Terence Blanchard has one of the great charged tones in modern jazz. His protean trumpet can come off sleek or soulful, invigorated or exasperated, often all those at once. Blanchard’s horn is listenable but never easy, seemingly living in a higher, more pitched emotional register. It’s no wonder that he’s become a go-to film score composer. The man can make a mood.
By Theo Schell-Lambert