Guy Barker facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Guy Barker
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Guy Barker and Jean Toussaint in 2007
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Guy Jeffrey Barker |
| Born | 26 December 1957 Chiswick, London, England |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) |
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| Instruments | Trumpet |
| Years active | 1975–present |
| Associated acts | Clark Tracey |
Guy Jeffrey Barker is a famous English jazz musician. He plays the trumpet and also writes music. He was born on December 26, 1957, in London, England. He has played with many well-known artists and leads his own bands.
Contents
Early Life and Music Beginnings
Guy Barker was born in Chiswick, a part of London. His mother was an actress and his father was a stuntman. Guy started playing the trumpet when he was twelve years old. Just one year later, he joined the National Youth Jazz Orchestra. By the age of 15, he was already performing with other musicians like Wally Fawkes.
A Career in Jazz Music
Guy Barker learned from the famous trumpet player Clark Terry in 1975. In the 1980s, Guy played with many jazz legends. These included John Dankworth, Gil Evans, Lena Horne, and Bobby Watson. He toured and recorded with Gil Evans' orchestra in 1983.
Playing with Other Artists
From 1984 to 1992, Guy was a member of Clark Tracey's quintet. As a sideman, which means playing with other artists, he worked with many different musicians and bands. Some of these include Ornette Coleman, Carla Bley, Frank Sinatra, Sting, and The Moody Blues. He also played with pop groups like Wham!, ABC, and Erasure.
Leading His Own Bands
Guy Barker has also led his own bands. One of his bands included musicians from different countries. For example, Perico Sambeat from Spain played alto saxophone. Bernardo Sassetti from Portugal played piano.
More recently, he has toured with the Guy Barker Jazz Orchestra. This is a big band with 15 musicians. They performed a special show called DZF. It was a new version of Mozart's famous opera, Magic Flute. The story was retold in a detective style by Robert Ryan.
Music Director and Awards
Guy Barker was the music director and arranger for the "Jazz Voice" concert. This concert opened the London Jazz Festival every year from 2008 to 2014. He also worked on several BBC Radio 2 shows. These shows celebrated the music of artists like Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald.
In 2013, Guy Barker received the BASCA Gold Badge. He was also given a special honor in 2015. He was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE). This award was for his great contributions to jazz music.
Music Albums
Guy Barker has released several of his own albums. Here are some of them:
- Isn't It? (1991)
- Into the Blue (1995)
- Timeswing (1996)
- What Love Is (1998)
- Soundtrack (2001)
- The Amadeus Project (2007)
He also recorded with Mike Westbrook on the album The Cortège in 1982.
See also
- List of jazz arrangers
