Terence Blanchard E-Collective: Absence

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 the majority of director Spike Lee’s work, making Blanchard the most prolific jazz artist working in film. Blanchard 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 never ventured into, with a band made up of musicians who truly stand at the vanguard of today’s jazz.

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 “Fall,” “When It Was Over,” and “Diana.” The centerpiece of the album is Blanchard’s original “I Dare You,” which references Shorter’s famous definition of the nature of jazz.