Catherine Ribes completed her violin studies at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse in Lyon with highest honors and completed her training at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz.
From 2008 to 2014, Ribes was a member of the second violins of the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, serving as co-principal in the 2011-12 season. Since 2014, she has had various engagements as both principal second violin and principal viola, working with orchestras such as the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra and the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and as a chamber musician.
Between 2016 and 2025, she was principal second violinist of the Düsseldorf Symphony Orchestra. From 2020 to 2023, alongside her position in Düsseldorf, she was principal viola of the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, where she also performed as a soloist. Ribes joined the viola section of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in November, 2025.