"JAZZ noir" or “Mozart in the style of Mickey Spillane" are some of the evocative phrases that describe the work of Guy Barker.
His The Amadeus Project is a jazz interpretation of Mozart's The Magic Flute, with the action rewritten by crime writer Robert Ryan and narrated by Michael Brandon.
He brings the unique show to the Philharmonic Hall on September 25.
“This project has a long history that goes back about 10 years," he says.
“I never really listened to Mozart before I had this opportunity.
“I had a quartet and I was approached and asked if I'd like to play a festival in San Francisco called Mostly Mozart, and because I only do jazz, I kissed the idea goodbye.
“But then I got a call from another friend, out of the blue, who said he'd got a good idea - he said Mozart's operas were full of really dodgy characters, very colourful, funny and down to earth, great stories, and I should write something about them.
“I started listening to the operas, listening to the stories and composing."
After making it to the Mostly Mozart festival after all, the project started to expand and in 2006 Guy was called back to get involved in festivities to mark the 250th anniversary of the composer's birth.
He began to look at the story of the Magic Flute ("completely nuts," he laughs), and called his friend Liverpool-born writer Robert Ryan for a hand.
“I sent him a copy and asked if he could do anything with it. He sent me back a 3,000-word story as if it had been written by Mickey Spillane.
“The characters are all there - Prince Termino becomes a trumpeter called Bobby Termino, the Three Ladies become the three hookers and so on.
“The serpent is a drug dealer called The Viper.
“Some bits sound 1940s, others sound like James Brown, bits that are almost gospel and some latin sections - all sorts of stuff, because it is telling a story."
There was one voice in particular Guy could hear narrating the tale.
His The Amadeus Project is a jazz interpretation of Mozart's The Magic Flute, with the action rewritten by crime writer Robert Ryan and narrated by Michael Brandon.
He brings the unique show to the Philharmonic Hall on September 25.
“This project has a long history that goes back about 10 years," he says.
“I never really listened to Mozart before I had this opportunity.
“I had a quartet and I was approached and asked if I'd like to play a festival in San Francisco called Mostly Mozart, and because I only do jazz, I kissed the idea goodbye.
“But then I got a call from another friend, out of the blue, who said he'd got a good idea - he said Mozart's operas were full of really dodgy characters, very colourful, funny and down to earth, great stories, and I should write something about them.
“I started listening to the operas, listening to the stories and composing."
After making it to the Mostly Mozart festival after all, the project started to expand and in 2006 Guy was called back to get involved in festivities to mark the 250th anniversary of the composer's birth.
He began to look at the story of the Magic Flute ("completely nuts," he laughs), and called his friend Liverpool-born writer Robert Ryan for a hand.
“I sent him a copy and asked if he could do anything with it. He sent me back a 3,000-word story as if it had been written by Mickey Spillane.
“The characters are all there - Prince Termino becomes a trumpeter called Bobby Termino, the Three Ladies become the three hookers and so on.
“The serpent is a drug dealer called The Viper.
“Some bits sound 1940s, others sound like James Brown, bits that are almost gospel and some latin sections - all sorts of stuff, because it is telling a story."
There was one voice in particular Guy could hear narrating the tale.
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