
who she recalls as having a “glorious” voice.
“I remember as a young person just sit-
ting there and being absolutely enthralled
with his voice and the music he provided,
”
she remembers. “He wasn’t just singing; he
was praying.
”
Chaim’s voice served as an inspiration for
young Toubes, who many years later decid-
ed to pursue cantorial school and follow in
his footsteps.
She first studied psychology and vocal
performance, beginning her career as a
soloist in Boston, then went on to attend
Hebrew Union College in New York City,
where she was ordained and received a
master’s in sacred music.
“I realized that was a good fit for me,
”
she says of attending Hebrew Union
College. “I wanted to pursue a career as a
cantor.
”
Toubes’ first pulpit was a congregation in
Peabody, Massachusetts. She then moved
on to a congregation in Brookline. While
working in Massachusetts, Toubes decided
to also get a certification in teaching so she
could teach music to students as well.
Following her certification, Toubes
worked as Shabbat educator at a congrega-
tion in Needham, Massachusetts, managing
Shabbat education for children and teens.
RETURNING TO THE MIDWEST
Now, Toubes is excited to continue her
cantorial journey at Temple Emanu-El,
where she began her new role on July 1.
“I’m excited to be back in the Midwest,
”
she says. Toubes was selected by Temple
Emanu-El’s clergy selection committee,
which conducted a nationwide search
for the perfect fit for their open cantor
position.
“One of the things I really wanted at
this point in my life was to move to a
congregation that felt really comfortable
and like home,
” Toubes says. “Rabbi
Matthew Zerwekh and President David
Gubow were so welcoming and interested
in making my interview experience
positive.
“I really felt that they wanted me to
succeed,
” she adds, “and that made a big
difference for me.
”
Toubes calls the Metro Detroit Jewish
community reception “wonderful” and has
enjoyed getting to know the congregation.
“The congregation turned up and they
were smiling and singing along that
first day [I began my role], which was
wonderful,
” she says.
She’s particularly drawn to the temple’s
focus on tikkun olam, or the Jewish concept
of repairing the world. “I really admire and
can relate to that,
” Toubes says.
VERSATILE APPROACH
As the Oak Park-based Reform synagogue
continues to get to know its new cantor,
Toubes says the congregation can expect a
versatile approach to song and prayer.
“My training is classical with opera,
” she
says of her unique singing style.
Yet working with the Reform movement,
in particular, has taught Toubes a mix of
Orthodox and Conservative traditional
song and prayer, but also contemporary
Jewish music with instruments. “I like
doing all of it,
” she says of the different
Jewish genres.
While Temple Emanu-El is planning a
congregation-wide picnic in August where
Toubes will continue to get to know the
community-at-large, she’s enjoying the day-
to-day process of ramping up in her new
role and learning the ins-and-outs of the
synagogue.
“Generally speaking, I’m really looking
forward to what I can contribute to Temple
Emanu-El in a new way,
” she says.
Her plans include starting an adult and
junior choir, bringing guest artists to the
community and working with the b’nai
mitzvah program.
“That’s such an important point of a
Jewish person’s life,
” she says.
Other goals that Toubes has set include
bringing more music to the religious school
and preschool programs and, of course,
meeting her colleagues in the Metro
Detroit area.
“It’s exciting,
” she says of the future. “It’s
been great so far.
”
Rosalie Toubes joins the temple family from Boston.
Temple Emanu-El’s New
Cantor Savors the Role
ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKY CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Cantor
Rosalie
Toubes
JAMIE FELDMAN