Gardens Synagogue Choir History.

The Cape Town Hebrew Congregation, the first congregation in South Africa, founded in 1841, is situated in the Cape Town Botanical Gardens.
It is the Mother Synagogue and is universally known as the Gardens Shul. The present magnificent Shul building was erected in 1905
and major recent developments in the past year have seen our Shul now incorporated into an exciting Jewish Campus, which includes the Holocaust Museum, the new South African Jewish Museum, The Gitlin Library, the Community Administrative Centre, and the Cafe Riteve,
a restaurant cum gift shop.

The Gardens Shul Choir The Shul Choir was founded during the latter part of the 19th Century and was formalised in 1912. At one stage there were 46 choir members with 26 sopranos. Our present choir has 20 regular choristers. In addition to the High Holydays & Festivals, the choir sings every Friday night and
Saturday morning to the joy of the members and regular visitors to the Shul, who delight in the feast of a true liturgical concert. The choir stands on the Bimah,and sings with the Chazan, producing an awesome sound which fills this magnificent Shul.