All That Jazz

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There’s a little bit of jazz for every taste this weekend, with eclectic guitarist Bill Frisell headlining the Jazz in the Park event Saturday at the Clark County Government Center Amphitheater, and the Nevada Jazz Orchestra’s Latin Jazz Connection concert Sunday in the Winchester Cultural Center.

Frisell, whose reach even extends into ballet and movies, has worked with just about everyone in the jazz and contemporary music fields. The list of names includes: Elvis Costello, Ginger Baker, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Suzanne Vega, Loudon Wainwright III, Van Dyke Parks, Rickie Lee Jones, Marianne Faithful, Vernon Reid, Hal Willner, The Frankfurt Ballet, film director Gus Van Sant, David Sanborn, Bono, Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois.

Born in Baltimore but raised in Denver, Frisell attended the Berklee School of Music in Boston.

"When I was 16, I was listening to a lot of surfing music, a lot of English rock," Frisell told Wire magazine. "Then I saw Wes Montgomery and somehow that kind of turned me around. Later, Jim Hall made a big impression on me and I took some lessons with him. I suppose I play the kind of harmonic things Jim would play but with a sound that comes from Jimi Hendrix."

He went on to become a studio musician at ECM Records.

But in 1989 he moved to Seattle and recorded a string of successful albums, including "Ghost Town," "Blues Dream" and "The Willies."

His work has ranged outside of traditional and experimental jazz, too, with "Nashville," his album of Americana, and the 2005 Grammy-winning contemporary jazz album "Unspeakable."

Seating for those with picnic baskets, blankets and low-back chairs will begin at 7 p.m. Food vendors also will be available on site. Parking is free.

Meanwhile, the Nevada Jazz Orchestra will present one of its most popular annual concerts, featuring Latin jazz.

Led by artistic director Barry Ross, the 18-piece orchestra will perform new arrangements by Ross, in addition to some traditional jazz.

The band was formed in the early 1990s by musicians Walt Blanton and Dan Skea for a Las Vegas Jazz Society music series. In 1994, two years after he moved to Las Vegas, Ross became music director.

Ross is an internationally recognized trombonist, composer, bandleader and music educator, who toured with professional orchestras, including that of Glenn Miller.

He also has played on Broadway and was on staff as lead trombonist and arranger at RIAS Berlin, where he founded the RIAS Big Band jazz orchestra. While in Germany, Ross also taught at the Berlin College of Performing Arts.

He returned to the United States in 1992 and became music director of the Nevada Jazz Orchestra in 1996.