The proper pairing of food and wine has become de rigueur at Napa Valley wineries, restaurants and among foodies, but pairing music and wine may be something new.

Napa musician and educator Jeffrey McFarland-Johnson, 52, has embarked on that endeavor as he expands his musical horizons to reach a wider audience. He terms it, “the symbiotic relationship between Bacchus and Apollo.”

With a shift in musical direction at Napa’s Downtown Joe’s, McFarland-Johnson can be heard there playing his cello or one of several unusual instruments that grab the audience members’ attention. “I’m surprised,” he said following an early fall gig there. “It’s been very well received.”

Putting his theory into practice, we chatted over a glass of J. Davies cabernet. In a prepared PR piece, McFarland-Johnson notes, “Wine tourism and the proliferation of wine club events have led consumers to expect multifaceted lifestyle experiences while visiting their favorite producers. To elevate the sophistication of their entertainment, vintners realize that live performances are a necessary component.”

Like many professional musicians, McFarland-Johnson started at an early age on the piano. Growing up in Modesto, he studied with a Juilliard-trained teacher until around age 12 when the Beatles and rock ’n’ roll grabbed him. Even before that, he took up the cello after being moved by a solo section in a Brahms symphony.

Despite earlier indications of “messages” in his presentations, he says there’s not a political viewpoint to his music. There is, however, spirituality. An Assembly of God minister recognized that during his youth and tried to steer him to the world of gospel music. He declined.

“I stay away from politics (in my music),” said McFarland-Johnson, “but it’s the closest thing to spiritual revelation. It’s a very powerful tool to bring people together.”

He attended the University of the Pacific and earned a degree in music performance then traveled to Helsinki, Finland in 1977 and studied at the Sibelius Academy. “All I did was practice 8 to 14 hours a day, and when I came back I was destitute,” he said. “I was eating beans and whole wheat bread.”

He met a tenor saxophonist with whom he clicked musically, and he began another aspect of his career. “It was a fascinating time of growth,” said McFarland-Johnson.

Encouraged by his wife of 23 years, Cynthia, he earned his master’s degree. “She really understands me and has been so important in all of this,” he said.

He has also touched hundreds of young lives, teaching music at Redwood Middle School for 17 years. After a year off, he moved from the band room to the classroom and currently teaches language arts to sixth-graders at Redwood.

His penchant for other, often-unusual instruments was also developing. “I love freaking out on the guitar,” he said, adding quickly, “I’m not a guitarist.”

He plays what he calls a KayByrd, a decades-old arch-top guitar with an old d’Armand pickup. “It has a very Napa sound,” he said. “It’s very chichi.”

He also plays a variety of other electronic instruments including the Cellektra, an electric, five-stringed cello. He once played the Indian sitar and employs either a recorded accompaniment or is joined by percussion and other combinations.

He resurrected the Theremin, one of the earliest electronic instruments some people might remember from the old Ed Sullivan TV show and sci-fi flicks. McFarland-Johnson bought his from sound pioneer Robert Moog.

McFarland-Johnson gets together with other musicians of like-minds whenever possible. They have formed a group they call COMA — the California Outside Musicians Association — specializing in avant-garde and experimental sounds.

McFarland-Johnson plays private parties, wedding receptions and makes the rounds of several nursing and retirement homes, playing for next to nothing at the latter in order bring music to those older lives and just to be heard.

At Downtown Joe’s, there is a newly installed pull-down stage and good acoustics. “Even the barflies like it,” he said of the clientele. “It’s better than Pachelbel at a wedding.”

People recognize the familiar and accessible melodies, some drawn from the classics, some from the worlds of jazz and pop. “We start growing together and have an evening. I always start with Bach,” whom he describes as close to musical perfection.

Looking to the future, McFarland-Johnson would like to get his doctorate, and “I’d like to play a gig before 2,000 people. I want the music to continue to flow.”