Ilona Kocsis completed her initial music education in Hungary at the Franz Liszt Music Academy. She went to Switzerland to continue her studies and graduated at the Conservatory of Lucerne in 2002. She participated in several master classes with Aurèle Nicolet, Jean-Pierre Rampal, James Galway and others. She won prices at national and international level, such as the competition organized by the I. und E. Schenk Foundation in Switzerland and performed the Concerto for Flute in D-major by Carl Reinecke with the Aargau Symphonic Orchestra. She won the Edwin Fischer Price as the best soloist of the year in 2002 for her interpretation of the Concerto by J. Ibert with the Lucerne Symphonic Orchestra.

Ilona Kocsis has played in various orchestras including The Royal Scottish National Orchestra. She is also a passionate performer of chamber music and has worked with several chamber music groups in Hungary and in Switzerland, including the Trio Terra (flute, cello and piano). In Scotland she performs regularly with Gusztàv Fenyo (piano) and John Hallam (guitar).