Matthew Lazar is the Founding Director of the Zamir Choral Foundation and the founder of HaZamir. As the leader of the Jewish choral movement in North America, his superior talents as conductor and interpreter of Jewish music have elevated the standards of Jewish musical performance and educated audiences. In addition to directing the Zamir Chorale, an adult choir, he has also created the Mantua Singers, the Selah Vocal Ensemble, and Shirah: The Community Chorus of the Kaplen JCC on the Palisades. He has inspired the creation of adult choral ensembles throughout the U.S. and, through the Jeanne R. Mandell Fund for New Music, has contributed to the expansion of the choral repertoire through commissions of new music by the finest Jewish composers. Maestro Lazar has also served as guest conductor for multiple symphony orchestras and festivals, and he presents regularly at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, and the other major concert halls across the U.S. and Israel. He has served on the faculties of Columbia University and the Jewish Theological Seminary, is a frequent lecturer and scholar-in-residence, and has made multiple recordings with Zamir and other prominent ensembles.
Vivian Lazar is the Director of HaZamir: The International Jewish Teen Choir. Ms. Lazar was chairman of the English department in a New York City magnet school for the gifted and talented where, for two decades, she taught honors English and dance. Ms. Lazar has created English and writing curricula for private new education initiatives and mentored teachers in the public sector. As an experienced amateur choral singer, Ms. Lazar brings to HaZamir an understanding of the musical and educational value of choral singing. Under her leadership, HaZamir has been increasingly professionalized and has expanded to include a growing number of programs and teens across North America and Israel. Vivian can be reached at vlazar@zamirchoralfoundation.org.
Hadas Sturman, HaZamir Israel Project Manager and Conductor of HaZamir Beit She'an, attended the Music Academy at Tel Aviv University. Ms. Sturman holds a BA in Choir Conducting and completed a two-year internship in Children's Choirs. She has been conducting a professional conservatory choir for the last fifteen years. Hadas can be reached at hsturman@zamirchoralfoundation.org.
Angie Lieber, Interim Director of Development, comes to Zamir following long tenures as Director of Development at the Hannah Senesh School in Brooklyn and Director of Public Relations at the JCC in Manhattan. Angie earned a B.A. in Religion from Oberlin and a Master’s degree in Education from Harvard, and in addition to her work with Zamir, maintains her own consulting practice. Angie can be reached at alieber@zamirchoralfoundation.org.
Emma Miller, Teen Leadership Coordinator and HaZamir Teen Educator, is a Jewish educator and theater director originally from Cleveland, Ohio and is a graduate of Kenyon College. Emma spent the summer as Camp Director of the Mandel JCC of Cleveland's Performing Arts Camp, a day camp serving over 150 children and teens. In addition to her work at HaZamir, Emma is Theater Arts Director at B'nai Jeshurun, where she founded a new model for Jewish performing arts programming and directs three original youth theater productions each year. Emma has taught and worked with children and teens at Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple, Laurel School, The Temple-Tifereth Israel, The Marlene Mayerson JCC Manhattan, Tkiya, and Romemu. Emma has written original curriculum that uses the arts to teach students about the Holocaust, Jewish identity, and American Jewish history. Her other writing has been published by Your Teen Magazine. emiller@zamirchoralfoundation.org
