Cantor Martin “Marty” Feldman, affectionately known as Congregation Sherith Israel’s “sweet singer of Zion,” died Sunday at home surrounded by family. He was 97.
Feldman’s music and spirit touched generations of San Francisco Jews and filled the Reform synagogue’s historic sanctuary, where he described chanting liturgy as a deeply spiritual experience that connected him to thousands of years of Jewish tradition.
During his 43-year tenure at Sherith Israel, Feldman sang at nearly every service, taught religious school, officiated weddings and funerals and guided an estimated 1,700 b’nai mitzvah students, including both of Sherith Israel’s current rabbis, Senior Rabbi Jessica Zimmerman Graf and Assistant Rabbi George Altshuler.
Even after his retirement in 2003, when he became Sherith Israel’s cantor emeritus, Feldman remained an active and beloved presence there.
“Some of my earliest memories of being Jewish were listening to him sing on High Holidays,” Altshuler recalled. “There was a beautiful resonance between his voice and our sanctuary. Both are majestic and awe inspiring and also warm in many ways.”
Feldman was born June 2, 1928, in Newark, New Jersey, where as a boy he sang in Orthodox synagogue choirs with his father. He enrolled at Montclair State Teachers College and, while a student, worked as a professional tenor singer in a quartet choir. A serendipitous moment filling in for a sick cantor set him on a different career path, when he was encouraged by people who heard him lead services.
After graduating from teachers college, he went on to study at the then-Mannes School of Music in New York City and Hebrew Union College, where he was ordained in 1958 with a bachelor of arts in sacred music, along with a certification as a religious school principal. After serving as a student cantor at Congregation Beth Abraham in Tarrytown, New York, he journeyed west in 1960 to join Sherith Israel.
Feldman met his wife, Nancy, in his early years at Sherith Israel. She asked him to play tennis. They fell in love and married within a year.
Through the decades, Feldman worked with multiple rabbis. He began under Rabbi Morris Goldstein, who served Sherith Israel from 1932 to 1971. He worked for 31 years with Rabbi Martin Weiner and then, as cantor emeritus, he participated in the installation of Rabbi Larry Raphael in 2003.
During his career, Feldman served as president of the Northern California Board of Cantors and worked nationally with the American Conference of Cantors. He continued his own musical growth throughout his career, earning a scholarship from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s Opera Department in 1965 and later receiving an honorary doctorate in music from Hebrew Union College in 1998.
Beyond the bimah, he was known for his charisma, vibrancy and genuine friendliness. He could rarely go anywhere without being greeted by congregants or students, each eager to remind him of the role he played in their lives.
“Hearing him sing on the High Holidays made a big impression on me,” said Altshuler. “I don’t know that I would have pursued the career I chose to pursue if it wasn’t for those early memories with Cantor Feldman.”
“If I hear or read his name, I hear his voice. He’s that powerful,” said Kaitlin Wahl, 32, who grew up attending Sherith Israel. “He impacted the community greatly.”
Feldman cherished these relationships, often saying that his best years were inseparable from his time at Sherith Israel.
“Many crescendos and highlights in my life are connected to Sherith Israel,” Feldman told J. in 2023. “It enriched my life considerably.”
After retirement in 2003, he continued to sing at Sherith Israel during High Holy Day services, participate in lifecycle events and share his music in concerts and programs throughout Northern California. In honor of his longtime service to the community, San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown declared April 3, 2003, as Cantor Feldman Appreciation Day.
Feldman also picked up a gig officiating Jewish holiday services on cruise ships, allowing him and Nancy to travel the world for 13 years.
He had a strong appreciation for the arts and regularly attended the opera, symphony and ballet. He remained physically active well into his later years and prided himself on attending the JCCSF gym at least three times a week, where he and Nancy also continued to play tennis together.
“His beautiful voice and boundless energy will be missed,” said Graf. “I will think of him every time I raise a Kiddush cup and joyfully exclaim ‘l’chaim!’”
Feldman is survived by his wife Nancy; his children, Daniel Kresteller (Gwen) and Deborah Selch (Jason); and his six grandchildren, Leland Kresteller, Elizabeth Kresteller (Alex), Emily Selch, Rebecca Selch (Hakan), Julia Selch and Rachel Selch.
A public celebration of life for Feldman will take place at 1:30 p.m. May 3 at Sherith Israel.