Coffee and Chat with…Ronan Tynan
 
by Cheryl Price
Editor
 

The Irish Tenors—Anthony Kearns, Ronan Tynan and Finbar Wright—are known the world over for their awe-inspiring, fresh, harmonious sound. And now their new holiday album, We Three Kings, is being released, just as they embark on a 17-city Christmas Spectacular tour. This winter’s tour promises to be unforgettable, as the Tenors will be accompanied by a 47-piece orchestra, performing selections from We Three Kings. Their sixth album features masterpieces such as “Silent Night” and “I’ll be Home for Christmas,” as well as the David Bowie/Bing Crosby pop holiday classic “Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth.

The Irish Tenors have topped $1.5 million in total album sales and spent more than two years at the top of the Billboard Music Charts. Ever since their first U.S. tour in 1999, the Irish Tenors enjoy sold-out performances around the world. And the brilliant trio will be in South Florida as part of their Christmas Spectacular tour. Tickets are going fast for the November 30th concert at West Palm Beach’s Raymond F. Kravis Center, as audiences know not to miss this opportunity.

I was fortunate to have a recent conversation with Ronan Tynan. I learned that not only is Ronan an award-winning vocalist—receiving the Tenor Trophy and the John McCormack Trophy at the National Singing Festival in Dublin, winning first place in the RTE/BBC Television Talent Competition, and winner of the French International singing competition—but he also wrote an autobiography entitled Halfway Home in 2001, he is an avid horseman, as well as an accredited medical doctor, specializing in orthopedic sports injuries.

Ronan was born with a lower limb disability and, due to subsequent complications, both of his legs were amputated below the knee when he was twenty. Just weeks following his surgery, Ronan began to walk proficiently on prosthetic limbs. Between 1981 and 1984, Ronan won 18 gold medals and set 14 world records in the Paralympics, the disabled games. The multi-faceted Ronan didn’t begin singing until the age of 32, and he’s already released two solo albums, his most recent entitled The Impossible Dream. And now he’s getting set to begin the Christmas Spectacular tour with his fellow Irish Tenors, as South Florida anxiously awaits their arrival.

The Irish Tenors Christmas Spectacular will take place on Sunday, November 30 at 8pm at the Kravis Center, 701 Okeechobee Blvd., West Palm Beach. To purchase tickets, call 561-832-7469 or go to www.kravis.org and click on “Online Ticketing.” For more information about the Irish Tenors, their new album, and for more information on their tour, visit www.theirishtenors.com.
 
 
What can fans expect from your new holiday album, We Three Kings?

The album contains all the popular Christmas songs, some Irish songs, and a wonderful orchestra. Not only do we sing as a group, but we each sing three solos, as well as duets.
 
You’ve won many awards and have an immensely successful career. What tools do you use to keep going and to find time to achieve everything you have?

I think basically I’ve been very lucky. I was blessed with my parents. They believed in me and encouraged me. They were the matches that lit the candle of my achievement.
 
What have you learned from your career?

I think moreso than anything I’ve learned how to give back the talent God gave me—to allow people to laugh, cry, be nostalgic—a wonderful gift to share. It’s much nicer to give. I’ve learned to be content with what I have and not to look for what I want all the time.
 
You spent time with President Bush and the First Lady. What was that experience like?

They are wonderful people. They’re  so natural—lovely people. I couldn’t praise them higher.
 
How do you compare your experiences of making your solo albums with working as a group in the Irish Tenors?

I suppose the workload is split into three. I love doing solo work, but I also love working with the lads. It’s great to enjoy other people’s talents, and when talents culminate into one in a group, the resulting sound is wonderful.
 
What message do you hope people will get from reading your autobiography, Halfway Home?

Safe is the bird that feels the life and sings while the dawn is still dark. There is always a light at the end of tunnel and always a song there.
 
 
 
PHOTO IDS
 
1. The Irish Tenors: Finbar Wright, Anthony Kearns and Ronan Tynan

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