As
the beginning of an old Statler Brothers' song goes, "I grew up a child of the
fifties, learned to dance to the beat of rock and roll…" And I also attended twelve
years of Catholic schools where I learned to sing popular American classics, traditional
Christmas carols and beautiful liturgical pieces in Latin and English. Somehow
this cultural mix gave me a lifelong love of music which has truly enriched my
existence.
I am now a woman deep into the middle years, with a wonderful
husband of thirty-seven plus years, a lovely daughter, son-in-law and an adorable
granddaughter. Over the years, I have enjoyed all kinds of music from Alabama
to Zydeco. I have not, however, learned to play an instrument nor to read music.
When I was about nine years old, my mother wanted me to study violin so
that I could accompany my older sister who played the piano. She was thirteen
and gorgeous - slim with long brown page-boy, beautiful skin and elegant carriage.
I was short with mouse colored, blunt-cut, stick-strait hair and quite large for
my height. I rode the neighborhood on my heavy-duty Western Flyer bike wearing
husky jeans and boys' flannel shirts. Even I could see that standing on a stage
at a recital screeching on a violin beside my streamline sibling was not where
I was going. In spite of all this, I still loved music of any kind.
Over
the years I had many and varied changes in musical tastes. Elvis didn't get to
me but Ricky Nelson did. I loved the Beatles, especially Paul, and still do. Folk
singers of the sixties had great appeal, and I had a county era with the Statler
Brothers and George Strait. I have always loved harmony and wonder to this day
how a voice can do that even if the brain doesn't read a note. I'm speaking of
my own body parts, not those of the Statler Brothers. During the eighties and
nineties I began to enjoy classical offerings and this became the music of choice,
with Andrea Bocelli and a bit of Mary Chapin Carpenter for balance. I felt a real
sense of kinship with Mary Chapin. I wonder if she has an older sister. Is there
a pattern emerging here?
Then in the late nineties, PBS aired the Irish
Tenors show. I was hooked! Something here touched a musical nerve and I became
a devoted fan. As I write this, it actually begins to make sense when you analyze
the progression. These are wonderfully talented men whose repertoire reached many
areas of my musical past.
Certainly John McDermott has a bit of the folk
appeal which really works with the ballads of Scotch-Irish tradition. He makes
it look so easy and effortless. I have enjoyed his solo work immensely and greatly
admire his effort on behalf of Veterans' causes. He has a romantic dreamy quality
and beautiful curls just like my sister (though his are natural).
When
Finbar Wright joined the Tenors he brought a different though very pleasing addition
to the mix. Finbar exudes a sense of calmness and inner strength seen in deeply
spiritual people. Even his voice seems to portray this quality, and what a grand
voice it is! From his solo CDs I have listened to its power and range and experienced
the evolution to today's rich mature quality. And he, too, has nice brown curls.
Then
we have Ronan Tynan, larger than life in every way. Ronan is an inspiration to
anyone. Can't, won't and don't are Ronan's four letter words and he discarded
them years ago. The one he kept was huge, as in huge talent, huge heart, huge
presence and huge success. Irish Tenor fans wish him well as he goes on to add
to his list of huge. Ronan, like me, does not have soft, brown curls, huge or
otherwise.
And now we come to Anthony Kearns, known to his fans as "The
Voice". This voice has brought tears to my eyes and fullness to my heart. The
first time I heard him sing "The Lord's Prayer", I was overcome. Ask anyone, I
am not an emotional woman. When I met Mr. Kearns after a solo concert, I was a
goner. He is such a pleasant and gracious young man. When you watch him on stage
with the Tenors, he gives such a feeling of camaraderie with looks and touches
of appreciation, encouragement and concern for the other two. The talent of this
man is astonishing. His ability to color notes and his vocal range is superb and
his is only 33 years old. His Sean Nos roots are just the thing in his traditional
Irish offerings but the full measure of his talent is heard in the operatic arias
- Oh, my! Surely his incredible gifts will take him anywhere he chooses to go.
Oh, and he has a tendency to curls.
So you see it is completely understandable
that this grandmother has become a groupie. Somehow the Irish Tenors have spoken
to my harmonic heritage. They have it all - the spiritual, the folk ballads, the
classics and the classical. I have all the videos and CDs and attend as many of
the concerts as I can. Last fall I journeyed to Sewell, New Jersey to see the
"new" IT lineup; Finbar Wright, Anthony Kearns, and John McDermott. I was, as
always, entertained and enthralled. After the show I wrote a review for the Anthony
Kearns website titled "Keeping the Faith". In so many ways that is what they do.
They keep alive and current the music of their Irish roots; they keep alive and
current the music of their strong and nurturing faith; they keep alive and current
beautiful classics of many cultures. They keep the faith with their devoted fans.
They have touched, for me and for millions of fans; a chord linked to deep and
precious musical memory and made it alive and current. We cherish them and thank
them and hope for many more years to build and keep the faith