Newly hired in Fall 2011 as CCA's Artistic Director, Dr. Emilie Sweet Amrein is Assistant Professor of Music at Lake Forest College, where she conducts the Lake Forest College Concert Choir and Women’s Chorus and teaches courses in music history, musicianship, music fundamentals, and first year studies.

A native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, she received her BS in music and Italian from the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, a Masters in music in choral conducting at the University of Arizona and a Doctorate in conducting at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Amrein is the founding director of The Alchemy Project, a Minnesota non-profit organization that promotes community engagement through high-quality interdisciplinary arts events.

She has performed with many of the finest choral ensembles in the country, including the Oregon Bach Festival Chorus, the Tiffany Consort in New York City, Holy Trinity Bach Choir in New York City, the Santa Fe Desert Chorale, VocalEssence in Minneapolis and other groups. She lives in Lake Forest with her husband David, a high school English teacher, and their daughter Ellie, who was born in 2010.