WEBVTT 00:01.966 --> 00:04.166 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% JUDY WOODRUFF: Renowned jazz trumpeter Terence Blanchard has been nominated for the best 00:04.166 --> 00:08.933 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% original score Academy Award for his work on the film "BlacKkKlansman." 00:08.933 --> 00:13.933 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% Tonight, Jeffrey Brown continues our feature on Oscar nominees as part of Canvas. 00:15.133 --> 00:19.266 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% That's our new focus on arts and culture. 00:19.266 --> 00:24.266 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% JEFFREY BROWN: In the film "BlacKkKlansman," we meet police officers, members of the KKK, 00:30.366 --> 00:33.333 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% various characters. 00:33.333 --> 00:38.333 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% And then there's a different kind of character, the score, composed by Terence Blanchard. 00:41.000 --> 00:45.966 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% TERENCE BLANCHARD, Composer: The role of the music is to -- like, first of all, to bring 00:50.466 --> 00:55.433 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% some of those intangible things to the fore, if there are things that don't -- we can't 00:57.333 --> 01:02.133 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% put into words, there's emotions we can't really describe, but the music is there to 01:03.000 --> 01:05.000 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% kind of help us experience that. 01:05.000 --> 01:09.666 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% JEFFREY BROWN: "BlacKkKlansman," directed by Spike Lee, tells the story of Ron Stallworth, 01:11.100 --> 01:13.600 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% the first black officer with the Colorado Springs police force. 01:13.600 --> 01:14.866 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% JOHN DAVID WASHINGTON, Actor: Who am I speaking with? 01:14.866 --> 01:16.933 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% TOPHER GRACE, Actor: This is David Duke. 01:16.933 --> 01:20.866 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% JEFFREY BROWN: Played by John David Washington, he infiltrates a KKK chapter by impersonating 01:21.733 --> 01:23.733 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% a white man over the phone. 01:23.733 --> 01:26.833 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% JOHN DAVID WASHINGTON: My mouth to God's ears, I really hate those black rats, and anyone 01:26.833 --> 01:30.000 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% else really that doesn't have pure white Aryan blood running through their veins. 01:30.000 --> 01:34.800 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% JEFFREY BROWN: His partner, a Jewish officer played by Adam Driver, goes undercover to 01:34.800 --> 01:37.433 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% gather evidence against the Klan. 01:37.433 --> 01:42.433 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% It's set in the 1970s, but Lee makes direct connections to today. 01:44.366 --> 01:47.533 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% And it's based on a true story, which amazed Terence Blanchard when he first joined the 01:47.533 --> 01:49.633 align:left position:40%,start line:89% size:50% project. 01:49.633 --> 01:51.166 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% TERENCE BLANCHARD: When Spike first told me, the first think I thought of was, man, you 01:51.166 --> 01:52.233 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% need to put the bottle down. 01:52.233 --> 01:53.233 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% (LAUGHTER) 01:53.233 --> 01:54.233 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% JEFFREY BROWN: Really? 01:54.233 --> 01:55.233 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% TERENCE BLANCHARD: Yes. 01:55.233 --> 01:56.800 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% I mean... 01:56.800 --> 01:58.966 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% JEFFREY BROWN: Like, where is this -- you're making this up. 01:58.966 --> 02:00.133 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% TERENCE BLANCHARD: Yes, a black man infiltrated the Klan in Colorado Springs? 02:00.133 --> 02:01.033 align:left position:40%,start line:89% size:50% Really? 02:01.033 --> 02:03.133 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% That grabbed me. 02:03.133 --> 02:07.033 align:left position:20%,start line:71% size:70% JEFFREY BROWN: Blanchard has long been known as a top jazz musician, with six Grammy awards. 02:08.966 --> 02:12.300 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% He grew up in New Orleans, began playing the piano and Trumpet as a youngster, joined the 02:14.333 --> 02:17.600 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% Lionel Hampton orchestra while still in college, and later Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers. 02:24.166 --> 02:29.166 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% He then went solo, eventually heading the group E-Collective. 