About

There are many studies of Hip Hop culture and the poetical features of rap, yet the musical artistry and compositional techniques of the Hip Hop Emcee (or MC) is an area of research that remains largely unexplored. This book provides a contextual base for music educators to appreciate and ‘learn how’ to effectively teach the artistic principles of Emceeing.

The purpose of which is to illustrate how this art form could be employed to teach the fundamentals of music language and serve to both widen the diversity and increase the recruitment for secondary and higher music education across the UK.

I have been fortunate to have had many varied musical roles within the fields of the Western  Classical, Hip Hop, Jazz and Popular music genres.

Over 30 years experience as a composer, classical music graduate, bandleader, cathedral chorister, hip hop MC, jazz musician, orchestral musician, conductor, producer, musical theatre director, both peripatetic (saxophone and clarinet) and classroom music teacher, as well as head of music in two secondary institutions, has led me to believe it is possible to provide an invaluable framework to which this book and other research projects will help revolutionize not only the way this art form is viewed from conservatoires to secondary education but also the way young people see this art form as a vehicle for lifelong learning and change.

The issues this book addresses and resolves are:

i) Why is the art of rap still so misunderstood after nearly 50 years?

ii) Why there is such an absence of training materials and resources for music teachers such a powerful and popular musical art form?

iii) Why is this the only music that young people feel they do not need to study the pioneers and repertoire of in order to become a respected MC?

This is the first step in shifting the paradigm of musical attitudes from the conservatoire to the classroom and then the street.

It is in the youth our future lies so let us invest in them the need to preserve, cultivate and develop all musical art.