Rockschool in Teddington is back with a brand new suite of books for guitar, bass and drums for 2018.

The music school is the world’s first graded music exams for rock & pop. The book was released this month (September) and is titled Rockschool’s brand-new Guitar, Bass, and Drums material for grade exams (Debut – Grade 8). Featuring over 170 new songs, from 100 world reknown artists, across seven decades: each performance piece has been commissioned, re-arranged (appropriate to grade), and recorded to reflect popular music’s heritage, evolution, and most contemporary incarnations.

From blues, rock, pop, soul, funk, R&B, jazz fusion, reggae, punk, and alt rock; to producer led genres such as RnB, grime, hip hop, dub-step, and various other digitally produced genres the book covers a variety of genres.

The roster of classic and contemporary artists includes: Ed Sheeran, Jimi Hendrix, Green Day, AC/DC, Nirvana, Bruno Mars, Eric Clapton, Prince, Adele, Beyoncé, Sam Smith, The Beatles, D’Angelo, Justin Timberlake, Rhianna, Drake, Chaka Khan, U2, James Brown, Grace Jones, Earth, Wind & Fire, Bob Marley and the Wailers, Snarky Puppy, Tower of Power, Marvin Gaye, Erykah Badu, Coldplay, Queen, Nirvana, Stormzy, Fugees, David Bowie, Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson.

Tim Bennett-Hart, Head of Academic said: "The 2018 release of new syllabuses for Guitar, Bass and Drums sees a brand new direction for Rockschool qualification. Whilst maintaining the key technical skills that industry demands, we’ve been able to include the most diverse selection of contemporary music ever seen in a syllabus.

"The styles of music covered make the grades accessible to everyone, without precluding any musical tastes. We really hope that this will allow students to connect with the music they love as well as discovering completely new genres to express themselves through, all arranged and benchmarked for the correct level of skill and technique.

"The recordings are the best quality we’ve ever produced, being recording in a world class studio with some of the

finest session musicians and artists in the world."

Each arrangement has been written and performed by top session musicians who have worked with some of the biggest names in rock and pop. Recorded live at the Real World Recording Studios, each track features live instrumentation and first rate performances delivering an unrivalled level of feel, authenticity, and musicianship.

Jono Harrison, Syllabus Manager said: "Rockschool continues to be at the forefront of contemporary music qualifications, creating syllabuses that remain industry-relevant and academically rigorous. The repertoire for Guitar Bass and Drums 2018 has been selected from a diverse pool of cutting-edge contemporary artists and iconic/heritage acts, embracing a wide range of genres and broadening the scope for engagement at all levels.

"This is supported by our-ongoing commitment to equipping learners with the underpinning technical skills and knowledge required to achieve their goals, ensuring a rich and engaging experience at every stage of their musical journeys."

Each book is available in both physical and digital versions, and contains all the essential music theory and performance techniques needed to pass the exam.