Cantor Alison Levine has been lifting us up at Temple Beth El since 2014. She brings her intellect, passion, kindness, and golden singing voice to all she does for our temple community and adds her ideas and innovative music to our worship services.
Cantor Alison prepares B’nei Mitzvah students (both children and adults), participates in and leads important life cycle events, visits the sick, cares for the bereaved, leads Religious School T’filah, directs our choir, leads the Sisterhood Women’s Seder and the Rosh Chodesh group and also appears in TBE’s talent shows and our amazing Chutzpah Repertory Theater productions.
She also works with conversion students, teaches Hebrew as well as adult education classes, coordinates and brings in musical guests, collaborates with the Huntington Interfaith Faith Leaders group including participating in the annual Interfaith Thanksgiving Service, brings music and Torah chanting opportunities to the community, collaborates with colleagues and participates in board and committee meetings. Cantor Alison truly is involved in all facets of Temple Beth El life.
Originally from Connecticut, she attended Wesleyan University where she received her B.A. in Music and Psychology. While in school, she was very involved with the Wesleyan Chavurah and also with singing opera. After graduation, Cantor Levine attended San Francisco Conservatory of Music where she received her Master of Music in Vocal performance. She then spent time singing in Bay Area productions and working at Temple Emanuel (San Francisco) in the religious school and singing with the temple choir on Saturdays.
She felt called to become a Cantor because it combined all the things she loved: music, Judaism, teaching, and interacting with people. After spending one year in Jerusalem and four years in New York City learning, she received her Master of Sacred Music and Ordination from the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR). She served many congregations as a student cantor including Congregation Children of Israel (Augusta, GA), Temple Emanuel (Roanoke, VA), Congregation Adas Emuno (Leonia, NJ), and Port Jewish Center (Port Washington, NY). She also worked as a B’nei Mitzvah tutor at Temple Shaaray Tefila in Manhattan for five years.
Cantor Levine joined the clergy at Temple Beth El upon her ordination in 2014. She loves teaching all ages and is very enthusiastic working with the choir, who run on the candy she brings to all rehearsals. Cantor Alison’s favorite things include chocolate, reading, New York Times word games, and dancing. Alison and her husband Brian are parents of two adorable children, Chloe and Dylan!
