Principal clarinettist Olivier Patey was born in the French city of Lille and studied at the conservatories in Lille and Rueil-Malmaison, continuing his studies with Michel Arrignon at the Paris Conservatory. After graduating with the highest honours in 2005, he enrolled on the two-year cycle de perfectionnement programme there.
Patey has regularly performed in the orchestra of the Opéra de Paris and with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France. He is a prizewinner of the ARD International Music Competition and the Carl Nielsen International Music Competition.
As a soloist, he has worked with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Munich Kammerorchester and the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra.
Between 2005 and 2013, Olivier Patey played in the Mahler Chamber Orchestra in Berlin, where he was appointed principal in 2009. He has also been a member of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra and (from 2012 to 2013) principal clarinetist of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra. In August 2013 he joined the Concertgebouworkest..
Before joining the Concertgebouworkest, Patey had served as principal clarinettist of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra for one year. Patey is also active as a chamber musician. He is involved in the Arties Festival in Mumbai as a co-founder of the Arties Records label.
On his initiative, a first set of boxwood clarinets were built for him by Schwenk & Seggelke in Germany. This set of clarinets was provided to him on loan through the Foundation Concertgebouworkest with the support of private donors. When this proved to be a success, similar clarinets of this striking light-colored wood were built by this builder for the other clarinettists of the orchestra. Olivier also plays clarinets from Buffet Crampon from Paris.