Cantor Abby Gostein brings to congregational life warmth, an inclusive spirit, and a deep commitment to Jewish community-building rooted in engagement, accessibility, and participation. With over 30 years of dedicated cantorial leadership in URJ Reform congregations as a Cantorial Soloist and Cantor, she has focused her career on creating "singing congregations" where voices rise together and every individual is supported to participate in all aspects of Jewish life.

As the Spiritual Leader and Cantor of Kol Shira, Cantor Gostein is shaping a new kind of congregational community—one that centers on relationships, cultivates connection, and invites shared leadership.

Cantor Gostein believes that Judaism is best experienced through active engagement. She views her role as a guide and connector who helps congregants find personal meaning in tradition through communal expression. Her vision for a vibrant Jewish life includes:

• Democratizing Ritual: Encouraging participation across all ages and backgrounds to ensure that the experience of Jewish life is accessible and meaningful to everyone.

• Learning through Participation: Using participation as a primary tool for individual and communal growth, where every service and gathering becomes an opportunity for gaining insight, learning, and connection.

• Infusing Ruach: Bringing a contagious energy (ruach) to worship in which prayer becomes a deeply felt, communal experience.

Cantor Gostein has held significant roles within major professional organizations, including the Women Cantors' Network (WCN), which she served as a Board member and two-time conference chair, and the Guild of Temple Musicians (GTM), which she served as Vice President of Membership and which she currently serves as the Mentoring Project Coordinator. Cantor Gostein represented the GTM as a delegate to the Union for Reform Judaism (URJ) Joint Commission on Worship, Music and Religious Living (JCWMRL) for many years. She is a member of the American Conference of Cantors (ACC) and has led worship for their national conferences on multiple occasions.

Cantor Gostein received Cantorial Ordination and a Master’s degree in Jewish Sacred Music from the Academy for Jewish Religion, California (AJRCA). She previously earned a Master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Texas at Austin, bringing a professional understanding of communication and voice to her cantorial work. Cantor Gostein graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Yale University, where she also created and led the campus's first Jewish singing group, Urim v’Shirim. 

An award-winning and commissioned composer and Transcontinental Music Publications-published artist, Cantor Gostein’s work is sung in synagogues worldwide. Her compositions, some of which can be found on her CD, Each Blessing, are specifically crafted to be "congregation-friendly," designed to spark a collective voice that strengthens the bonds of the community and carries the spirit of living Judaism forward.

——

Cantor Gostein lives in Austin, Texas with her husband, Michael. She is the proud mother of their two grown sons. She is grateful to her parents for the Judaism, music, and love that are her foundation.