The human voice would have to be one of the most unforgiving and temperamental of all instruments. Then if you multiply these factors by ten, only then can we truly appreciate the skills and complexity that are required by this Australian virtuoso group.
The Ten Tenors’ touring schedule would be the envy of any professional performer as they have sung to over 2.5 million people with over 1,700 international concerts in 21 countries. Their 2010/11 tour will comprise around 135 shows in 24 weeks across 65 cities.
OutinPerth’s Terry Larder caught up with ‘Numero Uno’, Graham Foote the musical director, on his most recent visit to Perth for Channel 7’s Telethon.
‘One of the most asked questions, I get is…Are you one of the original tenors?’ he chuckled without a hint of high pitch that one might expect from a tenor. And the answer is…’It’s a question that we always get asked and there is no satisfying answer given, because the fact of the matter is that we are not the original ten. What we are trying to establish is the brand of the Ten Tenors, one that is noted for achieving musical excellence and vocal virtuosity. Obviously we want to keep the personnel the same all the way through, but unfortunately it is an unrealistic goal,’ Foote explained.
In the late 1990s, a group of struggling students from the Queensland Conservatorium banded together to perform for fun and pocket money. Early Australian tours saw them perform in outback towns, regional centres and capital cities.
Night by night, the Ten Tenors honed their unique sound and developed their comedic edge, but the defining moment came in 2002, when the original members pooled their monies for a risky gamble in organising a five week concert tour of Germany. Their bold move paid off when all of the concerts sold-out and at one particular performance the director of Eurovision was there and immediately signed them up to perform at the German final of the Eurovision Song Contest. This was seen by an estimated 28 million TV viewers worldwide. ‘That was the defining moment for the group (Foote was not part of the Tenors then, he was a 17 year-old student in Melbourne) and for the Ten Tenors the start of a wonderful musical journey’, he remarked.
When challenged on his Facebook self-description as stubborn and having a fear of failure, Foote laughs boisterously. ‘I’m not good at everyday mundane things, so for me stage is like therapy; it’s where I become alive. And the stubborn thing, umm, guess I’m very stubborn as I have a very specific idea of how the group should sound.’ He explains. While being stubborn may be a foible for some, for Foote it can come in handy when as he says ‘The decision for the musical material is a democratic process where all participant have an equal say, however, at the end of the day the final decision has to rest with someone and as I am the musical director, guess that’s me!’.
Perth has been selected as the launch pad for the international premiere of their brand-new show, The Power of Ten, which will be held at the Quarry Amphitheatre on January 27th and 28th, 2010.
‘This is the first opportunity in nearly seven years that we will be starting a show that has not been predefined by an album that we’ve recorded. We normally record an album and then do concert tours to promote it, however, this time we are going to try the show first and get the show right, and then record the album. The Perth show will be best described as high octane classical in keeping with the symphonic classical elements but adding edgier material. The concert will begin with Thunderstruck (AC/DC) and The Show Must Go On (Queen) and also amongst many other songs also include an edgy version of the Anvil Chorus, Foote said with his usual emphatic candour.
With four live DVD’s and eight albums already to their credit (many multi-platinum) then this forthcoming Perth concert ticket at the Quarry should be one of the hot Christmas present ideas for OutinPerth readers. I for one have already been dropping not so subtle hints to Mr Santa. But hey, only good boys get presents!!
Terry Larder
