Artistic Team
Axel Theimer - Founder and Artistic Director Emeritus
Kantorei’s founder was born in St. Johann in Tirol, Austria, where music has been part of his life from the very beginning.
Dr. Theimer was a member of the Vienna Choir Boys from age seven until voice change. He received much of his training in Vienna and completed his studies at the University of Minnesota with a MFA in Choral Conducting and a DMA in Vocal Performance.
Dr. Theimer was the Director of Choral Activities at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University for 52 years. Additionally, Dr. Theimer is founder and music director of Amadeus Chamber Symphony, a chamber orchestra for Central Minnesota musicians and audiences and is music director of the National Catholic Youth Choir. He is on the faculty, and is currently Executive Director of The VoiceCare Network. In 2001, he received the ACDA-MN Choir Director of the Year Award and, in 2004, he was inducted to the Minnesota Music Educators Association’s MMEA Hall of Fame. He is the 2011 recipient of the ACDA-MN F. Melius Christiansen Lifetime Achievement Award.