WHAT'S ON

Tomorrow Scott Hamilton appears with Steve Fishwick's Quartet at Darlington Arts Centre, 01325-486555, and the three-day Gateshead Jazz Festival at the Sage also begins then.

The headliners include Cleo Laine and John Dankworth, Gilberto Gil and John Schofield with over 30 other groups. 0191-443- 4661.

CD REVIEW

Guy Barker/The Amadeus Project (Global Mix GM2CD02)

Inspired by Mozart, this double CD by Guy Barker's Jazz Orchestra is magnificent.

The music, all newly written by Guy, is exciting and colourful, making full use of all the sounds available in a big band and featuring Guy himself in outstanding form on trumpet, as well as Rosario Giuliani, Barnaby Dickinson and Jim Watson among others. The first disc, dZf, brings a witty rewriting by Robert Ryan of the Magic Flute story.

It's set in New York with actor Michael Brandon spot on as the world weary narrator. Disc 2, The Amadeus Suite, draws inspiration from characters in the Flute and other Mozart operas although all the music is Guy's. It's all beautifully played and recorded, one of the best big band recordings I've heard.