From Bagpipes to the Bimah: How AJU’s Miller Intro to Judaism Course Changed Cantor Kevin McIntyre’s Life
By Ryan Torok
When Kevin McIntyre enrolled in American Jewish University’s Miller Intro to Judaism program a little more than a decade ago, he was simply looking to satisfy a growing curiosity.
Today, he is Cantor Kevin McIntyre, a member of the clergy team at a Conservative synagogue in Winnipeg. Along the way, he converted to Judaism, was ordained as a cantor, and even found ways to blend his Scottish heritage with his Jewish identity—playing bagpipes at Jewish celebrations and once accompanying a klezmer band for an unforgettable rendition of “Hava Nagila.”
“It forever changed my life,” McIntyre said of AJU’s Miller Intro to Judaism course.
His Jewish journey began in an unlikely place: a theater.
Born into an Anglican family with Scottish roots—his family is Canadian, and his grandfather is Scottish, from Glasgow—McIntyre spent much of his early career as a performer working in musical theater before becoming a professional photographer. In 2015, he accepted a role in the Winnipeg Jewish Theatre’s production of “Stars of David,” a musical based on stories of prominent Jews and their connections to Judaism.
Preparing for the production sparked something unexpected.
“I started doing a lot of research,” he recalled. “I was very interested in learning more about Judaism—not for the cultural things. I really wanted to understand the theology.”
Although he wasn’t Jewish, Judaism never felt entirely foreign. He had grown up surrounded by Jewish friends through the theater world, while his wife had relatives living in Israel—”We were very Jewish-adjacent,” he said.
Still, what began as intellectual curiosity soon became something much deeper.
Returning to Los Angeles after doing the show, McIntyre discovered AJU’s Miller Intro to Judaism program, then led by Rabbi Adam Greenwald.
What he found exceeded every expectation.
Rather than simply presenting information, the 18-week course immersed students in Jewish life. Alongside classroom learning, Greenwald encouraged participants to celebrate holidays together, attend synagogue services and meet individually to discuss their questions, aspirations and personal journeys.
For McIntyre, those conversations proved transformative.
“I was trying to learn as much as I could,” he said. “When I started learning the theology, for me, this was a truly religious experience.”
He discovered that Judaism’s understanding of God aligned with beliefs he had carried for years but had never fully articulated.
“The Jewish view of God is exactly what felt natural to me and honest to me,” he said.
McIntyre credits Greenwald with helping him envision not only becoming Jewish, but becoming an active member of the Jewish community.
Unsure how he would fit into synagogue life as someone without children, he shared those concerns with Greenwald during one of their meetings.
Greenwald’s advice was simple: lean into his musical gifts.
“He said, ‘You worked in the theater. You’re a singer. You should learn how to lead services, learn how to read Torah,'” McIntyre recalled. “And he was 100% correct.”
Greenwald introduced him to Rabbi John Carrier and Burbank Temple Emanu El, where McIntyre learned to lead services and chant Torah from mentors who welcomed him warmly. The experience eventually inspired him to pursue cantorial studies, culminating years later in his through ALEPH, an ordination program affiliated with the Renewal movement.
“It started with just taking a class,” he said. “Then, ‘Oh, I can lead some services,’ to really changing my life and career.”
His conversion process itself felt equally welcoming.
After completing the Miller course and finding a sponsoring rabbi, McIntyre immersed in AJU’s mikvah before appearing before a beit din.
“It was really seamless,” he said. “We all went for lunch afterward, and it was a wonderful day.”
His wife would later take the same AJU course herself. Inspired by the joy and meaning Judaism had brought into her husband’s life, she eventually chose to convert as well, allowing the couple to build a Jewish home together.
While McIntyre embraced Judaism wholeheartedly, he never left behind his Scottish heritage.
A bagpiper since he was seven years old and a member of the L.A. Scots Pipe Band since 1999, he has discovered surprising opportunities to unite the two traditions. He played at a Scottish-themed birthday celebration for a former Sinai Temple president’s 80th birthday; played the bagpipes as Torah scrolls were brought into a synagogue’s new sanctuary in Winnipeg; and even performed alongside a professional klezmer ensemble.
“The screechy clarinet sound and the bagpipes actually go really well together,” he said with a laugh.
For McIntyre, those moments reflect a larger truth.
“I think there’s all kinds of Jews,” he said. “People have this standard idea of what a Jew is, but there are all kinds.”
His connection to AJU has remained strong. Now serving as a cantor on the clergy team at Congregation Etz Chayim, in Winnipeg, he has even taught the Miller Intro to Judaism curriculum at his synagogue, returning to the same notes he once filled with questions as a student.
“It’s the gift that keeps on giving,” he said. “I’m very grateful to AJU and the faculty.”
For McIntyre, a single class didn’t just answer theological questions—it opened the door to an entirely new identity, vocation and community.
What began with curiosity ended with a calling.