Music infuses every aspect of Jewish life, from synagogue ritual to home-based observances to life-cycle celebrations and more. Gratz College programs in Jewish music create professionals who are well trained in Jewish studies and in Jewish life, and who are especially able to share their knowledge of Jewish music in all its manifestations. The Master of Arts in Jewish Music program, the only one of its kind outside a seminary setting, prepares students to serve the Jewish community in a variety of capacities:

• Hazzanim (cantors)
• Teachers and supervisors of Jewish music programs
• Choral directors
• Musicologists
• Ritual directors

Students at Gratz take advantage of outstanding faculty and educational resources, including the world-renowned Schreiber Jewish Music Library, whose holdings include more than 20,000 books, scores, and recordings in a wide range of subject areas:

• Jewish liturgy
• Yiddish theater
• Ashkenazic hazzanut
• Sephardic chants
• Folk and popular music from America, Europe and Israel.

Jewish music comes alive for Gratz students through their participation in the acclaimed Gratz College Chorale, and via a variety of opportunities to teach, lecture and officiate in the Philadelphia region. The diversity of the American Jewish community requires that students be prepared to serve in a wide range of institutions and settings. Gratz College welcomes students from all streams of Jewish practice, and from a variety of academic and musical backgrounds. Graduates are in great demand to fill an increasing number of positions across the country and beyond.