Olivia Reyes graduated in 2021 with a bachelor of music degree in bass performance from the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University, where she studied with Jon McCullough-Benner, principal bass of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra.
Originally from Milwaukee, she was a member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago from 2021 until 2024, where she performed as a section and rotating principal bass. Reyes has also been principal bass of the National Repertory Orchestra in Breckenridge, Colorado; substitute principal bass for the Opera Festival of Chicago; and substitute bass with the Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra and Camerata Chicago.
Reyes also served as a mentor for the Negaunee Music Institute with the CSO’s ongoing partnership with Chicago Public Schools and a substitute mentor and coach for the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra.
