Guitarist Jesse Cook had an international upbringing, which is reflected in his musical style. Born in Paris and raised in France, Spain and Canada, Cook absorbed a range of music during his youth, and his early mentors included Canadian classical guitarist Eli Kassner and Gipsy Kings frontman Nicolas Reyes.
He studied at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Canada and the Berklee College of Music in Boston, but he spent just as much time immersed in the folk traditions of flamenco and rumba music. The result is a singular and influential body of work, combining classical, jazz, flamenco and world music, that has earned Cook multiple Juno Awards and garnered him a following around the globe. “When I’m composing, it’s like I’m cooking,” Cook told Guitar World last year before the release of his most recent album, Beyond Borders (an appropriate title for a musician whose work transcends boundaries). “I throw all my favorite ingredients in the pot. I try to combine ingredients I’ve never heard together before. It’s a risk; you never known how it’s going to turn out. But sometimes you’re lucky, and you find magic.”
Red Rock Resort, 8 p.m. Oct. 12, starting at $45 plus tax and fee. 800.745.3000
