Rob Rinder appointed new chair of Jewish Music Institute

Rinder said he was first drawn to Jewish music by hearing the prayers in synagogue. “My shul choir in Southgate was the first time I’d ever heard choral music,” he said.

“Listening to davening at Neilah is beautiful. It has echoes and sounds and vibrations of centuries of Jewish music, which are really moving and powerful.”

Once he had developed this fascination, Rinder said that he started “looking under the bonnet”. Delving into the personal lives of the artists who shaped his musical tastes, he asked himself: “’Who isn’t Jewish?’”

Reeling off a list of Jewish musical artists, ranging from the “King of Swing”, Benny Goodman, to Lenny Kravitz, Rinder said: “Jewish musicians have shaped entire cultural understandings of what America is and provided the identity and soundscapes to people’s lives.”

When asked who his favourite Jewish musician was, Rinder responded: “Where to begin?”, adding: “What a beautiful response it is that I have nowhere to start.”

And it is far from just the household names which have drawn him to JMI, which also promotes lesser-known genres such as Yiddish, Ladino, and Klezmer.

Rinder said the accusation of “us being colonial oppressors is hard to do when you have such a range of Jewish music”. Music revealed the “patchwork quilt of what Jewish identity is”, he said.

As the JMI’s new chair, one of his goals will be to increase support among the Jewish community. “Unless we raise quite a lot of money, the JMI is under threat.”

A membership scheme has been launched which allows the public to become either “supporters” or “patrons”, benefits of which include complimentary tickets, priority booking and behind-the-scenes access.

At a time where so many Jews are consumed by an “existential catastrophic angst”, Rinder hopes that the community will choose to explore the offerings of the JMI, saying music can be a vessel to instil a “renewed sense of pride in all of the things that the Jewish community does”.

Na'ama Zisser, CEO of JMI, said: "We are thrilled to welcome Rob Rinder as chair of JMI. Rob’s remarkable combination of cultural insight, public voice, and dedication to Jewish heritage will amplify everything we do - from preserving rare musical archives to supporting the next generation of musicians. His leadership comes at an exciting moment for JMI, and we look forward to working with him to ensure Jewish music in the UK continues to flourish, innovate, and connect communities."

You can find out more information about JMI and how to support them at https://jmi.org.uk or by clicking here