Too much pop hurts Tynan concert
Ronan Tynan, the Irish tenor, is a bit of a wag. He popped off some memorable one-liners during his concert with members of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra in Kleinhans Music Hall on Sunday.
“Who wouldn’t want to be Irish?” he asked. “We have everything. We have passion. We have size.” He had already admitted he was 274 pounds. “We have intellect,” he continued. “And we have perpendicular ears.” His stuck-out ears are visible from the far reaches of the balcony.
He will have his little joke. It was too much, though, when he announced “Danny Boy,” and then had the orchestra play it without him.
No kidding, Tynan — probably the most famed Irish tenor of our age — announced the song, then walked off stage. I stared. He had to be kidding!
Later, heartbreakingly, he did the same thing with “The Last Rose of Summer.” This is a beautiful song — Beethoven even did a touching arrangement of it — and that leap in the first line would have sounded gorgeous in Tynan’s voice. But it was not to be.
The evening began on a high note, with a song from “Man of La Mancha” followed by “Ride On,” a song sung famously by the McKrells. The music was on the pop side, but it was interesting, and Tynan gave it his all. BPO Music Director JoAnn Falletta did a good job of incorporating the orchestra members, who amounted to roughly half the BPO, with Tynan’s five-piece combo.
Tynan sang like a yeoman, with gusto and passion. He has the goods — a fine, steady voice and genuine emotion.
It was a pity that as the night went on, most of the material didn’t do justice to his gifts. Eric Clapton’s “Tears in Heaven,” Bruce Springsteen’s “Into the Fire” and U2’s “All I Want Is You” might be fine pop songs, but they weren’t written to showcase a voice with the range and color of Tynan’s.
Also, what was he doing using a microphone? Given his pipes and the perfect Kleinhans acoustics, I am sure he would have made himself heard. I believe that the audience, which no doubt included many listeners not used to classical music, would have enjoyed hearing the marvel that is an unamplified, classically trained voice.
The evening had a slapped-together ambience, sort of as if we were in a bar. Tynan read the lyrics throughout a Beatles medley (again, oddly chosen, for someone of his abilities). When his musicians, on their own, played and sang “In My Life,” they sounded like a wedding band.
On the bright side, “There Were Roses,” a song about “the Troubles,” was sincere and affecting. And the Sabres’ Drew Stafford, playing guitar with Tynan for a breezy, Broadway Joe’s-style take on “Whiskey in the Jar,” showed a nice bluesy feel. I like him better on the bandstand than on the ice.
But there was just something missing. Come on, Mr. Tynan. “Danny Boy!”
Sing it!
Concert Review
Ronan Tynan
With members of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra and conductor JoAnn Falletta on Sunday night in Kleinhans Music Hall.
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