Hip Hop Transcriptions

The estimable Charles Hely has created an awesome archive of his hip hop transcriptions. The only tools used are pen, paper, and a ruler--and also an incredible ear for rhythm. We talked at length last week about this project.

Notice how Charlie chose consciously to use graph paper rather than sheet music. The typical music staves of sheet music would convey that hip-hop has evolved totally from a Western music tradition, which is debatable absurd. The graph paper allows the music to be viewed purely as a representation of time passing at evenly spaced intervals. It's cool to see these pieces as math as well as pieces of music. 

Also, I learned that Premier produced "Ten Crack Commandments" for Biggie. Thanks for filling a musical knowledge gap Char!