Anthony Kearns is a true lyric tenor. He has incredible agility and flexibility of voice and the ability to color notes gracefully and beautifully. Kearns has a deep love of opera and a devotion to the genre, and feels that French and Italian operas best suit his voice.

Whether in the realm of the classics or the traditional music of his homeland, the power and clarity in The Voice expresses great truth and rich conviction. Anthony Kearns is truly the consummate performer, with unlimited potential and universal appeal. He clearly shows "promise of his imminent recognition among the next generation of the world's greatest tenors."* "If he can maintain the high musical standards and impassioned singing, he may well become the Tenor of our Times."**

Anthony Joseph Kearns was born on August 17, 1971, in a small Irish village in County Wexford called Kiltealy. It is the highest little village in Wexford situated at the foot of the picturesque Blackstair Mountains, population 1,600. Kearns is fond of saying that his upbringing there provided "good grounding." His parents are Betty and Aidan (Mogue) Kearns; his father is deceased. He has one brother, John, and four sisters: Margaret, twins - Caithriona and Caroline, and Joanne. All of Anthony's siblings are musically talented, but he is the only one to pursue music as a career. Anthony now lives in Dublin, but is a Wexford man at heart.

Anthony's interest in music began at about the age of four when he found his mother's button accordion and began "bashing away at it," eventually sounding out the tunes he heard on a daily basis at home. He perfected the double row black dot, and moved on to the larger instrument, all the while toying with the mouth organ and the spoons, which gave him a keen sense of rhythm. He is a self-taught, fairly accomplished musician.

Kearns began singing at an early age and found that he was blessed with the natural lilt necessary to sing traditional Sean Nós music. Sean Nós is referred to as 'shut eye songs' in Ireland, due to the intimate way it is performed. Traditionally, it is performed a cappella, and in the Irish language. As is common outside the traditional Irish-speaking areas of Ireland, Anthony sang in English. As a youth, Kearns sang in various All-Ireland singing festivals (Ceol an Geimhridh, Feis Ceoils, Readoiri, Fleadh Cheoil na hEireann), winning on a regular basis. After entering the F.C.J. Bunclody Secondary School, he joined the orchestra playing trombone, and eventually became the resident singer, singing at all the Masses and in school shows. He entered any and all available competitions during his school years; winning seemed to come quite easily for young Kearns.

After finishing secondary school, Anthony studied catering and hotel management which led to employment at the Grand Hotel, Wicklow, where he earned the reputation as The Singing Barman. He worked at the Grand for four years, singing at weddings and other functions at the hotel, around the area, and singing roles for the Wicklow Musical Society.

As an adult, Mr. Kearns continued entering and winning singing competitions all over Ireland, including the prestigious Dermot Troy Trophy for oratorio in 1995 and 1996, the Best Male Singer at the 1995 Waterford International Festival of Light Opera, and he reached the top at the ESB Veronica Dunne International Singing Competition in 1999.

The turning point in Anthony's career was in 1993. While working in sales in Dun Laoghaire, Kearns heard of a contest: "Ireland's Search for a Tenor," in conjunction with The Bank of Ireland's release of a new 10-pound note, commonly called a tenner. He sang "Danny Boy" down the phone, hitch hiked to Dublin for the finals, and won the competition singing "The Impossible Dream" and "Danny Boy" as an encore. Kearns was the only untrained singer competing!

After winning the competition, Anthony studied for three years with Ireland's renowned voice teacher, Veronica Dunne, at the Leinster School of Music. Ronnie had been a judge for the 1993 competition and new instantly that this young man had The Voice. According to Dunne, "I insisted he get the prize and began training him." "I ended up spending three years working with her, and she really brought me on a lot," Anthony said. "She's a powerful woman who instilled a lot of drive and initiative in me." While at the Leinster School, Anthony met Patrick Healy, a well-known repetiteur.*** He worked with Patrick as his voice coach for several years; Mr. Healy is currently his accompanist. Upon leaving the Leinster School of Music, Anthony moved to Cardiff to attend The College of Music in Wales, where he was studying when he received the call from the Irish Tenors. Kearns has been with this Irish phenomenon since its very beginning.

Mr. Kearns has toured Germany, Italy, Ireland, and the United States to an enthusiastic response. Anthony Kearns and The Irish Tenors have produced eight CDs to date which have sold millions of copies, and have completed several successful tours of the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

In his early days, Kearns performed in several productions in Ireland as a chorus member which lead to roles as: Macduff in Verdi's "Macbeth" and Alfredo in Verdi's "LaTraviata." Anthony has repeatedly sung lead tenor in "The Irish Ring," a production encompassing three Irish operas, and brought it to the U.S. in September 2002. That same year, he sang the role of Fenton in an Italian production of Verdi's "Falstaff" performed in Tuscany.

