Terence Blanchard E-Collective & Turtle Island Quartet

“A brass-wielding force of nature” (Los Angeles Times), trumpeter and SFJAZZ Executive Artistic Director Terence Blanchard performs with his GRAMMY-nominated E-Collective, joined by the acclaimed Turtle Island Quartet, performing music from his 2005 GRAMMY-nominated album Flow (Thu), 2007 GRAMMY-winning recording A Tale of God's Will (A Requiem for Katrina), and with legendary vocalist and 2018 NEA Jazz Master Dianne Reeves (Sun).

A savvy bandleader, celebrated film composer, brilliant jazz writer, and influential educator, the GRAMMY-winning New Orleans native is a major creative force in the contemporary jazz scene. He has composed over 40 movie scores, including soundtracks for most of director Spike Lee’s work, making Blanchard the most prolific jazz artist working in film. He conceived the E-Collective to explore the intersection of jazz, R&B, funk, and fusion, and describes the project as an outlet to satisfy a yearning he’s had for years to explore areas of music that he’s always loved but rarely ventured into.

The E-Collective’s second release, Absence, is a celebration of Wayne Shorter’s impact on jazz and on Blanchard in particular, made up of original compositions by the band and Turtle Island violinist David Balakirshnan, along with stimulating takes on Shorter’s immortal compositions and Blanchard’s original “I Dare You,” which references Shorter’s famous definition of the fundamental definition of jazz.