Lauris Elms was born in Springvale, Victoria, the elder daughter of Harry Britton Elms and Jean and trained with Katherine Wielaert in Melbourne.
11 Facts About Lauris Elms
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Lauris Elms first sang with the National Theatre Opera Company in 1952 in The Consul.
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Lauris Elms had further study in Paris with Dominique Modesti.
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Lauris Elms made her Royal Opera, Covent Garden debut in 1957 as Ulrica in Verdi's Un ballo in maschera, and was principal contralto at Covent Garden from 1957 to 1959.
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Lauris Elms appeared there in Elektra, Les Troyens, The Tales of Hoffmann, Dialogues of the Carmelites, Handel's Samson, Die Walkure, Lucia di Lammermoor, and Rigoletto.
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Lauris Elms appeared as Mrs Sedley in Benjamin Britten's Peter Grimes, and in the Decca recording conducted by the composer.
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Lauris Elms toured Israel in 1958 for the 10th anniversary of the State of Israel, appearing with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, in nine performances of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony conducted by Rafael Kubelik.
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Lauris Elms performed with Marilyn Richardson in Ian Cugley's The Six Days of Creation, which was written for their voices.
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In 1987, Lauris Elms commissioned a song cycle from composer Derek Strachan.
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Lauris Elms produced Rose of the Bay, a cycle of nine songs for mezzo-soprano, clarinet and piano.
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Lauris Elms was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1974, awarded the Queen's Jubilee Medal in 1977, and appointed a Member of the Order of Australia.