02:33.800 --> 02:38.800 align:left position:10%,start line:71% size:80% But he's also now being honored for his decades-long work in films, composing more than 40 scores. 02:41.500 --> 02:46.500 align:left position:10%,start line:71% size:80% He first performed on Spike Lee's films "Do the Right Thing" and "Mo' Better Blues" -- that's 02:48.466 --> 02:52.900 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% Blanchard you hear when Denzel Washington plays the trumpet -- and has scored almost 02:56.533 --> 03:01.500 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% every Lee film since "Jungle Fever," including "Malcolm X." 03:03.500 --> 03:07.800 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% What was the hardest thing about learning to write music for a film, as opposed to your 03:08.466 --> 03:10.066 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% other life? 03:10.066 --> 03:12.166 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% TERENCE BLANCHARD: The hardest thing was putting your ego aside. 03:12.166 --> 03:14.133 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% JEFFREY BROWN: Putting your ego aside? 03:14.133 --> 03:17.466 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% TERENCE BLANCHARD: Yes, because I come from a world where all the music was about me, 03:17.466 --> 03:19.133 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% it was about what I wanted to say. 03:19.133 --> 03:20.900 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% JEFFREY BROWN: Because you're not front and center now. 03:20.900 --> 03:22.966 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% TERENCE BLANCHARD: No, it's not about me. 03:22.966 --> 03:26.533 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% It's really about the story, and it's really about helping the director tell a story in 03:26.533 --> 03:28.600 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% the way he sees fit. 03:28.600 --> 03:32.900 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% JEFFREY BROWN: He typically begins his work with a first cut of the film, after a great 03:32.900 --> 03:37.900 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% deal of work by actors, director Lee, and another longtime collaborator, editor Barry 03:38.700 --> 03:40.766 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% Alexander Brown. 03:40.766 --> 03:43.366 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% TERENCE BLANCHARD: When they hand it to me, it's like a lot of things are done, and I'm 03:43.366 --> 03:45.933 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% one of the last pieces of the puzzle. 03:45.933 --> 03:49.666 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% So when you get it, so, then you go, oh, my God, everybody's done a great job. 03:49.666 --> 03:51.500 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% I can't be the guy to drop the ball. 03:51.500 --> 03:53.733 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% So it inspires me to work hard. 03:53.733 --> 03:56.433 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% JEFFREY BROWN: You can make it better, or you could mess it up, I suppose. 03:56.433 --> 03:57.800 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% TERENCE BLANCHARD: Or really mess it up. 03:57.800 --> 03:58.800 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% (LAUGHTER) 03:58.800 --> 04:00.166 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% JEFFREY BROWN: Yes. 04:00.166 --> 04:00.966 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% TERENCE BLANCHARD: Look for new work. 04:00.966 --> 04:02.966 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% JEFFREY BROWN: Yes. 04:02.966 --> 04:05.500 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% TERENCE BLANCHARD: Well, the thing is, the first thing I have to do is let the film tell 04:05.500 --> 04:09.733 align:left position:10%,start line:71% size:80% me what it needs, because, even though it's a great story, there's lighting, there's editing, 04:09.733 --> 04:11.800 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% there's acting. 04:11.800 --> 04:15.833 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% And when I get a cut, with Spike, you never know, because you can read a scene one way, 04:15.833 --> 04:20.833 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% and then he will shoot it another way, with emphasis on other things in the scene. 04:20.833 --> 04:25.833 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% So, when I watch it, the pace of it, the look of it, it will all speak to me. 04:25.833 --> 04:29.100 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% It will say, oh, OK, well, it slows down a little bit here, maybe we need to pick up 04:29.100 --> 04:30.100 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% the pace here. 04:30.100 --> 04:32.100 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% Oh, you know what? 04:32.100 --> 04:34.000 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% Maybe that's a very powerful moment, and maybe we need to back away from that and let the 04:34.000 --> 04:36.000 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% actor have that moment. 