THE darkened shell of St Luke’s Church was the scene of a one-off musical performance last night.

Guitarist Neil Campbell took over Liverpool’s “bombed-out church” for his production, Ghost Stories: A Night Opera, which began just as the sun started setting at 9pm.

His acoustic guitar-playing accompanied Liverpool-born soprano Anne Taft, while a recorded soundscape of wind and other effects helped to evoke a mysterious atmosphere.

The musicians played in front of a video backdrop.

Campbell released the composition on CD last October, and it has received acclaim from music critics.

A collaboration with promoter Bill Elms, of Bill Elms Associates, Ghost Stories is also being performed as part of the Wirral International Guitar Festival at Birkenhead Priory in November, and is hoped to tour other UK cities and festivals in 2010.

Designed by John Foster, construction of St Luke’s Church began on April 9, 1811, and the chapel was consecrated on January 12, 1831.

The building was hit by an incendiary bomb on May 5, 1941, and still stands as a burned-out shell and unofficial memorial to those who lost their lives in the Blitz.

In 2007, community arts and music group Urban Strawberry Lunch took up the position of the church’s artists in residence, and host regular events.