Opera Singer, Born 1912, Sydney, NSW, Died 1996
One of Australia's great opera stars of the two decades following World War Two, Joan Hammond established a wide international following as a soprano on stage and as a recording artist. In her early years, she played violin with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and earned an income as a freelance journalist. Eventually she became recognised as a great soprano talent after training in Vienna, and by 1946 was singing all the major soprano roles in Europe, the United States and Australia.