CHRISTMAS carols and classical melodies sung with gusto are set to strike a chord among the country's music lovers during the Christmas season. Due to phenomenal demand, the Irish Tenors will delight Kerry audiences with a second date in Killarney at the end of this month.

The trio have already toured the United States with the spectacular Christmas programme and play the INEC at the Gleneagle Hotel on Monday, December 29, and Tuesday, December 30. Anthony Kearns, Finbar Wright and Ronan Tynan are looking forward to performing together, with full orchestra, in Kerry.

"This will be our first time in Killarney", Anthony Kearns told The Kingdom. "We are expecting a fun time and it's certainly a fine venue" .

The Irish Tenors recently participated in the prestigious Snowflake Lighting celebrations to kick off the festive season in New York last month, sharing the stage with the Mayor of New York, Michael R Bloomberg, and movie star Liv Tyler, who hosted the event. "The event supports UNICEF sparks off the holiday season in New York and we had the pleasure of closing it", said Anthony. "We have had a very busy time in the States so far - our day off is spent travelling between cities".

Christmas Eve sees the trio return to home ground and they will have 30 hours off before their performance in the Point, Dublin, on December 28. And, adds Anthony, Kerry "fans will be in for a truly festive treat" when they take centre stage in Killarney." The whole programme has been going down well", he said. "It includes a lot of three-part harmonies, Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Fairytale of New York (the edited version!) and White Christmas. There will also be songs connected with closeness and friendship, like You'll Never Walk Alone and songs people have requested over the years on our website. Of course it wouldn't be complete without some Irish songs - after all we are the Irish Tenors". "Fun for all the family is guaranteed", adds the singer. "A lot of people bring their children with them to our concerts - it's a real family occasion and people know they ll have fun and enjoy full-blooded singing", said Anthony.

He, Ronan Tynan, and Finbar Wright have all accomplished wonders on their own, in music and in other disciplines. But an even greater story emerges when they take to the stage as The Irish Tenors. Their powerful voices are guaranteed to bring even the most familiar old tunes to new life.

The phenomenon that would become The Irish Tenors began modestly one day in 1998. Recognising that the history of tenor singing in Ireland is as rich as that of high opera, three giants of that school. Anthony Kearns, Ronan Tynan and John McDermott, formed into the original lineup of The Irish Tenors and made their debut, with a 60-piece orchestra at the Royal Dublin Society. Ironically Finbar Wright had been approached at the time but was unable to join the original formation due to contractual obligations. When tapes of this concert were broadcast shortly afterward over PBS, Tenor-mania swept the States.

The trio launched its first US tour in March 1999, drawing 15,000 new fans to Madison Square Garden and selling out major arenas elsewhere. Their first two albums, The Irish Tenors and Home For Christmas, would both spend more than two years high in the Billboard World Music Charts as the trio eventually topped 2 million in total album sales.

In February 2000, following the death of his mother, McDermott left the group and this time Finbar Wright was available and so the current line-up was born. With this new lineup The Irish Tenors recorded their third album, Live From Belfast, with the 67-piece Warsaw Symphonia and a surprise guest appearance by McDermott. Their latest project is We Three Kings, an album of Christmas classics, which includes many of the fan favourites performed over the last five years on their annual Christmas Spectacular Tour.