Biography
Terence Blanchard is an American jazz trumpeter and composer. Born on 13 March 1962 in New Orleans, Louisiana, he studied at the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts and Rutgers University. He performed with the Lionel Hampton Orchestra and joined Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers in 1982 before forming his own groups.
Blanchard has composed scores for more than 80 films and television productions. He has worked extensively with director Spike Lee, providing music for Jungle Fever (1991), Malcolm X (1992), 25th Hour (2002), Inside Man (2006), BlacKkKlansman (2018) and Da 5 Bloods (2020), among others. He received Academy Award nominations for original score for the latter two films.
He has also written two operas. His opera Fire Shut Up in My Bones was staged by the Metropolitan Opera in the 2021–2022 season, the first by an African American composer in the company's history.
