Amare Cantare Welcomes Dr. Kyle Nielsen

Amare Cantare is delighted to welcome our new Music Director, Dr. Kyle Nielsen, who will take up the conducting baton from Catherine (Kitty) Beller-McKenna in July 2025. Kitty is retiring after 25 seasons of programming innovative concerts presenting a wide range of musical styles and cultures. We will miss Kitty and wish her a happy and well-deserved retirement!

Kyle is the Director of the Osher School of Music and Head of Choral Activities at the University of Southern Maine, where he oversees the School of Music as well as leads the choral ensembles and Master of Music in Choral Conducting coursework. Before this appointment, he was Director of Choral Activities at Southern Virginia University, where he conducted the Chamber Singers and Men’s Chorus, led the Choral Studies concentration, taught applied voice, and oversaw the Choral Studies internship. The choirs at Southern Virginia received several performance invitations under his direction, most notably the Chamber Singers’ appearance as the only collegiate choir at the 2022 VMEA Professional Development Conference.

Also in demand as a guest clinician and conductor, recent appearances include the 2025 Maine Music Educators’ Association Professional Development conference, Maine ACDA adjudicated festival, 2025 Maine ACDA Fall Festival, 2024 VCDA District V Honor Choir, and Utah Music Educators’ Association State Choir Festival. Additionally, Kyle was one of six representatives of the United States selected by the ACDA for their International Conductor Exchange Program with Israel.

Previous professional appointments include Artistic Administrator for the Santa Fe Desert Chorale, a project-based professional choir based in Santa Fe, NM; conducting fellow with the Grammy-nominated professional choir Seraphic Fire; and Associate Conductor of the Master Chorale of South Florida. He is also the Founder and Artistic Director of The Origin Initiative, a professional ensemble singing training program which prepares pre-professional vocal artists for contemporary careers through diverse performance, personalized mentorship, and skill development.