Bill Frisell Celebrates 75th Birthday with New Album “In My Dreams” and Special Tour

Veteran guitarist Bill Frisell, one of the most influential voices in contemporary jazz, has released his latest album, In My Dreams, his fifth for Blue Note Records. The record is a family reunion of sorts, bringing together some of Frisell’s closest collaborators in a unique sextet featuring Jenny Scheinman on violin, Eyvind Kang on viola, Hank Roberts on cello, Thomas Morgan on bass, and Rudy Royston on drums. Though the musicians share decades of history, this particular lineup had never performed together before. On In My Dreams, they explore wide-ranging American music, from jazz and Americana staples to Frisell originals, blending deep camaraderie with musical innovation.

Frisell, whom The New Yorker calls a “mild-mannered maverick [who] has made a colossal impact,” turns 75 on March 18 and will celebrate with a series of milestone concerts across the United States this spring. Fans can experience his artistry live at venues including the Blue Note Jazz Club in Los Angeles, SFJAZZ’s Herbst Theatre in San Francisco, the Appel Room at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York, and many more.

Bill Frisell 75th Birthday Concerts:

• March 4-5 – Blue Note Jazz Club – Los Angeles, CA

• March 7 – SFJAZZ @ Herbst Theatre – San Francisco, CA

• March 12 – PDX Jazz @ Aladdin Theater – Portland, OR

• March 13 – Moore Theatre – Seattle, WA

• March 19 – Federal Theatre – Denver, CO

• March 21 – Nelson Atkins Theatre – Kansas City, MO

• March 22 – Philbrook Museum – Tulsa, OK

• March 27-28 – Appel Room @ Jazz at Lincoln Center – New York, NY

• March 29 – Sellersville Theatre – Sellersville, PA

The inspiration for In My Dreams reaches back more than three decades, stemming from a vivid, transformative dream. Frisell recalls awakening in a majestic library, surrounded by hooded, monk-like figures who revealed “what colors really look like” and “what real music sounds like.” The experience offered an intense, crystalline clarity of sound — from Nino Rota to Thelonious Monk, Jimi Hendrix to Hank Williams — leaving an indelible impression that he has pursued ever since.

“The dream was about purity and vibrancy in music,” Frisell explains. “There have been times, over the years, where I’d be playing with these guys and it felt like I was approaching that dream I had all those years ago, where all that music was happening simultaneously.”

In My Dreams can be seen as a fusion of two core ensembles in Frisell’s career: his trio with Morgan and Royston, most recently featured on 2020’s Valentine, and his longtime string collaborators Scheinman, Kang, and Roberts, who debuted together 20 years ago on Richter 858. This union of trusted musicians, who have crossed paths in performances and recordings for decades, imbues the album with remarkable chemistry.

The album’s production, overseen by Lee Townsend with engineering by Adam Muñoz, captures both spontaneity and sonic precision. Core tracks were recorded live during 2025 concerts in Brooklyn, Denver, and New Haven, while additional studio work at Berkeley’s Opus Studios added lush textures and soundscapes. The result is a hybrid recording that marries the immediacy of live performance with the sonic craft possible only in the studio, creating a deeply immersive listening experience.