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An English tenor with Straide and Foxford connections has been dubbed the ‘Operatic Voice of Sport’.
Sing when you’re winning
Tenor Sean Ruane is making a name for himself on a variety of stages across the world
Anton McNulty
FOR the people of Foxford and Straide, the recent football international between England and Germany at Wembley was a special occasion. Not because the Germans defeated the English on their own patch but because one of their own, Seán Ruane, had the honour of singing the national anthems before 90,000 people at the new Wembley Stadium and millions more on television. Opera singer Seán may have grown up in the industrial town of Bacup near Burnley in east Lancashire but his Mayo pedigree cannot be disputed with his father Peter coming from Foxford and his mother Mary from Straide. Bacup was not nicknamed ‘Co Mayo’ for nothing and Seán, along with his seven brothers and sisters, were brought up on a strong diet of The Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. “When we were kids we all spent our summers in Mayo and like everyone else we would help save the hay and clean out the cow sheds. We would always be outside with our extended family and cousins and playing in the fields. We stayed in our Granddad’s old house which was only a two bedroom cottage but we loved going there. At home we were brought up in an Irish tradition and would go to the Irish club for boxing training and listen to the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. We were surrounded by Irish people and its traditions,” he said. At 40, Seán’s career has come a long way since turning professional in 2001 and last month he signed a five album record deal with Warner Music Entertainment which also includes two DVD releases. He is regarded as one of the leading tenors of his generation and has sang and performed all over the world. However it is on sporting occasions where Sean has become best known and he even has been described as the ‘Operatic Voice of Sport’. He has performed at high profile sporting events including The Ashes Tests, the Rugby League Cup Final and Football and Rugby Internationals. He led The Ashes celebrations in Trafalgar Square and was invited by the Australian Cricket Board to perform before the last year’s Ashes series in Australia. “I first sang a few years ago at the Ireland versus Italy rugby match at Lansdowne Road and it has taken off from there, more-so for the cricket and football. It has taken me all over the world. I was out in Sydney in January for the cricket and it was unbelievable singing in stadiums with 80,000 people. Singing at Wembley was scary because as soon as I started singing the German anthem, the booing was deafening. I couldn’t hear the music and with millions of people watching on television I had to tell myself to concentrate and keep it together. “There is a niche out there for sport and music which crosses any nationality or language barriers. The record company saw me at sporting events and it is great to be able to straddle both music and sport worldwide. Personally for me to have such a great interest in sport and see great sportsmen like Shane Warne and Ronan O’Gara within touching distance, while doing my job is something else. I do have to pinch myself sometimes. I played football and rugby at home in Lancashire and I always wanted to play Gaelic football but the nearest club was in Manchester which was too far away. While I have played in some big stadiums, I would love to perform before an All-Ireland Final at Croke Park, that would be a dream come true,” he said. As one can imagine, growing up in a bleak working class estate in Lancashire meant opera was not high on the list of pastimes among the masses. Sean admits that his first time at the opera - a visit to the Convent Garden on a class outing - was short and sweet as he and his mates exited after a ‘boring’ first act. At that time, Sean was more obsessed with being the next Bono but after watching Pavarotti during Italia ‘90 he started to take a real interest in opera. With a career in rock consigned to the scrapheap, Sean was accepted on a degree course at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester and later received a scholarship to go to Italy where he trained his voice for opera. The rest as they is history. Despite his success he has not forgotten where he comes from and is grateful for the support he has got from his relatives and friends in Mayo. He certainly has no problem obliging people with a song when he is down by the Moy on holiday. He admits that travelling from hotel room to hotel room can be difficult but he brings his wife Louise and two year old daughter, Scarlet, on as many trips as possible. He enjoys the lifestyle but stresses that he feels very privileged and lucky. “I really do feel lucky because growing up as a kid was hard and I could easily have gone in another direction. I take it all in my stride and will not allow myself to get carried away by it all. It is a job at the end of the day and I have been given a talent, but the minute you start to become a bit precious, I will be soon told where to go.” To many, 40 years of age may seem late to start a music career but Seán explains that his voice is still developing and he has another 15 years of a career ahead of him. While he has performed in some of the most famous arenas in the world, performing in front of his family and friends is what he loves best and he looks forward to performing in Mayo in the near future.
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This one-woman show stars Brídín Ní Mhaoldomhnaigh, an actress, writer and presenter who has several screen credits including her role as Katy Daly on Ros na Rún, and the award-winning TV drama Crá
Breaffy Rounders will play Glynn Barntown (Wexford) in the Senior Ladies Final and Erne Eagles (Cavan) in the Senior Men's All-Ireland Final in the GAA National Games Development Centre, Abbotstown
Breaffy Rounders will play Glynn Barntown (Wexford) in the Senior Ladies Final and Erne Eagles (Cavan) in the Senior Men's All-Ireland Final in the GAA National Games Development Centre, Abbotstown
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