For many guitarists, learning a raga begins with scales. For others, it begins with a composition. But very few experience a structured journey that gradually develops melody, Alaap, Taans, improvisation and performance as independent yet interconnected skills. That question has shaped much of my work over the last two decades. The result is what eventually became… Continue reading Beyond Repertoire: Raga Bhopali on Guitar and the Evolution of Indian Lead Guitar
Category: Ragas on Guitar
Guitar Excellence Series: Building Indian Lead Guitar Through Ragas, Improvisation and the Pursuit of Excellence
Why Guitar Excellence is More Than a Video Series? There are some questions that stay with us for years. One such question stayed with me for a very long time: What are the natural strengths of the guitar? Like many guitarists interested in Indian music, I spent years listening to and learning from great musicians playing… Continue reading Guitar Excellence Series: Building Indian Lead Guitar Through Ragas, Improvisation and the Pursuit of Excellence
The 3-Phase Raga Development Model: How a Guitarist Becomes a Raga Performer
Most guitarists attempt ragas. Very few can perform them. They start… They explore… But somewhere in between, they stop. The difference is not talent. 👉 It is structure. Most raga learning focuses on content. Very little focuses on development. After over 21 years of working with real learners at Guitarmonk, one pattern became clear: 👉… Continue reading The 3-Phase Raga Development Model: How a Guitarist Becomes a Raga Performer
Raga Brindabani Sarang — A Micro Performance Excerpt on Indian Lead Guitar
This short excerpt comes from a longer raga performance in Raga Brindabani Sarang. Even in a brief phrase, a holistic raga grammar can appear — alaap, dhun, taans, and tihayi — if the phrasing is intentional. This work is part of my ongoing body of performance and research called Ragas on Guitar, where I’m exploring… Continue reading Raga Brindabani Sarang — A Micro Performance Excerpt on Indian Lead Guitar
Ragas on Guitar: Introducing Indian Lead Guitar as a Melodic Language
For most guitarists, the instrument is introduced through chords, harmony, and progressions. While this is a powerful musical path, it is not the only way the guitar can exist as a musical voice. There is another lineage of music — rooted in Indian raga traditions — where music is built not on chords, but on… Continue reading Ragas on Guitar: Introducing Indian Lead Guitar as a Melodic Language
Alaap — Raga Yaman (Kameshwari) | Endless Raga Journeys (Indian Lead Guitar)
This piece is an Alaap excerpt from the first release in the Endless Raga Journeys series — a long-form raga performance practice realized on guitar within the Indian Lead Guitar body of work. Alaap is central to this practice on guitar: free, voice-like melodic exploration where sound, silence, and microtonal movement shape the beginning of… Continue reading Alaap — Raga Yaman (Kameshwari) | Endless Raga Journeys (Indian Lead Guitar)