Emily trained as a music performer-educator at Kenyatta University in Kenya, Northwestern State University of Louisiana, USA and Kingston University in the UK. Her research interests veer towards cultural relevance in music education. A professor of music of the Technical University of Kenya, she is editor and contributing author of, among others, the 2019 published Music Education in Africa: Concept, Process and Practice. Her research and publications tackle issues around music and teacher education in cultural context, arts in and as education and the place of culture in modern education. She is a former president of the International Music Council (IMC) and the International Society for Music Education (ISME) as well as founding chair of the Music Education Research Group – Kenya (MERG-Kenya). A former Executive Dean of Faculty at the Technical University of Kenya and DVC (Academics) at the Cooperative University of Kenya, she currently serves as Vice Chancellor of Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology.