Terence Blanchard
Birth Name:
Terence Oliver Blanchard
Birth Place:
New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
Profession
Composer, Music department, Actor, Producer
Fast Facts
- Served as director for the Thelonius Monk Institute of Jazz for 10 years
- Won his first Grammy as bandleader in 2008 for "A Tale of God's Will (A Requiem for Katrina)․"
- Attended Rutgers University in 1980, studying under Bill Fiedler and Paul Jeffrey
- While still in high school, attended the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, studying under teachers Ellis Marsalis and Roger Dickerson
- Appeared on screen in Spike Lee's Hurricane Katrina documentary, "When the Levees Broke," during a scene in which he and his upsettingly mother return home to find it demolished
- First learned to play the piano at age 5, and the trumpet at age 8
- Following successful collaborations for the Spike Lee films "Do the Right Thing" and "Mo' Better Blues," he served as composer for every one of the filmmaker's movies since
- Has composed more than 40 film scores, making him one of the most prolific jazz musicians to compose for film and TV
- In August 2011, he left the Monk Institute to become the Artistic Director of the Mancini Institute at the University of Miami's Frost School of Music
- In the early 1980s, joined Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers, replacing Wynton Marsalis and serving as the musical director for four years
- Was commissioned by the Opera Theatre St․ Louis to compose a score for the 2013 opera Champion, which profiles the life of boxer Emile Griffith, marking the first opera he has scored
- Most recently known to live in the Garden District of New Orleans with his wife and children
- Was a childhood friend of fellow trumpetist Wynton Marsalis
Awards
- 2002Sierra Award - Best Score:Winner
- 2003COFCA Award - Best Score:Winner
- 2003Golden Globe - Best Original Score - Motion Picture:Nominated
- 2003Golden Satellite Award - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2003World Soundtrack Award - Soundtrack Composer of the Year:Nominated
- 2005Black Reel - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2007Black Reel - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2008HFCS Award - Best Original Score:Winner
- 2013Black Reel - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2015Black Reel - Outstanding Score:Nominated
- 2016Black Reel - Outstanding Score:Nominated
- 2018DOC LA Award - Best Composer:Winner
- 2018HMMA Award - Best Original Score - Feature Film:Nominated
- 2018LAOFCS Award - Best Score:Nominated
- 2018SFFCC Award - Best Original Score:Winner
- 2018SLFCA Award - Best Score:Winner
- 2019Oscar - Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original Score):Nominated
- 2019BAFTA Film Award - Original Music:Nominated
- 2019Black Reel - Outstanding Score:Nominated
- 2019COFCA Award - Best Score:Nominated
- 2019GAFCA Award - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2019HMMA Award - Best Original Score - Feature Film:Nominated
- 2019Satellite Award - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2019Satellite Award - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2020CFCA Award - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2020GWNYFCA Award - Best Score:Nominated
- 2020IFJA Award - Best Musical Score:Nominated
- 2021Oscar - Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures (Original Score):Nominated
- 2021AFCA Award - Best Score:Nominated
- 2021DFCS Award - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2021DFCA Award - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2021HFCS Award - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2021IFMCA Award - Best Original Score for a Drama Film:Nominated
- 2021LEJA Award - Best Musical Score:Nominated
- 2021MNFCA Award - Best Music:Nominated
- 2021MCFCA Award - Best Score:Nominated
- 2021OFCS Award - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2021SFBAFCC Award - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2021SFBAFCC Award - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2021Satellite Award - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2021SFCS Award - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2021SCL Award - Outstanding Original Score for a Studio Film:Nominated
- 2022HMMA Award - Best Original Score - Feature Film:Winner
- 2022IFJA Award - Best Musical Score:Nominated
- 2022Primetime Emmy - Outstanding Music Composition for a Documentary Series or Special (Original Dramatic Score):Nominated
- 2023Black Reel - Outstanding Score:Winner
- 2023Black Reel - Outstanding Original Song:Nominated
- 2023GMS Award - Best Song Written and/or Recorded for a Film:Nominated
- 2023HMMA Award - Best Original Score - TV Show/Limited Series:Nominated
- 2023Satellite Award - Best Original Score:Nominated
- 2026Black Reel - Outstanding Score:Nominated