Katie Targett Adams

Biography

Targett Adams grew up in Scotland and attended St. George's School, Edinburgh where she was Deputy Head of School and is currently a Governor. She learnt the clarsach (the Celtic harp) outwith school and soon became known for her singing and playing. Whilst at St. George's Targett Adams entered the BBC's first ever Junior MasterChef. After leaving St. George's, Targett Adams read Modern and Medieval Languages at Hertford College, Oxford, at the University of Oxford, where she began to combine language and music. Her first performance came in the form of an invitation from the Scottish Tourist Board, Visitscotland, to showcase her talent in Washington D.C. while sitting her finals at Oxford in 2001.

Career

Targett Adams was spotted by the Chinese Cultural Ambassador to London whilst performing at Stirling Castle in 2003 who invited her to sing at the Nanning International Folk Arts Festival in China in 2003 where she played to audiences of 10,000 people. The success of this tour led her to headline at the Shanghai Baoshan Festival the following year plus give her own solo debut concert in Beijing's Forbidden City Concert Hall in 2005. Targett Adams released her first album with Scottish Storyteller, David Campbell, in 2003 and went on to produce her first solo album, Let Me Play Among the Stars, in 2004, produced by New York producer, Shane Koss. Although the sound is generally considered young at times it was picked up by the Scottish record company, River Records, who modified and re-branded the album to create the more successful KT-A. Targett Adams was awarded Music and Culture Icon for Scotland by VisitBritain in 2004.

Targett Adams continued to perform in Scotland, singing at the Opening of the Scottish Parliament building attended by Her Majesty the Queen in 2004 and representing the First Minister of Scotland in many official capacities at home, in the US and in China. A performance which put her on the map was singing at J.K. Rowling's famous launch of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince in Edinburgh Castle in 2006. Targett Adams performed year after year in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and was the first ever performer to have a solo show in Edinburgh Castle for the Edinburgh Festival.

Targett Adams controversially became known as a female artist who would not give in to 'casting couch' methods when she walked out on a management deal with Mel Bush, creator of the violin star, Vanessa-Mae. Targett Adams was joined by other female recording artists in this vision such as the teenage choir group, All Angels, who all felt simply using sex to boost falling record sales was not justifiable.

Targett Adams's continued popularity in China led her to be featured on BBC World's Destination Music with her rock band when she returned to perform in Nanning in 2006. Her last CD ( 2007), Hush hush...features a Chinese song by Tsai Qin. Blending language and song had now become part of her identity. In 2006 Targett Adams's rendition of Scotland the Brave took 2nd place during Scotland's national campaign by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra to vote for the most popular Scottish anthem. The Shipping Forecast, a track devised and written by Targett-Adams and London producer, Kevin Malpass, made Targett Adams a winner of the UK Songwriting Contest 2007. Targett Adams, runner up for Olympic Torch Bearer at the 2008 Summer Olympics, performed for the British athletes and the British Prime Minister, The Rt Honourable Gordon Brown, in Beijing in August 2008.

In 2007 Targett Adams moved to live permanently in Hong Kong becoming the founder of the dance movement, Ceroc, in Asia. Targett Adams runs the Ceroc Asia brand in Hong Kong and Singapore. Whilst in Hong Kong Targett Adams wrote the song《新的未来 or Day by Day to help raise money and awareness for the survivors of the devastating Sichuan earthquake in 2008. Sponsored by Heng An Standard Life the song was launched at the British Ambassador's Residence in Beijing and then toured Sichuan. All proceeds were donated to purchasing musical instruments for the school children at the epicentre of the earthquake in Wenchuan.

Targett Adams critical acclaim in Asia led her to perform in China in 2009 for the Scottish First Minister, Alex Salmond and in 2010 for both Alex Salmond and the Irish President Mary McAleese on their respective official ministerial visits. Targett Adams also represented Celtic culture at the Irish Pavilion of the Shanghai Expo with a series of recitals. In 2011 Targett Adams gave a 2nd solo concert at the Forbidden City Concert Hall in Beijing accompanied by Irish band Ciorras which led to widespread coverage in the Chinese press. She also became the only Western performer at the Phoenix Television 15 Year Anniversary Celebrations in the Great Hall of the Forbidden City in Beijing.

Targett Adams performed the fourth movement, I'll make music, of 'Gloria' by Karl Jenkins with the ISCMS festival orchestra in the Beijing Forbidden City Concert Hall on 18 February 2012. Due to technical difficulties during her performance, she was invited to repeat the song in the second half of the concert. Targett-Adams performed as the singer soloist in 'Celtic Connections', accompanied by the Hong Kong Chamber Orchestra, at Beijing's Forbidden City Concert Hall on 3 March 2012, a concert organized by the HKSAR government and Irish Embassy. As a leading light in Celtic Culture in the East Targett Adams continues to perform across Asia.

Targett Adams' wrote and released 'Black Eclipse' in 2013 representing a change of musical direction with an electronic house music single for DJ John David, produced by Fant'ohm Records.

In 2013 Katie released the new EP 'A World of Music' to accompany her solo concert on 2 March in the Shanghai Oriental Arts Centre's 1900 seater Concert Hall where she performed to a full house.

Musical style

Targett Adams is seen to be modernising the image of the clarsach by singing a variety of musical styles from pop to jazz, Celtic to opera.

Personal life

Targett Adams continues to live in Hong Kong as a modern-day minstrel promoting the image of the Celtic harp and Celtic culture as a modern and contemporary instrument. She has been dubbed the 'Celtic Princess'. Targett Adams plays a Pilgrim Harp and the Harpsicle harp. Targett-Adams also started the brand Ceroc dancing in Asia and currently has 3 branches in Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore.

Albums

Music videos

Scotland the Brave (2004)
Just Like Your Tenderness ( 2006) Xin de Wei Lai (2009) Moons Represents My Heart (2010)