Before becoming known as “Carolers of Note KC” or “Madrigalia Bar Nonne”, this group consisted of four friends who had met each other through performances in the Chelsea Community Choir. These four were Marilyn Miller, Marsha Oyer, Gary Miller, and Robert Potter.
The idea to perform live madrigal music started in 1977 which was the second year of the Festival. That summer, the Festival’s entertainment director mentioned to Madrigalia’s founding members that they should consider performing time-period Renaissance madrigals in Renaissance costumes at the Festival. Thus, the group was started and performed each day for the Festival in 1977 under the name “Renaissance Madrigal Singers”. Since then, the group has performed each year at the Kansas City Renaissance Festival.
The group was originally a sole proprietorship run by Marilyn Miller. The “ownership” of the group changed hands to Don and Sue Hires in 1987, and then to Jerry Lewis in 1989 where it continued as a sole proprietorship until December 31, 1994. On December 20, 1994, Lisa Sheperd applied for and received a Federal Employer Identification Number in order for the group to operate as a partnership entity. The undistributed funds in Jerry Lewis’ sole proprietorship account were subsequently transferred to a new partnership account.
Currently, Madrigalia Bar Nonne is composed of an ensemble of performers from around the Kansas City area, usually performing/entertaining in small groups of four or five. The group has performed for madrigal dinners, restaurants, museums, colleges, retailers, and for a variety of special occasions. It has also performed live on KXTR, the classical radio station, and for the Morning Show on Channel 5. Madrigalia Bar Nonne also performs at Christmas under the name “Carolers of Note”. Both groups entertain as stage and strolling performers.
Photographs of the ensemble have been published in newspapers as far away as St. Louis. UPROOTS, a national newsletter for Renaissance Festivals, in a review of Madrigalia’s role as the madrigal singers in residence at the Kansas City Renaissance Festival said
“Madrigalia Bar Nonne presents a beautiful, delicate interweaving of voices”.
Madrigalia Bar Nonne/Carolers of Note has costume styles to suit various occasions, including Renaissance and Olde English. The Renaissance costumes are an interpretation of clothing that could have been worn during the early 1500s by various lords and ladies of European descent. These include colorful dresses with ornate detailing for the women and an assortment of outfitting for the men. The Olde English costumes represent the English style of dress during the latter half of the 19th Century (ca. 1890s). These costumes include festive top hats and formal suits for the men and floor length dresses for the women.