An orchestra musician of the highest caliber for over 30 years, Timothy K. Adams, Jr. began his entrée into playing professionally while still in high school as a substitute percussionist and timpanist with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.
Adams received both his Bachelors and Masters degrees at the Cleveland Institute of Music under the tutelage of the great Cloyd Duff, Richard Weiner, and Paul Yancich of the Cleveland Orchestra. During this time, Adams became first call substitute percussionist with the Cleveland Orchestra, and was also utilized as keyboard substitute.
While attending the Cleveland Institute of Music, Adams spent two summers as a fellowship recipient of the Tanglewood Music Center, performing under the batons of Leonard Bernstein, Kurt Masur, Elliott Carter, Trevor Pinnock, Seiji Ozawa, Michael Tilson Thomas, and John Williams.
Before completing his undergraduate degree, Adams won the Principal Timpani Position with the Canton Symphony orchestra, a position he held for five years before being hired by the Florida Philharmonic Orchestra, where he played for four years before moving on to become the Principal Timpanist of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. It was during this time, he also held the position of Principal Percussionist of the Eastern Music Festival and held a faculty position at Butler University.
Mr. Adams has played in most of the major concert halls in Europe, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Australia, China, and Malaysia, and has performed under the batons of Lorin Maazel, Pierre Boulez, Manfred Honeck, Rafael Fruhbeck de Burgos, Robert Shaw, Sir Andre Previn, Sir Neville Marriner, Christoph von Dohnanyi, Raymond Leppard, Mariss Jansons, Charles Dutoit, and Marvin Hamlisch. Adams has performed with such notable soloists as Luciano Pavarotti, Jessye Norman, Andre Watts, Yo Yo Ma, Renee Fleming, Emanuel Ax, Lynn Harrell, Lang Lang, Midori, Pinchas Zukerman, Patti Austin, Chaka Kahn, Della Reese, Tony Bennett, James Taylor, Arturo Sandoval, Bobby McFerrin, Terence Blanchard, Brice Winston, Dave Brubeck, Marcus Roberts and Burt Bacharach.
As a soloist, Adams has appeared with the Pittsburgh, Atlanta, Indianapolis, Hartford, Knoxville, and Asheville symphony orchestras, as well as the Florida Philharmonic.