Champion is an opera in two acts and ten scenes with music by Terence Blanchard and a libretto by Michael Cristofer. Based on the life of African-American welterweight boxer Emile Griffith, this opera is a joint co-commission by Opera Theatre of Saint Louis (OTSL) and Jazz St. Louis.
The composer and his wife Robin Burgess at the premiere
Luis Rodrigo Griffith at the after party of the world premiere of Champion on 15 June 2013
Terence Oliver Blanchard is an American trumpeter, pianist and composer. A jazz musician, he has also composed film scores and operas. He started his career in 1982 as a member of the Lionel Hampton Orchestra, then The Jazz Messengers. He has composed more than forty film scores and performed on more than fifty. A frequent collaborator with director Spike Lee, he has been nominated for two Academy Awards for composing the scores for Lee's films BlacKkKlansman (2018) and Da 5 Bloods (2020). He has won five Grammy Awards from fourteen nominations.
Blanchard performing in July 2008
The Jazz Messengers of 1985, from left: Jean Toussaint, Terence Blanchard, Donald Harrison, and Lonnie Plaxico
Blanchard and his wife, Robin Burgess, at the 91st Academy Awards, where Blanchard was nominated for Best Original Score for his soundtrack of BlacKkKlansman.
