LIMITED EDITIONS : Bob Florence Writes Compositions With Specific Players, and a Certain Ensemble, in Mind

Bob Florence has written music for a seemingly endless list of big-name musicians, including Buddy Rich, Count Basie, Sergio Mendes, Si Zentner, Louis Bellson, Harry James (his rendition of “Up a Lazy River” was a minor hit for the bandleader in the early 1960s), and Doc Severinsen’s “Tonight Show” band. In addition, Florence also writes for and accompanies vocalists Vikki Carr and Julie Andrews.

But the ensemble he most enjoys composing for is his own Limited Edition big band. The name, he said in a recent phone conversation from his home in Thousand Oaks, came a few years after the group was founded in 1978.

“It’s really a term of endearment. It just hit me one day that the players in the group are of a caliber you just don’t find on every street corner. It’s really a limited edition. It’s my way of praising all the players that have passed through the band.”

Individuals are important to the Limited Edition, and to Florence when he is writing for the band.

“I read an article a few years ago where Duke (Ellington) said ‘when I’m writing, I can see the person in front of me; I can just visualize them playing.’ Somehow, that got indelibly etched into my brain. So I’ve always done that, no matter what the project was. If I know who the musician will be, I write with them specifically in mind, even if it’s the fourth trumpet player.”

So it follows that what the band plays in concert--on Friday, the 19-piece ensemble kicks off this year’s Jazz Live at the Hyatt series sponsored by the Hyatt Newporter in Newport Beach and jazz radio station KLON-FM--depends on who’s there to play.

“The nightmare is to make sure all those great soloists--and there are about 11 of them--all get a chance to play at least once and maybe twice. I’ll put a list together, then realize oh, no, I left this guy or that guy out.”

Friday at the Hyatt, the group will play tunes from its latest album, “Funupsmanship” (on the MAMA Foundation label) as well as selections from previous efforts. Included in the band will be trumpeter Steve Huffsteter (“he’s such a poet, and can work with such fire,” Florence said with enthusiasm), trumpeter Warren Luening (“he can do everything there is to do on the instrument”), Don Shelton on lead alto sax and drummer Steve Houghton.

Florence, who gives seminars on the idea process behind composing, says he rarely relies on the piano when he composes.

“I’ll use it in the same way you use a dictionary, just to check spelling or the meaning of a particular word. Luckily though, I can usually keep four or five things going in my mind when I’m working.

“As for where ideas come from,” he said, “mine are usually more musically based than inspired by the weather report or a traffic accident or some such thing. Maybe someone will give me a title, or I’ll have a title in my head and I’ll write to that.

“Who really knows where ideas come from? They can pop up anywhere, from even the most unexpected source.”

* What: Bob Florence Limited Edition.

* When: Friday, May 28, at 7:30 p.m.

* Where: The Outdoor Amphitheatre, Hyatt Newporter, 1107 Jamboree Road, Newport Beach.

* Whereabouts: Take the San Diego (405) Freeway to Jamboree Road. Go west on Jamboree to Newporter Drive and turn left onto the Hyatt grounds.

* Wherewithal: $15.

* Where to call: (714) 729-1234.