Kathleen Parlow (September 20, 1890 – August 19, 1963) was a violinist known for her outstanding technique, which earned her the nickname "The lady of the golden bow".

To become a top professional violinist and to begin a concert career, Parlow followed the normal route for North Americans and moved to Europe.

Minnie and Kathleen Parlow had arrived in London with $300 raised by their church in San Francisco, which was not sufficient to get them to St. Petersburg, where Auer was a professor.

To pay the cost of travel, the Parlows obtained a loan from Lord Strathcona, the Canadian High Commissioner.

Soon after, Kathleen Parlow made her professional debut in Berlin,[1] and then began a tour of Germany, the Netherlands and Norway.

Returning to her birthplace of western Canada, Parlow gave performances in Calgary, Regina, Moose Jaw, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Vancouver and Victoria.

Her performances were lauded by provincial premiers, and both mother and daughter Parlow were pleased by her positive reception in western Canada.

She remained there until World War II, when she returned to Canada and gave a series of lecture-recitals at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto.

[7] The quartet also included Isaac Mamott on cello, Samuel Hersenhoren as second violin and violist John Dembeck.

As Parlow's career began to decline, her financial situation became progressively worse, and Godfrey Ridout and other friends of hers established a fund to support her.

[7] In October 1959, she was appointed head of the College of Music of the University of Western Ontario, which provided much needed income.

She died on August 19, 1963, and her will set up the Kathleen Parlow Scholarship for stringed instrument players at the University of Toronto, with the money from her estate and $40,000[8] from the sale of her violin.

[9] Canadian filmmaker Sofia Bohdanowicz has made two films, Veslemøy's Song and Measures for a Funeral, about a young contemporary musicology student researching Parlow's life and career.

[10] The film features Spanish violinist María Dueñas, who plays Halvorsen's Violin Concerto, which was dedicated to Parlow.