Becoming a popular presence in Ireland's music scene, spring 2005 found him singing Rinuccio in Puccini's "Gianni Schicchi," about which Hugh Canning wrote "Anthony Kearns suggested huge promise." In April, 2006 Kearns sang the lead in "Faust," which was nominated for best production in The Irish Times Theatre Awards. Both of these appearances were for Opera Ireland. Anthony interviewed and performed with Andrew Lloyd Webber during the summer of 2006 for ‘The Irish Tenors and Friends’ TV series in Ireland, and in September, Kearns participated in John McCormack tribute concerts at the National Concert Hall in Dublin and the University Concert Hall in Limerick. In June of 2007, the Royal Dublin Society invited Anthony to sing lead tenor in the first complete performance of "The Lily of Killarney" (part of "The Irish Ring" trilogy) since the early 20th century. A scant few weeks later, Anthony sang along-side Cara O'Sullivan in the first concert of the National Concert Hall summer outdoor series to nearly 3,000 in attendance.

Kearns has sung at the Gaiety Theatre, Dublin, and performed with the National Symphony Orchestra. He often performs at the National Concert Hall in Dublin and Limerick. Anthony was also guest soloist for the Boston Pops. When touring with The Irish Tenors, Mr. Kearns performs in many of the most prestigious venues in America, among them: Carnegie Hall, Radio City Music Hall, Madison Square Garden, Boston's Fleet Pavilion, The Hollywood Bowl, on the grounds of the Capitol on the Fourth of July, and again at the Capitol for the funeral of President Reagan.

For all his devotion to the opera, Anthony Kearns has a deep, abiding love for the music of his beloved homeland. He has perhaps the largest repertoire of Irish music of anyone living, and delights in presenting it to the world. "I take great pride delivering these songs of our people all over the world," says Mr. Kearns. From Irish opera to character songs, from haunting songs of emigration to the stirring music of the troubles, Anthony Kearns sings Irish music like no one else. He is the true Irish Tenor, cut from the same piece of linen as John McCormack. Kearns is carrying on the tradition of the finest Irish Tenors of all time, even to the honor of being asked to sing at the funeral of the great Josef Locke a few years ago.

Anthony Kearns has a busy solo career touring several times each year in both Ireland and the U.S., and tours at least twice annually with The Irish Tenors.

*Dr. Dennis Crabb, Director of Music, Peninsula College
**Reviewer, Peter Landsdowne
***A Repetiteur is an opera rehearsal pianist and vocal coach.

Brief Repertoire Notes

It is obvious to anyone who listens to Anthony Kearns sing: here is a man who is passionate about his music. His voice is so seasoned and sure, it belies his age. Kearns's considerable singing talent defies categorization. His satin-smooth voice, coupled with his tremendous vocal range and techinque, lends itself equally well to opera, light classical, the standards, show tunes and, of course, his beloved Irish music.

The solo performances of Anthony Kearns contain incredible arias and classics, what he fondly calls the Evergreens, and a generous dose of the Irish. These solo performances are a delight, and are widely attended. Kearns has developed a devoted following which is growing daily, populated with people who travel hundreds, and in some cases thousands of miles in order to attend a concert.

One of Anthony's favorite and most moving Irish songs is "Boolavogue." It brought thousands of people to their feet when Kearns was asked to sing it at the National Games in 1996 when County Wexford took the day! It resounds of patriotism and great respect for the lads who fought during the troubles, and is special to Anthony for another reason, as well. This song takes place during the 1798 Rebellion, a time of great courage amongst the Irish when they tried to throw off the chains of bondage. The boys of Wexford were led during the uprising by the priest Father John Murphy, who counted among his fellow leaders a young Father Mogue Kearns, one of Anthony's ancestors. In fact, Anthony was the last Kearns born in the farmhouse in which Father Mogue Kearns was reared. Another song near to his heart also takes place during the struggle of 1798, "The Croppy Boy," which tells the tale of one patriot who was denied and betrayed by his family for participating in the insurrection.

At the top of Anthony's list of Irish comtemporary pieces is "Grace," a moving tribute to Joseph Mary Plunkett and Grace Gifford which takes place during the Easter Rising of 1916. It is a lovely piece of music composed by brothers, Frank and Sean O'Meara, and is sung beautifully and passionately by Mr. Kearns; it is truly one of his audience's favorite pieces.

Patrick Healy, Anthony's accompanist and longtime friend, wrote a stunning song for Anthony in the spring of 2002, which is rapidly becoming his signature song. "Hills of Home" is sweetly sentimental and filled with longing. It is the perfect vehicle for The Voice, and Kearns fans love it! In the summer of 2005, Healy once again wrote a piece especially for Anthony, "A Father's Prayer," a lovely lullaby sure to become a classic. Both of these lovely pieces were recorded by the Kearns/Healy duo and released in 2006 on the 2-song CD "Fond Memories." Healy has also written two comic duets which he performs on stage with Kearns on his solo tours.

Footnote Links
Sean Nós
Classical Repertoire
Evergreens
Irish Music
1798 Rebellion

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