Kate Miller-Heidke – Telegram

The debut EP is finally here! ‘Telegram’ was recorded in February 2004 and features seven of Kate’s best songs. It also showcases the talents of her band (Chris Pickering on drums, Keir Nuttall on guitar and Scott Saunders on bass), as well as some brilliant guest artists (including Jamie Clarke, Yanto Browning, Charles Brooks and Kristin Berardi).
‘Telegram’ was released in mid-April 2004, and by the end of April, Kate had already sold out of her first pressing. The cd has received a wonderful response and is now available on-line for the first time.

Kate Miller-Heidke – Telegram
‘…a sensational performance by Kate Miller-Heidke. Not only does she have one of the most beautiful, versatile voices imaginable, she’s also confident, assured, spunky and funny. Her pieces range from haunting, sliding melodies to comic opera and her own pop songs. See her now, before she becomes a huge star!’
(live review, Time Off, 17/7/02)

Having recently been featured in the wildly successful season of Women in Voice 13 at the QPAC Playhouse, Kate is now focusing on writing and performing her original music. The Kate Miller-Heidke band features brilliant musicians – Scott Saunders on bass and Keir Nuttall on guitar (both from Transport) and Chris Pickering on drums (The Boat People and The Horse You Rode In On). They made their debut in 2003 to a sold-out crowd at the Spiegeltent as part of the Biennial Festival of Music. They went on to receive a wonderful response at the Woodford Folk Festival 2003/2004 and at the Brisbane Cabaret Festival 2004.

Kate has recently released her debut solo EP Telegram, which features herself and her band. They sold like hotcakes during WIV 13, and it is already time for another pressing. You can purchase your own copy of Telegram at the shop page of this site.

Kate is classically-trained, and also has a high profile as a opera singer. Last year she completed her Bachelor of Music in Classical Voice degree at the Queensland Conservatorium, studying on a full scholarship.

She has won many awards, including:
Donald Penman prize (2001)
Elizabeth Muir prize (2000)
Linda Edith Allen memorial prize (2002)
Horace Keats award (2003)
Brisbane Eisteddfod Champion (1998)

In 2004 she is a Developing Artist with Opera Queensland and will perform in all their operas and oratorios, including understudying the roles of Oscar and Norina in Verdi’s A Masked Ball and Donizetti’s Don Pasquale respectively. In August, she will be the featured soloist in Last Night of the Proms with the Queensland Orchestra.

Kate’s recent professional opera credits include:
Orpheus in the Underworld (Offenbach)
Going into Shadows (Schultz)
The Pilgrim’s Progress (Britten)
The role of Venus in Venus and Adonis (Blow)
Sweeney Todd (Sondheim)
Don Pasquale (Donizetti)

In 2002 and 2003 Kate starred opposite Todd McKenney and Tom Burlinson with the Queensland Orchestra in QPAC’s Spirit of Christmas concerts, broadcast nationally on the ABC.

Kate has also made a name for herself in the cabaret scene. She has been featured in many professional shows:
The Limelight Revue (2002) at the Judith Wright Centre
Women in Voice 11 (2002) at the QPAC Playhouse.
Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris (2003) at the Brisbane Powerhouse
A-Z of Cabaret (2003) at Brisbane City Hall
Women in Voice 13 (2004) at the QPAC Playhouse
Kate Miller-Heidke (2004) at the Brisbane Powerhouse for the Cabaret Festival

Kate had the honour of being crowned Queen of the Woodford Folk Festival in 2002/2003, where she performed her own composition while rising 30 metres in a scissor-lift. She has also been known to incorporate abseiling into her performances.