Madeleine Dring: Lady Composer is a biography that examines the British composer's life and music, supported by extensive archival research and
primary sources. With London at its center, the story of Dring’s life follows
her through formal training in the Junior Department of the Royal College of
Music, the horrors of World War II, the lively atmosphere of revues in the West
End, the lack of recognition during her final years, and her premature death
from a brain aneurysm at the age of fifty-three. Her contributions to the
diverse musical worlds of popular song, serious music, radio, and television
are surveyed, with attention to the qualities that characterize her distinctive
musical style. The narrative arc is compelling: education as a classical
composer, success on the popular stage, return to “serious” composition, and
death when her art was at the highest level. An underlying theme is the
encouragement and success Dring experienced in a profession that is typically
the domain of men. Her achievement as a composer is due to the excellence of
her music, which is increasingly being appreciated for its imagination and sophistication,
as evidenced by numerous performances and recordings.