Born in 1975, Michael Sponseller began studying the harpsichord at the age of thirteen.  His teachers have included distinguished harpsichordist Lisa Goode Crawford (Oberlin Conservatory of Music), Janina Ceaser (Cleveland Institute of Music), and Webb Wiggins (Peabody Conservatory of Music).  Mr. Sponseller has also studied at the Royal Conservatory of Music in The Hague , The Netherlands, and he has performed throughout the U.S. and abroad as both soloist and chamber musician.  He has appeared at the Smithsonian Institution, the American Musicological Society, Berliner Tage für Alte Musik, and the Berkeley, Boston and Edinburgh Festivals, and has performed with the American Bach Soloists, Apollo's Fire (The Cleveland Baroque Orchestra), the Mark Morris Dance Company, and the Berkeley Symphony.  Mr. Sponseller has won numerous prizes, including first prize at the First of America Young Artist Competition and first prize in the American Bach Soloists International Harpsichord Competition.  In addition, he was a prizewinner at the prestigious International Harpsichord Competition in Bruges , Belgium and at the Concours International de Clavecin in Montréal , Canada.  His interest in 17^th and 18^th century opera led to a collaboration with stage director Lydia Steier on Purcell's Dido and Aeneas, in which he made his conducting debut in 2000.  In addition, he was appointed Teacher of Harpsichord at the Baldwin-Wallace Conservatory of Music and apprenticed with harpsichord builder Earl Russell for several years.  Mr. Sponseller has participated in recordings for Vanguard Classics and Eclectra.  He will serve as associate musical director for Le Pouvoir de l’Amour.