Songs of the season
By JOHN FLEMING, Times Performing Arts Critic


There's something about a high Irish tenor that goes well with holiday tradition, so it's apt that one of the first seasonal concerts in the area is by the Irish Tenors, who appear Monday night with an orchestra at Ruth Eckerd Hall.

It promises to be one of the highlights of a holiday stage lineup heavy on Nutcrackers, adaptations of A Christmas Carol and traditional fare crooned by Anne Murray to Rockapella, Sheena Easton to the Four Freshmen.

The Irish threesome bring quite a lot of variety to their arrangements of classical and popular songs. "We have the luxury of being able to incorporate solos, duets - the Pie Jesu, for example, is a perfect duet for tenors - and three voices," said tenor Finbar Wright, speaking from his home in Cork, Ireland.

"We open this year with Hark the Herald Angels Sing in an intricate three-part harmony which is almost like a choral delivery."

Wright and his mates Anthony Kearns and Ronan Tynan follow the formula laid down by the original operatic Three Tenors: Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras. Since starting out in 1998, the Irish tenors have released six albums with sales of 1.5-million.

On their 17-city Christmas tour, they sing a solidly mainstream program of religious and secular carols from their latest album, We Three Kings, including Silent Night, O Holy Night, Winter Wonderland and Santa Claus Is Coming to Town

What sets them apart are the Irish songs they perform. Kearns does a rendition of the Wexford Carol that never fails to bring down the house. "Being from Wexford himself, it's one that is particularly dear to him," Wright said. "It's a very beautiful, very old carol."

John McCormack set the standard for Irish tenors. "He was the great Irish tenor, there's no doubt about that," Wright said. "I don't think anybody has ever lived up to his achievements. His earlier recordings from around 1910 of some of the operatic arias are incomparable."

Tynan has become famous for his heartfelt rendition of God Bless America during New York Yankees games. "It has become almost like another career for him," Wright said. "Ronan lives a lot of the time in New York, and he's an avid sportsman. So he certainly enjoys it, I can tell you that."