Dr. Gordon Dale has been appointed Assistant Professor of Jewish Musicology at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, effective July 1, 2022, following an international search. He concurrently serves as the inaugural Dr. Jack Gottlieb Scholar in Jewish Music Studies at the Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music (DFSSM) at HUC-JIR in New York. The three-year appointment as Dr. Jack Gottlieb Scholar has been made possible by a generous grant from the Theophilous Foundation, represented by Cantor Josh Breitzer ’11, which created the Dr. Jack Gottlieb Jewish Music Studies Endowment Fund at HUC-JIR.
As Assistant Professor of Jewish Musicology, Dr. Dale will continue to teach core cantorial courses, including History of Jewish Music: The Cantor in Context and Jewish Music Research, and will co-teach the Shabbat Workshop. He will guide research projects of students in the cantorial program, coordinate an ongoing curriculum renewal initiative, and take the lead on broader music scholarship at the College-Institute.
Andrew Rehfeld, Ph.D., HUC-JIR President, stated, “During Dr. Dale’s time at the College-Institute, he has distinguished himself as a scholar of Jewish musicology and a dedicated teacher who is committed to supporting HUC students and their maturation as cantors.”
Rabbi Andrea L. Weiss, Ph.D., Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Provost, added, “Dr. Dale has earned a reputation as an insightful scholar, skilled researcher, and a gifted teacher, distinguishing himself as one of the top young scholars in the contemporary study of Jewish music. Since coming to the College-Institute, Dr. Dale has demonstrated his strengths as a highly regarded educator, dedicated advisor, and a collaborative and hard-working colleague committed to advancing the mission of HUC-JIR and the DFSSM.”
Cantor Jill Abramson, Interim Director of the DFSSM, noted, “Dr. Gordon Dale brings an unwavering commitment to the DFSSM and the College-Institute. Nurturing the development of each individual student, Dr. Dale brings a vibrant and nuanced perspective to every endeavor. His scholarship is characterized by excellence and his demeanor by menshlichkeit.”
Dr. Dale previously served as Visiting Assistant Professor of Ethnomusicology at the Debbie Friedman School of Sacred Music (DFSSM) at HUC in New York. He has most recently conducted extensive research in the Hasidic communities of New York and Israel, and he lectures across the United States on topics related to Israeli popular music, and Jewish music and mysticism. The author of numerous articles, he is completing The Life and Collected Works of Rabbi Ben Zion Shenker, to be published by Hebrew University’s Jewish Music Research Centre. He was recently awarded the prestigious Jordan Schnitzer First Book Prize for this research.
Dr. Dale is currently the Executive Director of The Jewish Music Forum, a project of the American Society for Jewish Music, and is a past president of the Society for Ethnomusicology’s Special Interest Group for Jewish Music. He holds a Ph.D. from the CUNY Graduate Center, an M.A. from Tufts University, and a B.S. from Northeastern University.