I have known Penny since 1975, when she and my brother Marshall were Tanglewood fellows. You can see them [click for a larger photo] sharing a stand on the far right of the above picture. Penny has long blond hair, which obscures much of my brother's face, but I could recognize both of them in this photo from the Boston Symphony Orchestra's archives.
Norman Lebrecht, always wanting to be the first to report on the death of any principal violist, made a post that didn't have the whole story.
You can read an accurate report here. An article in The Strad has more links.
