Elisabeth Lutyens (1906–1983)

Elisabeth Lutyens was one of five children of the architect Sir Edwin Lutyens and his wife Lady Emily Lytton. She studied at the École Normale de Musique in Paris before accompanying her mother to India with her hero Jidda Krishnamurti. On her return to England, Elisabeth studied at the Royal College of Music. In 1933, she married Ian Herbert Campbell Glennie, a baritone singer, and had three children, but the marriage was not happy. She left her husband for Edward Clark, a conductor and BBC producer, whom she married in 1942. To supplement her income while composing concert works such as her Chamber Concerto No. 1 (1939) and the cantata Amore (1957), Elisabeth began writing for television and the movies. She became particularly known for the scores for such horror films and thrillers as The Bermuda Affair (1956), Never Take Sweets from a Stranger (1960), Don’t Bother to Knock (1961), Theatre of Death (1966) and The Terronauts (1967). Elisabeth Lutyens composed the ballet The Birthday of the Infanta (1932), the chamber opera The Pit (1947), Vision of Youth (1970) and Echoi (1979). In recognition of her contribution to music, Elisabeth Lutyens was appointed Commander of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II in 1969. She published her autobiography, A Goldfish Bowl, in 1972.