A Cantor’s Head
A wise Jew once opined – “You don’t leave synagogue humming the sermon.” It is sacred song
that lifts, inspires, transports the soul, and carries the beating heart of tradition. Cantor Jacob
Ben-Zion Mendelson – or just “Jackie” – has been in the vanguard and at the epicenter of that
evolving tradition since graduating from Hebrew Union College in 1970. As a cantor, a teacher
and a performing artist, his Brooklyn-born chops, dynamism and humor have inculcated and
inspired legions of cantors across the U.S. and world. But Jackie is no longer the cantor at his
long-time home of Temple Israel Center in White Plains, NY. His absence on the bimah –
Hebrew for stage – reveals multitudes about both the state and future of Jewish sacred music.

Director Erik Greenberg Anjou (A Cantor’s Tale, The Klezmatics – On Holy Ground, Deli Man)
had unparalleled access to his larger than life subject in this captivating, warts and all portrait.

75-minute runtime with special guest Q&A.

To see the film trailer, learn more or purchase tickets, visit bit.ly/CantorsHead_WF2020.