Susan Lewis-Friedman Debuts at PAUSA with the Jay / Sharptet

Susan Lewis-Friedman brings music to life in a way that feels both deeply personal and shared. Since arriving in Buffalo as Cantor of Temple Beth Zion in 2024, she has been building something rooted in connection, inviting voices of all ages into song, into community, into the quiet power of singing together.

Her path has moved fluidly between worlds, Broadway stages (CATS), concert halls, intimate NYC clubs, and now sacred spaces, always with the same thread: presence, storytelling, and a genuine love for people gathering through music.

Buffalo audiences may know her from her debut with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and Holiday Pops performance, but what stays with you is not the résumé, it’s the feeling. There’s an openness in how she shares music, whether leading a choir, collaborating across communities, or bringing her own compositions to life. Her album Sing, Pray, Repeat!, featuring her children, Abigail and Zev, is an extension of that spirit: music as something lived, not just performed. At the center of it all is a simple offering, come listen, come sing, come be part of it.