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Finbar Wright, Karl Scully, Anthony Kearns The Irish Tenors - About Us
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The magic they've captured on "The Irish Tenors" (1999), "Home For Christmas" (1999), "Live In Belfast" (2000) and "Ellis Island" (2001), and the Razor & Tie releases "We Three Kings" (2003) and "Heritage" (2004), has resulted in millions of albums sold. Not content to rest on these laurels, however, The Irish Tenors tour constantly, thrilling old fans and winning new ones all around the globe. In the United States, they are one of the most successful Irish touring acts ever, second only to U2.

Few vocalists are capable of the bright, ringing tone and high-wire, not to mention high C, performance skills that denote a tenor. In 1998, three such artists were called upon to sing together, backed by a 60-piece orchestra, at the Royal Dublin Society. The three were Anthony Kearns, John McDermott and Ronan Tynan. (In an interesting twist, future Irish Tenor Finbar Wright was the first to be approached but was unable to participate due to previous professional obligations.)

Not long afterward, a recording of this landmark concert was broadcast in the U.S. on PBS. The response was electric. In March of 1999 the group mounted their first stateside tour, drawing 15,000 rapturous fans to Madison Square Garden during their New York City stop and selling out other major venues along the journey west. The enduring nature of their appeal was made clear when "The Irish Tenors" and "Home For Christmas" each spent more than two years in the upper reaches of Billboard's World Music and Classical charts.

In February of 2000, John McDermott chose to leave the group following the death of his mother. Finbar Wright then stepped into the lineup. The newly reconstituted Irish Tenors went on to record "Live From Belfast", on which they were ably supported by the 67-member Warsaw Symphonia, with surprise guest John McDermott. This was succeeded in 2001 by "Ellis Island", a concept album based on the history of immigration in America that featured moving narration from actor Martin Sheen.

By the fall of 2004, with "We Three Kings" and "Heritage" also under their belts, The Irish Tenors were nearing household-name status, a designation cemented by appearances on "The Today Show", "Good Morning America", "Live With Regis And Kelly", "20/20" and "A&E Breakfast With The Arts", among other popular television programs. In October of 2004, it was announced that John McDermott would re-join The Irish Tenors, replacing Ronan Tynan, who had departed to focus on his solo career.

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