LRAM, DipRAM
Margaret Lamb was born in Exeter, where she learnt the violin with Colin Sauer. She was a member of the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain, and was later awarded a scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music, where she studied the violin, viola, piano and singing. Margaret’s first full-time position was with
English National Opera at the London Coliseum where she subsequently became co-principal viola. After this she became a member of the Philharmonia Orchestra, recording and playing all over the world under conductors such as Sinopoli, Giulini, Barenboim, Maazel, Salonen, Ashkenazy, Gardiner, Harnoncourt, Muti, and Mackerras. She left the Philharmonia in 1995 to take up the post of Head of Strings at St Peter’s School in York.
In York, as well as teaching the violin and viola, playing in the York String Quartet, and conducting student orchestras, Margaret continued to play the viola, free-lancing with orchestras including the Philharmonia, the BBC Philharmonic, Manchester Camerata and Opera North. She has also coached young people in
orchestras such as Yorchestra, IAPS Junior Strings and on NYO open days, and adjudicated the string sections in several music competitions. In 2001 she founded the York Young Soloists: a chamber orchestra based in York which provides concerto opportunities for local young musicians. In 2008 she was the soloist in ‘Harold in Italy’ with the York Symphony Orchestra.
Margaret became an examiner for Trinity College London in 2006, and has travelled throughout the British Isles and India examining.
Margaret now lives in Cornwall, and in her spare time she sings for local operatic societies, entertains at memory cafes, and plays the fiddle in local folk groups.