Features
Honorary Doctorate fitting cap to cantorial career of Herschel Fox
By MYRON LOVE Many readers of a certain age will no doubt have fond memories of Herschel Fox. In the 55-plus years since he left Winnipeg, he has built a notable career as both a chazzan and an entertainer – and he says that he has loved every minute of it.
On February 2, the former Winnipegger was recognized with a most fitting tribute to his role in Jewish congregational life in the form of an honorary Doctor of Music Degree from the Jewish Theological Seminary. The presentation was supposed to have taken place in New York itself, he notes, but, because of ongoing Covid restrictions, the award ceremony took place virtually.
For the ebullient Fox, his life has been a ball. In addition to his cantorial duties, the long time Valley Beth Shalom Synagogue chazzan has been able to pursue a second career – building on his experience as a performer in live Yiddish theatre – entertaining in live shows with his wife, Judy – a cantor in her own right at the Synagogue for the Performing Arts in L.A. – as well as making recordings in Yiddish and Hebrew.
Fox points out that there only two cantors in North America who have been at it longer than he has. The son of Holocaust survivors, he was drawn to the Jewish liturgy at the age of 7 when the Talmud Torah bocher was accepted into the illustrious Cantor Benjamin Brownstone’s choir.
“I loved the synagogue and I loved Yiddishkeit,” he recalls.
For five years, post bar-mitzvah, he helped lead Yom Tov services at the Talmud Torah and, at the age of 19, was hired for his first cantorial gig, leading Yom Tov services in North Battleford.
He was studying social work at the University of Manitoba when – in 1970 – he received the opportunity of a lifetime in the form of an invitation to study with David Kusevitsky, one of the world’s leading chazzans, in New York.
I learned a lot from Cantor Kusevitsky,” Fox notes. “He was one of the finest people I have ever met. He never had a bad word to say about anybody.”
In 1971, he began a seven-year run as the chazzan at a shul in Greenwich, Connecticut.
In 1978, he opted for a career change, throwing himself into performing. He was hired to be the MC for Yiddish shows at an outdoor co-op theatre in the Bronx.
“We were getting 10,000-12,000 people per show,” he recalls. “There were a lot of apartment blocks in the neighbourhood and up to 90% of the people were Jewish.”
Fox’s great strengths as a chazzan and entertainer are his strong memory and amazing ability to mimic the voices and singing style of other chazzanim and Yiddish performers – past and present – as he demonstrated repeatedly during the course of our interview.
During one of the shows, the well-known (at that time) Yiddish comedian Shimen Dzigan was in the audience. Dzigan and his comedy partner, Yisroel Shumacher, were the Yiddish world’s equivalent of Abbot and Costello, Fox explains.
Dzigan was so impressed with the young Fox’s stage presence that he offered him a starring role in an upcoming Yiddish theatre production – opposite noted Yiddish stage star Miriam Kressyn. Over the next couple of years, he appeared – on and off Broadway – with many great entertainers such as Jan Peerce (another former Winnipegger with whom he became good friend), Molly Picon and Mickey Katz, the father of Joel Gray. He also had his own Yiddish radio show.
Throughout this period, Fox served as a chazzan during Yom Tov for a congregation in Great Neck. New York.
In 1980, he married Judy, a professional singer n her own right and aspiring Chazan. The next year, they followed the path of many New York-based performers before them and made the move to Los Angeles.
“We wanted to settle down and start a family,” he recalls. “We were fortunate to both be offered positions and have been at our respective synagogues ever since.”
Over the years, Herschel and Judy have returned to Winnipeg from time to time to perform at community functions, see family and reconnect with some of Herschel’s old friends.
Now 76, Herschel Fox has been semi-retired for the past five years or so. “I still lead services maybe once a month,” he says. “I do the occasional funeral and make shivah calls.
“These last two years have been tough with all of the Covid rules,” he adds.
“Looking back, I feel that I have been very lucky to be able to get up every morning and do what I love to do,” concludes. “I have enjoyed every second of it.”
Herschel and Judy have been blessed with two daughters, Shira and Shayna. Older daughter Shira is carrying on the family trade as a cantorial soloist at The Open Temple – Re-enchanting Judaism in Venice, California.
Features
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Musings from Dizengoff Street – by Bruce Brown
(August 8, 2026)
Outside Basimta Café in Central Jerusalem. Love the red shirt against a tiny sea of black. Not sure I am shrugging because of the ultra-orthodox uproar over a Jerusalem café operating on Shabbat or the lack of an ultra-orthodox uproar over a Jerusalem café operating on Shabbat. For the last six weeks Israeli headlines shouted about the cafe chaos. With the ultra-religious blocking entrances and storming the café. While shouting ‘Shabbos! Shabbos!’ Upsetting the secular amongst us just wanting to enjoy our Saturday iced matchas. So the wife and I thought we would check it out. And. Yes. Buy something to support the business. Uproar. Not. Blocked entrances. Not. Storming the café. Not. Albeit there were police barriers separating the devout protesters from the coffee drinkers. The protesters being just a few dozen black clad, pious Jews. Mostly teenagers. And yes. Shouting ‘Shabbos! Shabbos!’ Certainly underwhelming in its reported mayhem. Reminds me of the famous saying misattributed to Mark Twain – “If you don’t read the newspaper, you’re uninformed. If you do, you’re misinformed.” But I did enjoy my iced matcha.
