About

Olivia Baker

—— MM, DMA

Dr. Olivia Baker is a violinist and violist teaching and performing in the Willamette Valley. An Oregon native, Olivia Baker began playing the violin at age nine. Upon repeatedly listening to Itzhak Perlman’s Greatest Hits albums (pilfered from her parents), she decided she wanted to be a professional violinist.

She studied with Fritz Gearhart at the University of Oregon School of Music and graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Music degree in Violin Performance.

She went on to obtain her Master of Music degree at Boise State University in 2016 where she studied with Craig Purdy as a Graduate Quartet scholar.

Olivia graduated with her DMA in 2020 from the University of Alabama where she studied with Jenny Gregoire and performed with the Capstone String Quartet.

Olivia concertized with the Capstone Quartet in Ireland, and at the Casalmaggiore International Music Festival in Italy. The Capstone quartet also performed as the quartet in residence at the Bassi Brugnatelli International Conducting and Singing Symposium in Robbiate, Italy.

Olivia has performed with various orchestras including the Boise Philharmonic, the Tuscaloosa Symphony, the North Mississippi Symphony and the Starkville Symphony.

Olivia is the violin and viola instructor at Linn-Benton Community College and also maintains a private studio in Yamhill County. She enjoys giving recitals and collaborating with other local musicians in the Portland metro area.