04:36.000 --> 04:39.366 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% There are a lot of little things like that, that start to play a role in how the overall 04:39.366 --> 04:41.433 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% thing takes shape. 04:41.433 --> 04:45.666 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% The other part of it, too, because of Spike's unique love for melody, I had to learn how 04:48.133 --> 04:53.133 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% to structure those melodies and orchestrate them onto dialogue in a way that still could 04:54.333 --> 04:56.433 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% be heard, but not get in the way of the dialogue. 04:56.433 --> 04:59.266 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% JEFFREY BROWN: These are things that I'm probably not -- I'm not aware of as they're happening, 04:59.266 --> 05:00.600 align:left position:40%,start line:89% size:50% right? 05:00.600 --> 05:01.533 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% TERENCE BLANCHARD: You shouldn't be. 05:01.533 --> 05:02.266 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% JEFFREY BROWN: I shouldn't be. 05:02.266 --> 05:03.466 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% (LAUGHTER) 05:03.466 --> 05:05.833 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% TERENCE BLANCHARD: Yes, you shouldn't be. 05:05.833 --> 05:07.500 align:left position:10%,start line:71% size:80% JEFFREY BROWN: In "BlacKkKlansman," Blanchard worked with an orchestra, as well as his own 05:07.500 --> 05:11.700 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% small ensemble, and for the first time featured the electric guitar. 05:13.600 --> 05:17.833 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% TERENCE BLANCHARD: Spike always does a great job at giving you the taste of the period 05:22.233 --> 05:26.400 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% with the source music, you know, all of the songs that's there. 05:26.400 --> 05:31.300 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% I wanted the score to be universal, first of all, but still have elements of the '70s, 05:31.300 --> 05:35.266 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% and colors of the '70s, and that electric guitar was one of the ones that we used a 05:35.266 --> 05:36.933 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% great deal. 05:36.933 --> 05:38.800 align:left position:20%,start line:77% size:70% JEFFREY BROWN: and the Oscar nomination, it's a first for you, right? 05:38.800 --> 05:40.833 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% TERENCE BLANCHARD: Oh, yes, yes. 05:40.833 --> 05:42.900 align:left position:20%,start line:71% size:70% JEFFREY BROWN: A lot of attention because it's the first for Spike Lee, after so long. 05:42.900 --> 05:43.900 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% TERENCE BLANCHARD: Yes. 05:43.900 --> 05:45.933 align:left position:40%,start line:89% size:50% Yes. 05:45.933 --> 05:47.400 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% JEFFREY BROWN: Does it feel like just a long time coming for both of you? 05:47.400 --> 05:49.633 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% TERENCE BLANCHARD: I have been asked that question a lot. 05:49.633 --> 05:52.400 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% And it's hard to answer it, because I never expected it. 05:52.400 --> 05:54.400 align:left position:20%,start line:89% size:70% You know what I mean? 05:54.400 --> 05:57.966 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% I have been telling people it's kind of hard to miss what you never had. 05:57.966 --> 05:58.966 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% It's great. 05:58.966 --> 06:00.100 align:left position:30%,start line:89% size:60% It's awesome. 06:00.100 --> 06:01.133 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% It's been an overwhelming experience. 06:01.133 --> 06:03.233 align:left position:10%,start line:89% size:80% It's been a humbling experience. 06:03.233 --> 06:07.500 align:left position:10%,start line:77% size:80% I look at this movie as being like the culmination of what we have been doing for the last 30 06:08.700 --> 06:10.100 align:left position:40%,start line:89% size:50% years. 06:10.100 --> 06:12.466 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% JEFFREY BROWN: Terence Blanchard's next big project? 06:12.466 --> 06:15.733 align:left position:20%,start line:83% size:70% He's working on an opera, his second. 06:15.733 --> 06:20.733 align:left position:10%,start line:83% size:80% For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm Jeffrey Brown in New York.