Gear

"I change my gear quite often, so below are pictures and descriptions of some of the setups ive gone through during the years. The picture to the right is one of my more recent boards. It goes like this: bassoon into Little Jake bassoon pickup that is attached to the neck (bocal) of the bassoon-that leads to a LR Baggs 9V powered preamp on the floor closest to the camera. Then-It goes into the thing on the left-a Avalon U5 direct box. Then-into the main unit that you will see in a lot of pictures because I’ve been using it since about 2012. That would be the thing with the blue light-the TC Helicon Voice Live 2. Then, I have it sent to the Boomerang Looper." 

"Here at another show (picture below) I added an EHX POG2 pedal that goes before the TC Voice Live and I normally just don’t bother with taking the Avalon. I don’t have a roadie so I hate bringing too much. You can’t see it but I also have a MXR Bass Envelope Filter-I love that unit." 

Now I will talk about gear. This shot (below to the right) features a lot of instruments I play. I'll go from left to right.

Yamaha Soprano Saxophone (won it in 1995 from JAZZIZ Magazine). I use a Bari rubber soprano sax mouthpiece with Rico Royal 3 reeds. Selmer Mark VI Tenor Saxophone (serial numbers around 64,000). I play a Vandoren metal mouthpiece that's somewhat open with Vandoren Jazz reeds strength 3. Selmer Mark VI Alto Saxophone. I use a brass Lawton mouthpiece that's medium open with Rico Royal 3s. There's a bunch of stuff in this rack that's not mine. My Studio Vocalist harmonizer is dead-I just purchased a Digitech IPS 33 which is older and sounds better but does less harmonies-that's fine! My beautiful Moosmann 200AP bassoon. I use Legere Reeds Bassoon Reeds and I am proud to be a Moosmann bassoon artist. I currently use Leitzinger bocals-I alternate between the gold-plated one for ease of playing in loud and high passages and the silver bocal for more of a classical sound.  I also have a Yamaha WX5 instead of an Akai EWI. I use Logic 9 sounds and I am starting to get into other sound samplers such as Kontakt and Komplete. 

Oscar nominee, six-time Grammy-winner and 2018 USA Fellow trumpeter/composer Terence Blanchard has been a consistent artistic force for making powerful musical statements concerning painful American tragedies – past and present.

From his expansive work composing the scores for Spike Lee films ranging from the documentary When the Levees Broke, about Blanchard’s hometown of New Orleans during the devastation from Hurricane Katrina to the epic Malcolm X; and the latest Lee film, Da 5 Bloods which was released by Netflix on June 12, Blanchard has interwoven melodies that created strong backdrops to human stories.

Blanchard received an Oscar nomination for his original score for Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman. He was also BAFTA nominated for his original music for the film. He won a Grammy for Best Instrumental Composition for writing “Blut Und Boden (Blood and Soil)” a track from BlacKkKlansman.

More recently, Blanchard has composed his second opera, Fire Shut Up in My Bones, based on the memoir of celebrated writer and The New York Times columnist Charles Blow. The libretto was written by Kasi Lemmons and commissioned by Opera Theatre of Saint Louis where it premiered in June 2019. The New York Times has called Blanchard’s opera “inspiring,” “subtly powerful” and “a bold affecting adaptation of Charles Blow’s work.” The Metropolitan Opera will premiere Fire Shut Up in My Bones on September 27, 2021 to open their 2021-22 season in New York, making it the first opera composed by an African American composer to premiere at the Met. Blanchard’s first opera, Champion also premiered to critical acclaim in 2013 at OTSL and starred Denyce Graves with a libretto from Pulitzer Prize Winner, Michael Cristofer.

With his current quintet The E-Collective, featured on the score to BlacKkKlansman with a 96-piece orchestra, Blanchard delivered “a soaring, seething, luxuriant score,” The New York Times. In Vice Magazine, Blanchard elaborates, “In BlacKkKlansman it all became real to me. You feel the level of intolerance that exists for people who ignore other people’s pain. Musically, I can’t ignore that. I can’t add to that intolerance. Instead I have to help people heal from it. “

Some of Blanchard’s other film and television credits include Spike Lee’s Jungle Fever, Summer of Sam, 25th Hour, Inside Man, and Miracle at St. Anna; Kasi Lemmons’ films, Eve’s Bayou, Talk to Me, and Harriet; George Lucas’ Red Tails; Tim Story’s Barbershop; the powerful documentary On the Record which was directed and produced by Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering and premiered on HBO Max in May 2020; and the critically acclaimed drama series Perry Mason starring Matthew Rhys with episodes directed by Tim Van Patten which premiered on HBO in June 2020.

Blanchard scored One Night in Miami which marks Regina King’s feature directorial debut and was acquired by Amazon Studios and premiered at the Venice International Film Festival in September. The film opened in theaters on December 25, 2020 and launched on Prime Video on January 15, 2021. Blanchard also wrote the music for the upcoming feature film Bruised which is the directorial debut for Halle Berry who also stars and premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Regarding his consistent attachment to artistic works of conscience, Blanchard confesses, “You get to a certain age when you ask, ‘Who’s going to stand up and speak out for us?’ Then you look around and realize that the James Baldwins, Muhammad Alis and Dr. Kings are no longer here…and begin to understand that it falls on you. I’m not trying to say I’m here to try to correct the whole thing, I’m just trying to speak the truth.” In that regard, he cites unimpeachable inspirations. “Max Roach with his ‘Freedom Now Suite,’ John Coltrane playing ‘Alabama,’ even Louis Armstrong talking about what was going on with his people any time he was interviewed. Herbie Hancock & Wayne Shorter who live by their Buddhist philosophy and try to expand the conscience of their communities. I’m standing on all of their shoulders. How dare I come through this life having had the blessing of meeting those men and not take away any of that? Like anybody else, I’d like to play feel good party music but sometimes my music is about the reality of where we are.”

Media

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PEDALS

In terms of pedals-I have had a lot of them. I currently am really liking the ZOOM B2.1u a lot because it's small and does a lot of things. However-you have to hoop through programs to get to where your sounds are. I also have the Line 6 M13 which is very nice too. In the past few years I've been using theTC Helicon Voice Live 2. I really love this unit(below center). It actually does intelligent pitch-shifting!! In the recent weeks, I have upgraded to a Line 6 Helix LT (below left) which I am incredibly excited about!"

In the last few years-great strides in bassoon pickup microphones have been made. Most notably at the top of the list is Trent Jacob's Little Jake Pickup microphone. Here's a shot of it on my bassoon (right). I have been using it on tour since March and it is really great. I never thought I'd ever stop using my FRAPs but I have."