For those who assume "The Irish Tenors Christmas Spectacular" might feature high-powered, semi-operatic renditions of such material as "Christmas in Killarney," things at the Landmark Friday night were a bit more serious than that. Still, Finbar Wright, Anthony Kearns and John McDermott managed a good bit of fun, and the group mood varied between relaxed, polished and reverent. Much of the presentation seemed to be in support of the Irish Tenors' latest CD release with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, titled "Sacred." The currentincarnation of the trio is one that might be called "Two Irish Tenors and an Irish High Baritone," as veteran group member McDermott spends a good deal of his time exploring his lower register. But McDermott's easy pop-style vocalism made for a nice contrast with the more classical vocal stylings of his teammates. McDermott's voice is intimate and at times intensely emotional, Kearns' is strong, resonant and well-controlled, and Wright's is bright and stentorian. Energetic conductor David Briscombe led the first of several Irish tune medleys, initially cunningly disguised as Copland's "Fanfare for the Common Man" but morphing into "Brian Boru's March." Other medleys of Irish tunes distributed throughout the concert were less witty in their arrangements and equally anonymous as to contents and arranger. The tenors sang a medley involving a strong version of Moore's "The Harp That Once Through Tara's Halls" before landing decisively on Hopkins' "We Three Kings of Orient Are." Wright's first solo was a credible account of a "Mille cherubini in coro," a piece adapted from the music of Franz Schubert. Other solos followed, including a gentle salute to the top decoration on a Christmas tree, Murray McLauchlan's "Old Tin Star," sung by McDermott. The tenors reunited for "Lord of the Dance," probably better known in the States as the Shaker tune "Simple Gifts." A good portion of the rest of the first section of the concert consisted of sacred material, including Wright's performance of Boberg and Hughes' "How Great Thou Art," ending on a solid B-flat, which elicited great reaction from the audience. The second part of the concert began with a somewhat fragmented medley, followed by the trio members taking on such selections as Jester Hairston's "Mary's Boy Child," nicely handled by Wright, and a fine version of Albert Hay Malotte's "The Lord's Prayer," strongly sung by Kearns. A brace of Irish songs sung by the trio led to more sacred material, and on to the encores, as the trio, now wearing Santa stocking caps, sang Berlin's "White Christmas," Bernard and Smith's "Winter Wonderland" and the traditional "Danny Boy" as their final offering. A standing ovation concluded the event. The Post Copyright The Post Syracuse, New York 2005/All rights reserved Contributions
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