Amber Youell, alto, is a PhD candidate in Historical Musicology at Columbia University. Her dissertation deals with Italian opera and court culture in Maria Theresia's Vienna. She has also published papers on 17th-century stage music, music in the French ancien regime, and performance theory.

In 2009, Ms. Youell created a performance score for the 1760 opera Alcide al bivio (Hasse/Metastasio), and collaborated in the production the modern premiere. She was formerly the director of Columbia's Collegium Musicum, an early music ensemble. She received a BMus from the University of Utah in 2004, studying Music History and Vocal Performance. She is currently adjunct faculty at Manhattan College. Ms. Youell also studied piano with Marguerite Smith and Carol Waletzko. Originally from Simsbury, Connecticut, she now lives in Manhattan.