She graduated magna cum lauda from Vassar College, where she studied with Boris Koutzen. Further studies were with Arnold Steinhardt, the first violinist of the Guarneri String Quartet, and chamber music coaching with the Guarneri Quartet in London and New York.

Barbara performs widely throughout the Bay Area, and is a member of the San Francisco Opera Orchestra and concertmaster of the Festival Opera in Walnut Creek. She coordinates concerts and records regularly with the San Francisco Boys Chorus, performing alongside her children.