A Teacher's Farewell in Sound
Blanchard turns grief for his mentor Wayne Shorter into a bright, ambitious tribute that still feels personal.
Absence landed with a quiet kind of acclaim rather than a loud splash. Released by Blue Note on August 27, 2021, it drew strong notices from the critics who reviewed it, with Metacritic's average of 87 from four reviews signaling broad agreement that this was a serious, accomplished record. John Garratt of PopMatters praised the album's density and the musicianship behind it, noting that Blanchard managed not to spread himself thin even while busy with a New York opera and multiple film scores. Mojo gave it four stars, and Jazzwise did too, so the record earned its respect fast. It was never a sales phenomenon, though. It reads as a label release aimed at serious listeners, the kind of album that gets revisited rather than streamed once and forgotten.
The music is the reason to return. Blanchard set out to celebrate his mentor Wayne Shorter, and the album pairs his trumpet with the E-Collective, a rhythm-driven band, and the Turtle Island Quartet, a string ensemble. That mix can sound fussy on paper, but the results are full and lively. The strings add weight and color without turning sentimental, and the E-Collective keeps things moving with a modern groove that never feels like a gimmick. Blanchard's playing is direct and warm, with the same melodic clarity he is known for.
If you are coming to Blanchard for the first time, this is a solid entry point, though not necessarily his most essential record. It sits comfortably among his later work as a bandleader who has grown comfortable with large ensembles and cross-genre ideas. Listeners who love Shorter's compositions will find a clear, affectionate reading of that legacy here, and those who want a lean, straight-ahead trumpet record may find it more arranged than they would like.
