Marcus Joseph was classically trained on the clarinet from age seven, taking his ABRSM grades up to Grade 8 in school. He has played in various Leicestershire Arts county bands and orchestras. A brief stint in a hip-hop group as a DJ and MC resulted in airplay on BBC 1Xtra, but after attending a jazz workshop in London Marcus was inspired to pick up the saxophone full time and studied in Leeds, London and New Orleans.
Marcus’ childhood experience as the only African-Caribbean boy playing a classical instrument in ensembles later developed a passion for working with youth to cultivate interest in live music and musicianship.
Since the release of his debut E.P ‘Real Talk’ in October 2015 his career as a full-time musician and more recently a spoken word artist has surged, leading to many achievements both personally and professionally. Marcus has performed alongside internationally renowned vocalist Emily Saunders at her event ‘The Voice Mix’. He has worked with Suli Breaks performing an original saxophone arrangement on 'The Graveyard' as well as performing at Suli Breaks' headline show 'Not A Role Model'. This autumn Marcus performed an intimate set at Sofar Sounds in his hometown Leicester, as well as performing alongside American artist Steffani Jamison for her collaborative exhibition ‘Recitatif: Never say anything at all’ at Nottingham Contemporary.
Marcus became a finalist at Yamaha Music London’s ‘Funk It Up Thursdays’ competing for a gig on stage at Love Supreme Jazz Festival 2018. He was also named as one of the top 100 musicians in a revolutionary new music competition, run by Salute Music Makers.
Paradigm Rhymes: Beyond The Dome is Marcus’ most recent project. A fast moving performance of spoken word narration by Sophia Thakur, live jazz music written by Marcus and projected comic book digital imagery. The production was performed at the Curve Theatre, as part of Inside Out Festival 2017.
Marcus continues to teach, compose and develop his own unique sound: a warm fusion of Jazz, reggae, hip-hop and contemporary music.
Marcus’ childhood experience as the only African-Caribbean boy playing a classical instrument in ensembles later developed a passion for working with youth to cultivate interest in live music and musicianship.
Since the release of his debut E.P ‘Real Talk’ in October 2015 his career as a full-time musician and more recently a spoken word artist has surged, leading to many achievements both personally and professionally. Marcus has performed alongside internationally renowned vocalist Emily Saunders at her event ‘The Voice Mix’. He has worked with Suli Breaks performing an original saxophone arrangement on 'The Graveyard' as well as performing at Suli Breaks' headline show 'Not A Role Model'. This autumn Marcus performed an intimate set at Sofar Sounds in his hometown Leicester, as well as performing alongside American artist Steffani Jamison for her collaborative exhibition ‘Recitatif: Never say anything at all’ at Nottingham Contemporary.
Marcus became a finalist at Yamaha Music London’s ‘Funk It Up Thursdays’ competing for a gig on stage at Love Supreme Jazz Festival 2018. He was also named as one of the top 100 musicians in a revolutionary new music competition, run by Salute Music Makers.
Paradigm Rhymes: Beyond The Dome is Marcus’ most recent project. A fast moving performance of spoken word narration by Sophia Thakur, live jazz music written by Marcus and projected comic book digital imagery. The production was performed at the Curve Theatre, as part of Inside Out Festival 2017.
Marcus continues to teach, compose and develop his own unique sound: a warm fusion of Jazz, reggae, hip-hop and contemporary music.