MUSIC REVIEWS : Paulist Boys Sing a Complete ‘Messiah’ in Westwood

Dedicated to the memory of Henry Mancini--a composer-conductor who encouraged emerging musical talents assiduously--the Paulist Boys Choristers of California’s first complete performance of Handel’s “Messiah,” Friday night, proved the choir of 14 boys and nine men up to the demands of this exposing masterpiece.

Such accomplishment promises more, of course, as the group, led by music director Dana T. Marsh, polishes its balances and text definition, learns to pace its energies and focuses more pointedly on the work’s dramatic continuity. In this initial outing, however, heard in the spacious sanctuary of St. Paul the Apostle parish in Westwood, many virtues were already in place.

Marsh’s conducting kept the work in motion. The gifted 18-player orchestra performed splendidly, as a cohesive body and with strong soloism. Three vocal soloists, including countertenor Marsh and baritone Edward Levy, proved efficient, if not always clear in word or note. And the choristers came prepared, for the most part, to sing stylishly and with genuine confidence.

In a performance that did not often stress the meaning of the text, some successful moments stood out: tenor Jeffrey Thomas’ touching singing of the four recitatives and airs beginning, “Thy rebuke hath broken His heart”; the Choristers’ purity of sound and emotional projection at both “All we like sheep”; and in the concluding, “Worthy is the Lamb.” Throughout, the orchestra gave object lessons in Baroque playing.