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27th May - 2nd June 2006
A Tenor's Worth



The Irish Tenors are set to liven up summertime TV with their own brand of classical gas.
Donal O'Donoghue talks to two of the trio, Finbar Wright and Anthony Kearns
Strange what you hear in the barber's chair. Just last week, up to my ears in things tonsorial, the conversation of a chap seated four places away pricked the antennae. Despite being muffled with towels and dunked under a tap, I recognised the voice. It was Bill Hughes - one-time judge on You're A Star and full-time TV producer. BH was talking about his latest project and the details came out in staccato bursts (that is, between towel rubs). 'Shayne Ward' ... rub, rub, rub ... 'Andrew Lloyd Webber' ... rub, rub, rub ... 'summer show'. Two days later I was eventually able to join the dots. Hughes was talking about The Irish Tenors and Friends - a TV show in which three tailored men pick up the baton previously carried by Daniel O'Donnell and Phil Coulter for a summer charge of light entertainment.

Hughes was a central figure in the creation of The Irish Tenors, the original of the local species. It happened during the 1998 Cannes Film Festival and afterwards Hughes contacted Wexford tenor, Anthony Kearns about this variation on The Three Tenors. The original line-up was Kearns, Ronan Tynan and John McDermott, but it has since seen more changes than the cast of ER. Right now we have the ever-constant Kearns, Finbar Wright and the most recent addition, 26-year-old Karl Scully. "There are two chairs that have always been filled, but that third chair is like a marginal constituency: it could go to any party," says Wright.

Last week, the three men were spread out across the globe - Wright was at home in Cork, Scully was in Amsterdam and Kearns was in Florida. By Sunday, they would all be sequestered in Ardmore studios for a rigorous production schedule that involved ten consecutive days (until May 29) in front of a live audience. Over the series, the tenors will perform as a trio, solo and with the guests: sometimes backed by a live orchestra. Andrew Lloyd Webber, a rare TV animal, suggested that he play backing piano for the boys (he agreed to the show after googling The Irish tenors') and there are also performances from Sharon Shannon, X Factor winner Shayne Ward, Lucia Evans and Hayley Westenra.

Between numbers you can expect a bit of banter and blarney - a trademark of any Irish Tenors concert. In fact, I ask Wright, whether the ability to speak at 600wpm was an essential prerequisite when they interviewed Scully for the job. Hahaha. He laughs like someone caught with his hands in the chocolate box. "It's always a problem stopping us talking," he says. "Sometimes when we're performing in America the audience are probably wondering will we ever shut up and sing."

Wright and Kearns are the heart and soul of the Irish Tenors. They own the trademark and even outside of the business they are good friends. Both are fulsome in their praise of Karl Scully. "Karl is a fine singer and he has a great voice," says Kearns. "He will have a great career ahead of him long after the group is gone."

That could be some time yet as this TV series is likely to boost the Irish Tenors' already considerable profile in this country. Certainly, that's how Wright sees it. "Some people might say that they don't like the show, but they can also switch off or change channels," he says. "But personally I find it great that TV allows you the opportunity to get into every corner of the country."

Wright is an old hand at this TV lark many moons ago he fronted his own series. "I think it will be a lively show," he says. Kearns says he's looking forward to the series and singing songs - Unchained Melody, Stand By Me - that aren't normally part of the group's repertoire. "This is a chance to let your hair down, sing with the band and have some fun," he says. "It takes that stiff look off the group which you normally expect when you see singers dressed in tails."

But The Irish Tenors were never known for being po faced classicists. Certainly, eight best-selling albums (Billboard World Music Top 10) tells its own populist story. After the RTE series they go back on the road for a tour of the US summer concert scene. They have bookings right into 2008 - who knows what the line-up will be by then! - and it is likely that they will probably continue their sellout Irish Christmas shows for some time.

In fact, the last time I met the Irish [ Tenors was just before Christmas in a big house in Dublin. Back then it was Wright, Kearns and Ronan Tynan. Do they still keep in touch with the big man? "Ah yes," says Wright. "We trade emails fairly regularly. Ronan says he misses us but who knows? He says that about his horses, too. Hahaha!"

There are performances from Sharon Shannon, Shayne Ward, Lucia Evans and Hayley Westenra"







Watch it: The Irish Tenors and Friends - RTÉ One / Friday

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