Doreen Mary Carwithen (1922-2003)
Doreen Mary Carwithen (a.k.a. Mary Alwen) was born in Haddenham, Buckinghamshire on November 15, 1922. As a child she had her first music lessons from her mother, a music teacher, starting both piano and violin with her at age 4. In 1941 she entered the Royal Academy of Music and played the cello in a string quartet and with orchestras. At age 16 she began composing by setting Wordsworth’s "Daffodils" to music for voice and piano. At the Royal Academy she entered the harmony class of William Alwyn who began to teach her composition (and who would one day become her husband). Her overture ODTAA (One Damn Thing After Another) was premiered in Covent Garden by Adrian Boult in 1947. The same year she was selected by the Royal Academy to train as a composer of film music. She wrote scores for over 30 films, including Harvest from the Wilderness (1948), Boys in Brown (1949), Mantrap (1953), Three Cases of Murder (1953), East Anglian Holiday (1954) and Break in the Circle (1955). In 1961 she married William Alwyn, dropped the name Doreen Carwithen and became Mary Alwyn. (Mary was her middle name, and she hated Doreen). She was devoted to her husband and acted as his secretary and amanuensis. After he died in 1985, she resumed interest in her own music. In 1999 a stroke left her partially paralysed and she died in Forncett St Peter, Norwich, in 2003.COMPOSITIONS Carwithen Links ~ ~ ~ Works by Genre
Serenade, voice and piano (????) [text: Sir Philip Sidney]
Noon, voice and piano (????) [text: Walter de la Mare]
Echo (Seven sweet notes), voice and piano (????) [text: Walter de la Mare]
The ride-by-nights, voice and piano (????) [text: Walter de la Mare]
Clear had the day been from the dawn, voice and piano (????) [text: Michael Drayton]
Slow spring, voice and piano (????) [text: Katherine Tynan]
Echo (Who called? I said), voice and piano (????) [text: Walter de la Mare]
Toccata, piano (1945)
String Quartet No. 1 (1945) [winner of A.J. Clements Prize, 1948]
ODTAA (One Damn Thing After Another), overture, orchestra (1945-46; fp. 1947) [after the novel by John Masefield]
This Modern Age, documentary short segments (1946)
- The British - Are They Artistic?
- Harvest from the Wilderness
- Europe's Fisheries in Danger
- Education for Living
- Gambling
- India and Pakistan
- Report on Hong Kong
- The Future of One Million Africans
To the Public Danger, short film score (1947; released 1948)
Broken Journey, film score (1948) [composer of additional music; uncredited]
Dulcimer Street, film score (1948) [composer of additional music; uncredited]
Concerto for Piano and Strings (1948)
Christopher Columbus, film score (1949) [composer of additional music; uncredited]
The Dim Little Island, short film score (1949) [music assistant; uncredited]
Boys in Brown, film score (1949)
Bernard Miles on Gun Dogs, documentary film score (1949)
Four Preludes, piano (c. 1950)
Piano Sonatina (1951)
The Stranger Left No Card, short film score (1952) ["orchestrator," employing the music of Hugo Alfvén]
Mantrap (U.S.: Man in Hiding), film score (1952) [1953]
Travel Royal, short documentary film score (1952) [produced by B.O.A.C. Airlines to promote British travel]
Bishop Rock, overture, orchestra (1952)
String Quartet No. 2 (1950) [winner of Cobbett Award, 1952]
Heights of Danger, film score (1953)
The Tower, film score (1953)
Teeth of the Wind, documentary film score (1953)
Elizabeth Is Queen, documentary film score (1953) [official film of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II]
Five Diversions, wind quintet (1953)
The Way of a Ship, film score (1953) [1954]
The Men of Sherwood Forest, film score (1954)
East Anglian Holiday, short film score (1954)
Three Cases of Murder, film score (1955)
Break in the Circle, film score (1955)
On the Twelfth Day... , film score (1955)
I Went to Britain, film score (1955)
Six Little Pieces, 2 sets, cello and piano (1956) [for young players]
Sonata for Violin and Piano (c.1960)
Suffolk Suite, orchestra (1964)
String Quartet No. 3 (unfinished)
