(nephew) Lemuel McPherson Christian MBE (1913–2000)[2] was a Dominican music educator and composer, who wrote the music for "Isle of Beauty, Isle of Splendour", the national anthem of the Commonwealth of Dominica, the words being written by Wilfred Oscar Morgan Pond (1912–1985).
[1] Following in the footsteps of his father, a skilled guitarist who in the 1930s founded a family orchestra, L. M. Christian in 1944 opened the Christian Musical Class and Commercial School, the first music school in the Eastern Caribbean,[1][5] which he ran in conjunction with typing classes.
[6] He was appointed a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 1966 Queen's Birthday Honours for services to music education in Dominica.
[7] Alongside lyrics by Wilfred Oscar Morgan Pond (1912–1985),[8] Christian's music for "Isle of Beauty, Isle of Splendour" was adopted as the national anthem in 1967 when Dominica achieved statehood status within the British Commonwealth, being retained upon the country's independence in 1978.
[11] Christian passed on his love of music to his children, all of whom are professional musicians including his daughters Peganini, Palestrina, and Verdi,[5] and his sons Handel and Purcell.