IAN: I remember going to see you at the United Center when the three of you were all together.  That was a big show.
A:  That was a big year for us, back around ’99 wasn’t it?
IAN:  Yes.  How long have the Tenors been together as a group?
A:  Well, it began really for us in ’98.  That would be the first North American tour in ’99 and we are still going strong.  There have been a few change ups within the line up since then.  At the current moment we have Finbar Wright, whose been an Irish Tenor for a least ten years now, and Ronan Tynan who has returned to the fold, and myself.
IAN:  You’e been there since day one.
A: Absolutely, it’s all good fun.  We all enjoy the craic, and the only reason people would have left is for solo opportunities, and that is understandable.  The guys are pushing on a little bit in age, and I [have] a few years on them, thank God.  But they were given the opportunities and you cannot deny them those opportunities.  But, we are back here chipping away together now.  I believe we have a nice tour coming up this Christmas – around 17 shows.  So we will be quite busy over the December period.
IAN:  Where will your be over Christmas?
A: All over the map, certainly.  Starting out on the West Coast in the state of California, and I know we have a few venues in the state of Florida, as well, and anywhere in between.  We will be in the East Coast up around New York and Boston area, and maybe Chicago.  I’m not really sure on that one.
[Tour starts December 2-22.  Cities:  Palm Desert, CA, Phoenix, AZ, Houston, TX, Frisco, TX, Memphis, TN, Hartford, CT, Avon Park, FL, Fort Meyers, FL, Melbourne, FL, Hollywood, FL, Sarasota, FL, Clearwater, FL, New Brunswick, NJ, Baltimore, MD.]
A:  There is actually a great audience base in Florida.  I do a lot of my solo shows all over the state of Florida.  And it’s understandable because many of the people spend six months in Florida and six months away.
IAN:  So where have you been this year so far?
A:  Mainly within the United States, partly Canada, and back home in Ireland.  Performing solo concerts and opera.  I have been mixing it up a bit with that.
IAN: How has the opera been coming?
A:  It’s been good, a different kettle of fish, as they say.  It’s not about you it’s about the whole show.  It’s not like concerts where you can roll in one day and leave the next.  With the opera you have to stay for at least three weeks.  It’s a lot of heavy time needed to work and rehearse, just going over it over and over again just ot get it right.
IAN:  Well, I imagine that is a win-win for you because it allows you to work full time and still perform your solo gigs on the side.
A:  Yes it is, it’s great.  I think you have to take your level of the game up.  You have to welcome your craft and work with professionals.  It keeps you on your toes.  And, I think both complement one another.  I think you can take someone off the stage, but you can’t take the stage out of the person.  And the audiences are pretty much the same with the crossover as well, so it’s a win-sin.
IAN:  Do you have a feel for what the audience likes when doing you're own concert?
A:  I do.  The bottom line for me, and my focus, is that people have got to have fun.  They are spending money to go out, to let out the steam and just have a good ol’ time.  That’s what you have to do, allow them to have that time.  I usually do a cross between Neapolitan sounds, to classic Irish sounds, to operatic sounds.  I try not to get too heavy in the concerts with too much opera, but I mix it up.  And then I throw comedy in there as well.  It’s a mix for everyne that they can enjoy all night.
IAN:  Well, Ronan is always good for cracking jokes and making people laugh.
A:  True, we have to put a muzzle on him!
IAN:  I noticed you have been pretty active this year, PR wise.  You’re kind of a catalyst for the group.  And you’re making more things happen this year, which is good to see.
A: Well, before I was always the quiet on of the group.  You had the big man on my left, Ronan Tynan, and you had, in the very beginning, John McDermott.  Both men were good PR machines and I was just learning the ropes.  Then Finbar joined the group and now he is the quite one.  But he has also been around the block and had a good 15 year career before the Irish Tenors.  When I came in I was completely green, but I’ll be coming up to 14 years next month.  So there is no harm investing in yourself and in keeping things flowing for yourself as well as the group. 
You need to be doing it when you can do it.  There is no point in waiting to do it when you’re playing with the opera and the symphony orchestra.
I’ve been doing a lot of solo projects recently and I’ll be making my way to Chicago soon enough, September 17 actually.  I’ll be part of the show there on Broadway.  And they are selling extremely well there in Chicago.  We are performing in Cincinnati on the 6th of August.  It’ll be more like a showcase I suppose, based on performances we recorded in Prague.  Musicals in a concert setting and it is fantastic.
IAN:  So you’re from Wexford in Ireland?
A:  Right, along the Southeast Coast.
IAN: Sean Keane from that same area?
A:  Sean, no, he would be West of Ireland.
IAN:  Maybe he just sings about the East of Ireland.
A:  He probably sang some rebel songs that came from that area.  That’s were all that stuff in ’79 kind of erupted.  When they all took arms up against the English.  Same old song and history …
IAN:  You know your history.
A: Yea, my great-great grandfather would have been first cousins with Father Mogue Kearns.  And John Kenney would have been first cousins also.  It’s a small area so we’re all connected; I’m from the village of Kiltealy, which is just two miles away from Killanne, the home village of John Kenney and the famous Rackard brothers.  The Rackard brothers were famous in the 50s in Ireland for Hurling.
IAN:  So how long have you been coming to the States?
A:  My first trip was in ’94, I think.  I’ve been coming on and off ever since.  And I spend about six months out of the year here now.
IAN:  Married?
A:  No, single man.  I’ve been so busy I really haven’t had time.  It’s a selfish business and you need a good strong woman who can put up with a man that travels from city to city all over the world.  I’ve covered 48 of the 50 states, all but Alaska and Hawaii.  Lot of miles on the clock over the last 13-14 years.
IAN: Anything else you would like to say to the people here in Chicagoland?
A: I’m hungry to get back to Chicago in a solo capacity.  I would really like to get back out there soon and put on a concert, just a solo one probably.  It’s been awhile since I did that and I would like to go there and meet up with the old crew.  Coming from a place with the strongest gathering that I have found, a bunch of people are in Chicago.  Not a lot in New York or Boston, but in Chicago, that is why I enjoy it so much when I go there.

Founding Member of Original Irish Tenors in Chicago Soon

Scheduled to appear at the Auditorium Theatre on
September 17, 2011 for a one-night-only performance,
Anthony Kearns talked recently to Irish American News
about his career and his future.

August, 2011

  Irish American News
©
IAN:  You were one of the founding Irish Tenors, right Anthony?
A:  That is correct, the original of the species!  Along with John McDermott and  Ronan Tynan.