Who We Are

Meet the Gardens Shul family

The Cape Town Hebrew Congregation, Gardens Shul, is South Africa’s oldest Jewish Congregation founded in 1841. Its historic and magnificent Great Synagogue sanctuary serves as the heartbeat of a vibrant, warm and welcoming traditional Orthodox community. The services are led by a world class team of Rabbi, Rebbetzin, Chazzan and Choir. The Gardens Shul offers daily morning and evening services with a full choral service on Shabbat and Festivals. To pray at the Gardens Shul is to enjoy a unique and inspiring Spiritual experience at the tip of Africa.

Rabbi Osher & Sarah Feldman

Rabbi Osher and Sarah Feldman have been at the Gardens Shul for more than a decade and have been the driving force behind the rejuvenation and growth of the Gardens Shul. Warm, Passionate, Innovative and Dynamic, Rabbi and Sarah have endeared themselves to the community while creating a non-judgemental, welcoming space for Divine Worship, Spiritual Connection and Community Togetherness.

The popular Friday Night Live they launched in November 2007 has been a flagship monthly event for the Gardens Shul and has been emulated internationally.

Rabbi Osher hails from Sydney Australia and Sarah from Johannesburg. Both come from a long line of Rabbinic personalities and their way of being reflects the ethos of the Gardens Shul; a deep respect for history and tradition while embracing and leading the way towards the future with innovation, inclusivity and compassion.

They are joined by their children Menny, Chaim, Laya, Esta and Rosa who are equal partners in their work for the community.

Rabbi has a Master’s Degree in Jewish Education from Middlesex University. Sarah has a popular modest fashion brand. Rabbi’s take on life can be heard from the pulpit, at an engaging Shiur or over a cup of coffee. As for Sarah, she is always open for a DMC (Deep & Meaningful Conversation), otherwise you can join the thousands following her on Facebook or Instagram @sarah_feldman_capetown.

Chazzan Choni Goldman

Born in Johannesburg, Choni grew up in the Sydenham Shul, famous for its choral music, and from an early age developed a love for music. He was a child soloist there and sang duets with Oshy Tugendhaft. At age 11, he appeared in concert with Chassidic pop star Mordechai Ben David. He was choirmaster of the Pretoria Shul for three years. He has served as Chazan in both local Shuls and Synagogues in Philadelphia, Melbourne & California. Currently he is resident Chazan of the Cape Town Hebrew Congregation (Gardens Shul).

Besides his impressive career as a chazan he has performed with the Maccabeats, Yaakov Shwekey, Yonatan Razel and grammy nominee Matisyahu.

In 2012 he won the International Jewish Star, an international American Idol-style competition that showcases the singing talents of Orthodox Jews. He has performed at gigs in Australia, Kenya, Mauritius, Brazil and the US; and cemented his reputation as South Africa’s most sought-after Jewish wedding singer.

You can follow him on Instagram and Facebook.

Bookings: manager@chonigmusic.com

The Gardens Shul Choir

The internationally acclaimed Gardens Shul choir was permanently established in 1912. Since its establishment, its Chazzan and four-part choir has filled the magnificent Gardens Shul sanctuary with a soulful, powerful and inspiring sound.

In it’s heyday, the choir comprised of up to 40 choristers with about 20 young sopranos and some of the finest Jewish tenors of their day.

The Chazanim that graced the Bimah of the Shul included Cantor’s Louis Kirschner, Boris Rome, David Ullmann, Stanley Brickman, Max Badash, Joel Lichterman, Ian Camissar and presently Choni Goldman.

Today the choir is a smaller group of just under 15 men but the quality of the four-part choir has been maintained, with a unique blend of modern pieces interspersed with the classical compositions of yesteryear.