Carl H. Sayres, Spiritual Leader
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Carl Sayres is passionate about sharing his love of Judaism, Torah, and music. He loves traditional modes of davening as well as contemporary music for the synagogue and strives to find ways to help people connect to Judaism and to God through this music.
Carl is always looking for creative ways to involve people in singing, learning, and prayer. At Congregation Beth Shalom in Seattle, he created the Tefilat Halev service for Yom Kippur, a musical service aimed at families, where participants learn, lead, and create prayer. He also created and directed the Shomeah Tefilah choir, a chorus of amateur singers integrated into High Holiday services and musical divrei-Torah. He is best known for his unique Purim Maariv services, which featured a cast of congregants singing every word of the Maariv service to the music of Les Miserables, Grease, West Side Story, Mama Mia, a Beatles tribute, and The Greatest Showman. Over the past decade, Carl has held cantorial roles at Congregation Beth Shalom in Seattle, University of Washington Hillel, Hebrew Tabernacle of Washington Heights, Agudath Israel Etz Ahayem in Montgomery, AL, and the Jewish Community Center of Harrison, NY. In addition to his work in synagogues, Carl has enjoyed a 30-year career as a software architect, co-founding four technology companies, and starting a Jewish children’s book publishing company. He holds a bachelor’s degree in physics from Brandeis University (1994), and a master’s degree in applied physics from Columbia University (1996). Carl is currently a senior cantorial student at the Academy for Jewish Religion in Yonkers, NY. He anticipates receiving cantorial ordination in spring of 2025, followed by rabbinic ordination in 2027. In his free time, Carl loves playing piano, table tennis, chess, watching movie musicals, and spending time with his two amazing teenage sons. Carl is engaged to fellow AJR student Turia Stark. Along with her two sons, the Sayres-Stark Bunch will be married this November! |
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