Terence Blanchard

The music of trumpeter and composer Terence Blanchard has reached lots of listeners who may not even have been fully aware of it: His scores have provided the undercurrent for many of Spike Lee’s films, and Blanchard even has a Golden Globe nomination (for his work on Lee’s 25th Hour) and a Grammy win (for his work on the McCoy Tyner-led Illuminations) on his résumé. A veteran of Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, Blanchard would rather be blowing his horn than writing out charts, though. With its colorful mix of flavors and styles, from modern jazz to standard bop to Cuban, Blanchard’s group—here in support of 2009's Choices—promises to be a crowd-pleaser.

Updated 08/25/2010