THE STORY OF I CANTANTI

I Cantanti (50 mixed voices) and Le Donne (32 women’s voices) are chamber choirs based in Northfield. The organization was founded by Wayne Kivell in 1988, and began with just the mixed voice chamber choir. Over the years, this choir has grown to 36 voices. Because of the interest of more women than could be accommodated in the mixed choir, the women’s choir, Le Donne, began in 2005. Almost all of the sopranos and altos in the mixed choir also sing in the women’s ensemble. In order to maintain quality and balance, membership in both choirs is through audition. Including the current 50 singers, over 200 adults have sung with one or both of the ensembles. 

The purpose of I Cantanti Chamber Choirs is to provide high quality and authentic performances of choral music of all styles from Renaissance to Modern. Our goal is to provide a professional experience in an amateur setting for talented singers in the Northfield area. In addition to residents of Northfield, singers from Cannon Falls, Faribault, Dennison, New Market, Rosemount, Kenyon, St. Paul and Lonsdale, are currently singing, or have performed with the ensembles.
Since the beginning, I Cantanti has prepared two or three concert programs per year, meeting from September through April. Though focusing primarily on classical choral literature, the ensembles have also presented concerts of folk, Broadway, opera, and jazz.
I Cantanti has teamed with other vocal and instrumental ensembles in concert: String Fever (bluegrass band), Carleton College Choir, Minnesota Valley Men’s Chorale, Nova Cantabile, Northfield High School Choir, Nova Cantabile, the Edina Chorale, several local church choirs, and the Cannon Valley Regional Orchestra.
The I Cantanti Chamber Choirs have built up a faithful audience over the years. The audiences continue to grow and to support the choirs with their donations. Concerts have also been given in the communities of Owatonna, Faribault, New Prague, Eagan, Golden Valley and Cannon Falls. In 2004, I Cantanti toured Italy as a result of an invitation to be a part of a festival of choirs from around Europe. I Cantanti was the only American choir invited.
In addition, both I Cantanti (1996) and Le Donne (2005 and 2012) have been invited to appear at state conferences of the American Choral Directors Association of Minnesota. And this year the ensembles have also been heard on Minnesota Public Radio, as well as local stations KDHL (Faribault) and KYMN (Northfield).