A native of Dallas, Texas, Alexis Shambley moved to Cincinnati in 2014 to pursue her Bachelor of Music at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (c/o 2018). In 2020 she earned her Masters degree in violin performance as a Diversity Fellow with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra under the tutelage of Dr. Won-Bin Yim and Timothy Lees.

Alexis has freelanced with several orchestras and ensembles in the greater Cincinnati area including the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra & Pops, Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, Blue Ash Montgomery Symphony, Queen City Opera and others. Previously, she was also an associate member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago.

Some personal performance highlights for Alexis have been being nominated for a GRAMMY with the National Orchestral Institute Philharmonic on their Naxos American Classics CD in 2018, and performing with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra on their annual Classical Roots concert in 2018 and 2019.

In addition to being an orchestral musician, Alexis is an avid chamber musician. In 2019, she became a founding violinist and the Associate Director of New Downbeat, a new music collective featuring women musicians who perform music written exclusively by living composers. New Downbeat champions women musicians as an act of equity, and performs works written by living composers to foster a more collaborative relationship between composer and performer.

As a woman of color, Alexis committed to diversifying the future of classical music through performing, teaching, and advocating for music education in Black and Latino communities.

In her free time, Alexis enjoys cooking a new recipe every week, going to local parks, and playing games on her Nintendo Switch.