40 Camp Songleaders Join 100 Established Jewish Professionals for the Hava Nashira Jewish Songleader Conference
This special event welcomes songleaders, educators, and clergy from across North America for workshops, services, and connection with peers
Bruceville, TX – Hava Nashira, now in its 32nd year and produced by Sing Unto God under the direction of Cantor Rosalie Will, returns to URJ Greene Family Camp May 19 - 22, 2024.
This year sees the return of the dedicated Camp Songleader Track, reintroduced to address the growing shortage of qualified songleaders in Jewish summer camps. Two days before the main conference begins, Eric Hunker, Jacob “Spike” Kraus, and Debra Winter will train 40 young adults who will serve this summer in 26 summer and JCC day camps across movements in the unique practice of strengthening Jewish learning and engagement among young people. These camp songleaders will then have the opportunity to sing, learn, and network during the full conference with 100 Jewish communal professionals from 33 states, Canada, and England.
Among many specially-designed electives and intensives this year, some of the electives and intensives from the main conference include High Holiday Family T’fillah and Accessible and Meaningful, Magical: Transformative T’fillah for Any and All Ages with Eliana Light; Lean on Me: The Choir as an Ally for Congregational Singing facilitated by Cantor Zoe Jacobs from Finchley Reform Synagogue in London; Building an After-School Music Program with Shira Kline. Noah Aronson will lead participants in using body and breath as foundations for holistic prayer experiences, and Cantor Rosalie Will will use her congregational experience to help worship leaders use song and new melodies to engage their community's voice.
From the Camp Songleader Track to conference programming to all of the opportunities to connect and collaborate in a way only an outdoor camp setting can provide, Hava Nashira is dedicated to giving attendees transferable skills and helpful resources to use song and communal singing to strengthen their communities back home. By connecting young professionals with their more established peers, the goal is also to develop the relationship between camp, congregations, and Jewish community spaces year-round.
"Hava Nashira is an exhilarating space in which to strengthen the impact songleaders have on Jewish life," says Cantor Will. "It’s a place to learn with others in the field, pick up new repertoire, and recharge in a way that only singing together can inspire.”
About Hava Nashira: Hava Nashira, the first professional gathering dedicated to Jewish songleading when launched in 1991, was developed by Olin-Sang-Ruby Union Institute (OSRUI) and URJ Camping, led by the visionaries Debbie Friedman (z"l) and Cantor Jeff Klepper. Hava Nashira invites its community to become translators of the powerful repertoire, learning, and worship styles presented during the conference in their own home communities.
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