About Iona Brown
Iona Brown, OBE, (7 January 1941 – 5 June 2004) was a British violinist and conductor. == Early life and education == Elizabeth Iona Brown was born in Salisbury and was educated at Cranborne Chase School, Dorset. Her parents, Antony and Fiona, were both musicians. Her brother Timothy has been principal horn of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, her other brother Ian is a pianist and her sister Sally plays viola in the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra. == Career == From 1963 to 1966, Brown played violin in the Philharmonia Orchestra. In 1964, she joined the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, working her way up through the ranks to become leader, solo violinist and director in 1974. She formally left the Academy in 1980, but continued to work with them for the rest of her life. In 1981, she was appointed artistic director of the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra. King Olav V of Norway later awarded her the accolade Knight of First Class Order of Merit for her success with the NCO. She directed the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra from 1987 to 1992. She was dismissed as conductor by Executive Director Deborah Rutter because of an inability to commit to more than six weeks per season with the orchestra due to her other posts, a decision she protested.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.