Tuesday, March 16, 2004

The Three Irish Tenors impressed as much with their dark good looks and charm as with their powerful performance at the charity ball organised by the Hope Calcutta Foundation at The Hyatt on Sunday evening.

Entertainment for a cause was at the heart of the event that was held to raise funds for underprivileged children in the city, supported by Spandan. Irish ambassador Philip McDonagh set the ball rolling, pointing out that some of Bengal’s biggest luminaries — Tagore, Swami Vivekanada, Mother Teresa and Subhash Chandra Bose — all had an Irish connection.

A documentary on the work of the Hope Foundation, an Irish funding agency supporting a number of projects for underprivileged children, was screened before the tenors — Paul Byron, Tony Norton and Ciaran Nagle — set the tone with an evening of classic melody.

In an unconventional performance for a trio steeped in opera, the tenors — who have collaborated with pop icons like Westlife and Sinead ’Connor — breezed through a set that took in ballads, popular songs and nuggets such as Ireland’s “unofficial” anthem, Ireland’s Call. Harmonising brilliantly, the performers brought the house down with Molly Malone, Carrik Furgus and Spanish Lady.

“Our brief is to try and tear down the walls that often exist between classically trained performers and a lay audience,” said singer Ciaran Nagle. With excellent backing tracks by the National Concert Orchestra and great stage presence, the tenors had no trouble winning over the room. A brief acapella interlude with Lee Alison Sibley, wife of US consul-general George . Sibley, lent a touch of humour to the evening before the tenors brought the curtains down with a spellbinding display of vocal prowess.

Excerpted from the full article at www.telegraphindia.com

Miss World and Three Irish Tenors Become Ambassadors for Hope

- Irish Celebrities Bring HOPE Around the World –

February 10, 2004 - Miss World, Rosanna Davison, along with The Three Irish Tenors, Ciaran Nagle, Paul Byrom, and Anthony Norton, will be bringing the message of the HOPE Foundation around the world. It was announced earlier that both Rosanna and the Tenors are to be Ambassador's to the HOPE Foundation for 2004, which will entail furthering the work of the organization and internationally promoting the charity which works to provide housing and education for street children in Calcutta.

At the press conference that was held at the Berkley Court, Miss World, Rosanna Davison stated, "One of the wonderful things about being Miss World is the opportunity to work with non-profit groups from around the world, especially this one from my native country, Ireland, that works with the street children of Calcutta. It is my hope that during my reign as Miss World that I will not only be able to highlight the work of the HOPE Foundation, but that I will have the opportunity to travel to India and see the homes and training centres that the HOPE Foundation have built, and meet the children who's lives they have touched."

The Three Irish Tenors, who will also be Ambassador's for the charity in 2004, already have plans to visit the HOPE centres in India next month and will be hosting a special concert in Calcutta on March 15th at the Irish Embassy. "We are really looking forward to meeting the children and seeing the work of the HOPE Foundation first hand," said Ciaran Nagle. "It will be an unforgettable experience and we hope that through our work with the charity we will be able to assist in the fundraising to provide further housing and education centres for the children of HOPE."

Maureen Forrest, HOPE Foundation, extended her thanks to both Rosanna and the tenors, as well as all the other supporters of the HOPE Foundation who are involved in endless fundraising events to further the work of the charity in Calcutta. A special presentation was also made to Ciana Casey and Amelia Rowan, students at Alexandra College, Dublin, who had raised the most funds for the charity in 2003 through the sales of the HOPE chocolates. The students were delighted to meet the Irish celebrities and were already planning their chocolate initiative for 2004.

Irish Tenors Sing on Cushions of Velvet

By Special Correspondent - The Chronicle-Journal (Thunder Bay, Ont.)

March 06, 2003

It is with a feeling of warm satisfaction and gratitude that I sit down to write this review of The Three Irish Tenors as they premiered their North American Tour at the Thunder Bay Community Auditorium Tuesday evening. Warm in the glow of hearing the great standards of Ireland, musical theatre and opera performed with power, panache and wit. Satisfied in the comfort of knowing that the traditions of great music are secure in the hands and voices of such exceptional young performers.