(August 6, 2026)
Here we go again. Another round of forever negotiations. As someone who negotiates for a living. The way things are going in the straits. If I had to recommend a book on the subject to a new hire. Between The Art of the Deal, A Presidential Edition by Donald J. Trump or The Real Art of the Deal by the Mullahs of Iran with a special forward by the IRGC. Well. I would choose the latter.
(August 3)
Bravo Yoav Segalovitz, Liberal Yesh Atid MK and Monsour Abbas, United Arab Ra’am MK and party head. For breaking a glass ceiling where a Jewish lawmaker joins an Arab political party. No less a political earthquake in my little shtetl. Which can significantly impact coalition block arithmetic and posturing and strategy in the upcoming elections. Now Ra’am can be considered a legitimate ‘Zionist’ partner when forming coalition blocks and potentially pushing the ‘center left/right’ party over the 60 seat majority threshold. In our crazy parliamentary democracy defined by a multi-party (about fourteen!!), proportional representation system. To paraphrase Winston Churchill, Israel’s proportional representation model of governance is the best parliamentary democracy system except for all other forms of working democracies. Stay tuned for more amateurish political musings as we move towards Israel’s 26th national election – five of them held since 2019.
(August 1)
Although both sides say they are open to diplomacy. Neither really trusts the other. And American military action, or its threat, continues. I read headlines in the middle of the night -it’s a nervous habit lately– that the Dynamic Duo of Trump and Netanyahu may again strike in unison. Possibly this weekend. Yikes! Prompting me, at 2:30 AM, to dash around the house stocking my safe room. Bottled water. Canned food. Medicines. Documents. The beat goes on….
If it’s crazy here. It’s insane in Italy. With a recent online ‘Jew Hunt’ in the Milan area. Before being removed, the digital forms urged reportings of Israelis and Italian Jews staying in local hotels. The infamous Global Sumud Movement -yes, the one coordinating ‘peace and humanitarian’ flotillas to Gaza- was somehow connected. Although they deny involvement?! This deranged decree was looking to identify Zionist tourism and Zionist neo-colonization in Italy. I’ll stick with stocking the saferoom.
Then there’s New York Mayor Mamdani, a Global Sumud Movement supporter, threatening to arrest Prime Minister Netanyahu if he comes to New York. But since discovered he has no legal right for such a grandstanding, antisemitic, anti-Israel, anti-Western, anti-democratic antic. Maybe Mandami should be arrested! Or at least impeached. For being a grandstanding, antisemitic, anti-Israel, anti-Western, anti-democratic mayor.
Here’s a post Bruce sent us Friday, July 31:
WARTIME MUSINGS
Should credible threats against FLOTUS and ‘FSOTUS’ (first son..) not be justification to attack first.
As for yesterday’s summit. Netanyahu really can’t win. Explainer. If Trump now attacks without victory its ’cause of Netanyahu. If Trump now attacks with victory its ’cause of Trump. And, in Israel, if Trump doesn’t attack -victory or not- Netanyahu failed in his eighth meeting with Trump. And if Trump does attack -victory or not- half the country will vilify Bibi anyway. Missing a permutation?
Ya. I know. Kinda’ need a definition of victory for that musing to work.
And here in my little shtetle. We go to sleep unsure if there will be a code red in the middle of the night. And if not. We wake up thinking it will be tonight. How do you define stress?
Seemed like an appropriate way to end this musing.
Bruce Brown is a former Winnipegger who made aliyah to Israel over 35 years ago. Bruce first began writing for us – in his own inimitable style, in 2012, during what was known as “Operation Pillar of Defense.” His occasional musings on aspects of life in Israel that were far from what you’d typically read in other reports from Israel were hugely popular – both in the print Jewish Post & News and on this website.
We’re now glad to report that Bruce is back writing for us – this time on a regular basis. We will post Bruce’s reports as they arrive – with the date of each post at the beginning of that post.
Here’s some information about Bruce – and awards he’s received for his writing:
Bruce Brown. Canadian born. Now living in Israel (for a long time). Bruce works in Israel’s hi-tech sector by day and, in spurts, is a somewhat inspired writer by night. He received the American Jewish Press Association’s award for writing excellence in 2019 and 2025. And wrote the 1998 satire, “An Israeli is….” Bruce’s musings are political, social, economic and personal. With lots of biting, contrarian, sardonic and irreverent insight.
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