WORKS BY GENRE Carwithen Links ~ top of page ~
Orchestra
ODTAA (One Damn Thing After Another), overture, orchestra (1945-46; fp. 1947) [after the novel by John Masefield]
Bishop Rock, overture, orchestra (1952)
Suffolk Suite, orchestra (1964)
Soloist(s) w/Orchestra
Concerto for Piano and Strings (1948)
Chamber
String Quartet No. 1 (1945) [winner of A.J. Clements Prize, 1948]
String Quartet No. 2 (1950) [winner of Cobbett Award, 1952]
Five Diversions, wind quintet (1953)
String Quartet No. 3 (unfinished)
Instrument and Piano
Six Little Pieces, 2 sets, cello and piano (1956) [for young players]
-
-
- Day Dreams
- Rest in the Shade
- March
- Homeward Bound
Sonata for Violin and Piano (c.1960)
Piano
Toccata, piano (1945)
Piano Sonatina (1951)
Four Preludes, piano (c. 1950)
Vocal
Serenade, voice and piano (????) [text: Sir Philip Sidney]
Noon, voice and piano (????) [text: Walter de la Mare]
Echo (Seven sweet notes), voice and piano (????) [text: Walter de la Mare]
The ride-by-nights, voice and piano (????) [text: Walter de la Mare]
Clear had the day been from the dawn, voice and piano (????) [text: Michael Drayton]
Slow spring, voice and piano (????) [text: Katherine Tynan]
Echo (Who called? I said), voice and piano (????) [text: Walter de la Mare]
Film
This Modern Age, documentary short segments (1946)
- The British - Are They Artistic?
- Harvest from the Wilderness
- Europe's Fisheries in Danger
- Education for Living
- Gambling
- India and Pakistan
- Report on Hong Kong
- The Future of One Million Africans
To the Public Danger, short film score (1947; released 1948)
Broken Journey, film score (1948) [composer of additional music; uncredited]
Dulcimer Street, film score (1948) [composer of additional music; uncredited]
Christopher Columbus, film score (1949) [composer of additional music; uncredited]
The Dim Little Island, short film score (1949) [music assistant; uncredited]
Boys in Brown, film score (1949)
Bernard Miles on Gun Dogs, documentary film score (1949)
The Stranger Left No Card, short film score (1952) ["orchestrator," employing the music of Hugo Alfvén]
Mantrap (U.S.: Man in Hiding), film score (1952) [1953]
Travel Royal, short documentary film score (1952) [produced by B.O.A.C. Airlines to promote British travel]
Heights of Danger, film score (1953)
The Tower, film score (1953)
Teeth of the Wind, documentary film score (1953)
Elizabeth Is Queen, documentary film score (1953) [official film of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II]
The Way of a Ship, film score (1953) [1954]
The Men of Sherwood Forest, film score (1954)
East Anglian Holiday, short film score (1954)
Three Cases of Murder, film score (1955)
Break in the Circle, film score (1955)
On the Twelfth Day... , film score (1955)
I Went to Britain, film score (1955)
CARWITHEN LINKS Works by Genre ~ top of page ~
Composer's website [none at the moment] . . . inquire about Doreen Carwithen: here
Carwithen @ Wikipedia
Carwithen @ British Film Institute
Carwithen @ Cambridge University (Papers and manuscripts of Doreen Carwithen and William Alwyn)
Carwithen @ CITWF (Complete Index to World Film)
Carwithen @ Classical Archives
Carwithen @ Goodmusic
Carwithen @ IMDb (Internet Movie Database)
Carwithen @ The Independent (obituary)
Carwithen @ Magical Journey
Carwithen @ Movie Music International
Carwithen @ Music Tales
Carwithen @ Musicalics
Carwithen @ Musicb3
Carwithen @ MusicWeb International also here
Carwithen @ The Norton/Grove Dictionary of Women Composers
Carwithen @ SOMM Recordings
Carwithen @ SoundtrackCollector
Carwithen @ SQblog
Carwithen @ Variety (obituary)
Carwithen @ Worldcat
Publisher
Carwithen @
Carwithen @ British Music Collection
Carwithen @ Goodmusic
Streaming Audio
Carwithen @ Interlude.hk
Recordings
Carwithen @ ArkivMusic
Carwithen @ Discogs
Carwithen @ Music Web International
Video
Carwithen @ YouTube
Carwithen @ Google Video
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
HOME ABOUT RESOURCES COMPOSERS PERFORMANCES 20/21 ENSEMBLE CONTACT US
HOME ABOUT RESOURCES COMPOSERS PERFORMANCES 20/21 ENSEMBLE CONTACT US