Ben Herod completes a complicated calendar to honor his passion for playing saxophone.

King Herod was a tyrannical ruler who presided over Judea around the time of the birth of Christ. Local multi-instrumentalist Ben Herod is… the polar opposite.

He exudes humility. His soft-spoken nature belies a passion – and talent – for music making, and a work ethic that helps Monterey jazz circles go.

“I always seem to have a bunch of gigs going on, hired-gun kind of things,” Herod says, “where people need a sax player.”

He currently plays with more than a half dozen groups, in addition to giving private lessons and stewarding the Monterey Live Jazz group page on Facebook, a clearinghouse for upcoming jazz gigs around the area.

Andrea Carter, who fronts Andrea’s Fault, remembers seeing him play at the Alvarado Street farmers market years ago and wishing they could collaborate. “When you see someone playing so well, you just assume they’re spoken for,” Carter says, “so at first I didn’t think of approaching him.” Carter eventually formed Jazzbos3 with guitarist Darrin Michell and Herod in 2014, and they continue to play 11am-2pm Sundays at Cypress Inn in Carmel. They also play 5:30-8:30pm every Saturday in July and Aug. 5, 12 and 26 as part of a new Sizzlin’ Summer Jazz Series at Cibo Ristorante in downtown Monterey.

Jazzbos3’s playlist is “all over the place,” Herod says. “There’s jazz standards, but also some folk, and even some Hank Williams and Tom Waits.”

“Ben is a gem,” Carter says. “He never shows off or overplays. His playing is so tasteful and sweet, it just makes me happy.”

Familiar to local fans as a member of edgy swamp rockers The Suborbitals, these days he also appears 7-10pm Thursdays at Cibo as the Ben Herod Trio with pianist Scotty Wright and bassist Joe Dolister. (“It’s only called The Ben Herod Trio because that’s what Cibo calls us,” he hastens to add. “It’s not my trio.”)

Herod plays alto, baritone, tenor and soprano saxes, clarinet and flute – and percussion, but not in the usual sense. He plays a cardboard box with drummer’s brushes and adds a small tambourine or a tiny maraca-like shaker to his foot with a bungee cord. Taken together it’s amazing.

“You can’t play saxophone the whole time – it can be too much,” he says. “You’ve got to let the music breathe. This gives me something to do when I’m not playing sax.”

And as long as he’s playing music, he’s good. “I’m making a career out of doing what I love,” Herod says. “You can’t ask for better than that, you know?”

CIBO’S SIZZLIN’ SUMMER LIVE JAZZ SERIES 5:30-8:30 pm Fridays and Saturdays through August. Cibo Ristorante Italiano, 301 Alvarado St., Monterey. 649-8151, cibo.com.