MUSIC : O.C. Chamber Orchestra’s Evening of Soloists : The 11-member group accompanied four soloists in works by Vivaldi, Albinoni, Purcell, Arne, Gluck and Handel at the Irvine Barclay Theatre.

Soliciting money for his Orange County Chamber Orchestra before it even played a note Monday night, music director Micah Levy joked that instead of going bankrupt, he preferred going “Baroque.”

Bad pun aside, it was a pretty tidy explanation for the concert to come. With monetary considerations apparently dictating at least some artistic decisions, it was a greatly reduced OCCO assembled on stage--11 members strong at its largest for this event at the Irvine Barclay Theatre. And that little band served merely as an accompanying force to the four soloists in a program devoted exclusively to--you guessed it--Baroque music.

As a programmatic backbone, the four concertos that make up Vivaldi’s “Four Seasons” were interspersed evenly throughout the agenda. Concertos by Albinoni, Vivaldi and arias by Purcell, Arne, Gluck and Handel made up the rest.

The most intriguing soloist proved to be guitarist Eric Henderson, in Vivaldi’s Guitar Concerto in D, R. 93, a work originally for lute. Henderson brought an impressive array of color and articulation to bear on the music, together with a generous vibrato, all of which, as far as historical authenticity is concerned, may be somewhat questionable.

But no matter. His sensitively shaded reading always fascinated, especially in the stately slow movement, where even repeated notes were offered in varied timbres.

Peter Scott, principal oboist of the OCCO, provided a sprightly and elegant performance of Albinoni’s Oboe Concerto, Opus 7, No. 3. He, too, was especially pleasing in the slow movement, with long, limpid crescendos and a gracefully traced singing line.

Violinist Kenneth Goldsmith, of the Mirecourt Trio, offered crisp and gleaming accounts of the overused “Four Seasons” concertos. Straightforwardly phrased and neatly played, his readings were always satisfying, though rarely compelling.

Mezzo-soprano Roberta Brickman gave solid run-throughs to Thomas Arne’s quaint “The Lass with the Delicate Air,” Handel’s “Ombra mai fu,” Gluck’s “O del mio dolce ardor” and Purcell’s “Dido’s Lament.” Levy and she didn’t always agree on tempos, so that her phrasing, in its timing for emotional nuance and breathing, sometimes seemed labored.

Otherwise, Levy and orchestra gave generally poised and energetic support to the soloists, though the conductor consistently had troubles starting his group together: It always seemed to take a few measures for the players to settle into his tempos.