Doreen Carwithen (1922-2003)

Marking the centenary of her birth, Donald Macleod delves in to the little known world of 20th century British composer Doreen Carwithen.

Doreen Carwithen is one of only a handful of female British composers who worked in the film industry in the 1940s and 1950s. Dramas, mysteries, horror flicks, documentaries, the thirty plus films she scored form a substantial part of her musical legacy.

An award winning student, Carwithen first came to critical attention in the concert hall, with the catchily titled ODTAA, One damn thing after another, in 1947. Predictably, newspaper headlines made much of her gender and her youth. She was just 24. It seemed as if a bright future lay ahead, yet, at the beginning of the 1960s Carwithen would stop writing music, a situation which perhaps in part explains why her music dropped off the radar for many years. One hundred years since her birth, Donald Macleod brings to light the little-known yet fascinating story of this 20th century British composer.

This week Donald Macleod is joined in conversation by Leah Broad, whose new biography of Carwithen is due out next year. They chart Carwithen’s career from the age of five, when she began piano and violin under the guidance of her musical mother, to the moment when she ceased to compose.

Music Featured:

Men of Sherwood Forest (excerpt), arr Philip Lane Serenade for tenor and piano String Quartet No 1 Concerto for piano and strings Piano sonatina Violin sonata Bishop Rock String Quartet No 1 (2nd mvt) Four Piano Preludes Suffolk suite (1st mvt) Cello sonatina String Quartet No 2 Mantrap Suites, arr Philip Lane Three Cases of Murder, arr Philip Lane East Anglian Holiday, arr Philip Lane Boys in Brown Suite, arr Philip Lane

Presented by Donald Macleod Produced by Johannah Smith