Joan Hammond

Born to English emigrant parents in New Zealand, Joan Hammond's family moved to Sydney, Australia, soon after her birth and in school there began to study singing as well as violin and piano. She was also an excellent athlete and won the New South Wales golf championship several times. At the beginning, her primary musical interest lay in the violin, but an injury to her left arm forced her to concentrate on her singing. In 1932, Hammond was among the young artists chosen to sing with the Williamson Imperial Grand Opera Company which brought such great artists as Pagliughi, Ca...