The Three Irish Tenors — Ciaran Nagle, Anthony Norton and Paul Byrom — each are blessed with vocal instruments of exceptional strength, yet they are equally versed in carrying songs with a lightness that allows an audience to settle back in soft, dreamy comfort. No ve ins popped, no muscles strained, all songs were carried on cushions of velvet.

Under the guidance of music director and pianist David Wray, the Tenors and their guest star, soprano Jacqueline Whelan, were backed by a well-arranged eight-piece orchestra. It was particularly pleasing when the two stunningly beautiful violinists Katie O’Connor and Aoife NiDhormain (whose name may cause my SpellCheck to explode) were given a Duelling Violins showcase all to themselves.

What I liked about the actual program was that it was exceptionally well-designed. The audience in the first act was allowed to settle in and relax through a series of Irish folk standards, quite literally composing a tour of the Emerald Isle. The big smashing classics as established by those other tenor guys (Pavarotti, Domingo and Carreras) — Be My Love, O Sole Mio and Nessun Dorma — those were held back until the end, when the sudden unleashing of the three young men’s full energy was greeted by a momentarily silent, momentarily stunned Auditorium audience which then leapt to its feet in applause at the virtuosity it had just heard.

There’s a good chance that this review will be read by programmers and promoters in other cities on The Three Irish Tenors’ tour. Relax gentlemen. You have booked yourself a class act that will delight every ticket-buyer in your house. I sincerely hope this concert returns to Thunder Bay. I could watch it again and again and again. Be seeing you.

The Three Irish Tenors

NOW OPERATIC classics are not something everybody has in their CD collection. Over the years this particular musical genre has become intertwined with so called 'high arts' and attracted only a very narrow audience.

The near capacity crowd which turned out to watch the Three Irish tenors this week at the Millennium Forum, however, is proof that the trio are being successful in their bid to change that perception.

Backed by a merry young band of first rate musicians, Tom Cregan, Anthony Norton and Ciaran Nagle had the crowds stomping in their seats as they belted out a selection of Irish ballads.

The two stunning violinists worked the audience up prior to the The Three Irish Tenors appearing on stage, accompanied by a couple of electric guitarists, a flutist, drummer and pianist. As the shiney shoed singers walked on stage they immediately belted out 'Spanish Lady.'

Following brief introductions, the rest of the first half comprised well known tunes such as 'Spanish Blue Eyes' and 'The Hills of Donegal'.

The theme for the night seemed to be the well versed song of the exiled and immigrants, those who fled Ireland over the past few centuries and longed to return but never did. Tunes such as 'Carrickfergus' had a thin veil of voices joining in from the floor and it's easy to see why these three have been a hit abroad.

As the tenors went to rest their vocal chords, bejewelled soprano Jacqueline Whelan held the fort with well known tunes such as 'The Word In Union' and a compilation of well known anthems from popular musicals.

As Ms. Whelan swished off stage violinists Katie O'Connor and Aoife NiDournan gave a rousing and energetic performance. If classical musicians are renowned for being a bit starched, then these two were doing all in their power to change that, creating one of the highlights of the night.

Vocally, the The Three Irish Tenors really came into their own in the second half. Returning to the stage, between them they delivered a selection of the finest operatic tunes (ones you don't think you'll know until you hear them) with Anthony Norton and Tom Cregan excelling in tongue rolling tunes made famous by Pavarotti and er, an ice cream ad.

Close your eyes and you could be listening to the original trio of Domingo, Pavarotti and Carreras on such numbers as "O Sole Mio" and "Nessun Dorma".
With such a varied programme there was a danger that the audience might feel out in the cold, but the trio and their team pulled it off without a hitch or a garbled note. In fact there were flawless performances all around.

With such professional and well crafted, show stopping performances, it is no wonder that the Three Irish tenors are taking Ireland, America, and beyond by storm. All round, a night of pleasant surprises.