Trinity Laban and Nubian Jak Community Trust unveil blue plaque

Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance and the Nubian Jak Community Trust have unveiled a blue plaque to commemorate royal court trumpeter John Blanke. Blanke played in the courts of Henry VII and Henry VIII and was one of the highest-paid musicians at Greenwich Palace.

The plaque has been installed at Trinity Laban’s Faculty of Music at the Old Royal Naval College, the site of the former royal residence.

Michael Ohajura, national director of the John Blanke Project, said: ‘This plaque dedicated to John Blanke marks him out in our history not just as the first Black Briton for whom we have both an image and a record but a sign of how diverse this island was and is, and how we celebrate our diversity today.’

Ohajura spoke at the event to share insight into Blanke’s life and work alongside Jane Sidell, inspector of Ancient Monuments at Historic England and The Reverend Simon Winn of St Alfege Church, Greenwich.

The event was also attended by Dr Jak Beula, CEO of Nubian Jak Community Trust, who said: ‘The Trust is delighted to receive the support of Historic England, Trinity Laban, The John Blanke Project and other stakeholders, to celebrate and blow the trumpet of a pioneering 16th-century musician, who just by his very presence has forced us to rethink what it was like to be a Black Briton over 500 years ago and beyond.’

At the ceremony, Trinity Laban trumpeters played African American composer Gary Powell Nash’s Enigmatic Fanfare, while writer Mark Thompson shared his poem John Blanke, which explores the musician’s legacy.

You can find out more about Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance here.

You can find out more about the Nubian Jak Community Trust here.