Cantori Domino Delivers Modest ‘St. John’

Of the five Passions Bach is supposed to have written, only two that are considered canonical have survived. Of these, the earlier “St. John” gets performed far less frequently than the popular “St. Matthew.” So, when it does, it is an occasion.

Last year, the mighty Los Angeles Master Chorale sang the work a few weeks before Easter. This year, Maurita Phillips-Thornburgh’s modest Cantori Domino sang it under her straightforward direction Friday at Westwood United Methodist Church.

The language was English, and the music for four chorales was distributed in the program booklet so that the audience--or was it the congregation?--could sing along. For Bach never intended the Passions as entertainment. They were religious services.

The timing on Good Friday (for the Western church; Easter for the Eastern Orthodox church falls a week later) was deliberate, and Eli Villanueva, singing the role of Jesus, appeared symbolically dressed in an immaculate white robe.

After Jesus’ death, conductor Phillips-Thornburgh took a very long dramatic pause. After the whole performance, she held up the score for the audience’s approval. There were elements of ritual in all this.

Unfortunately, the performance didn’t much justify it.

Villanueva’s lyric baritone, modestly and intelligently employed, at least met professional standards. Warren Hays, the amplified Evangelist, on the other hand, must have been having a bad day and was unreliable. Most of the other singers were barely adequate; some character soloists drawn from the chorus were not even that.

Fortunately, the chorus as a whole sang with honed and blended sound. It was well supported by a small orchestra, with lovely continuo and obbligato work provided by cellist Frederic Seykora and harpsichord-organist Mary Gerlitz, among others.