Indian Genres on Guitar
A Multi-Decade, Practice-Led Research on Translating
Indian Musical Forms into Guitar Performance
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(A 20–30 Year Research Journey by Kapil Srivastava)
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Indian Genres on Guitar is not merely a library or collection of lessons. It represents the culmination of over two decades of deep practice, research, experimentation, teaching, and performance — focused on authentically translating Indian musical forms onto the guitar.
This body of work reflects Kapil Srivastava’s lifelong engagement with Indian music — shaped by gurus, classroom teaching, stage experience, and continuous musical inquiry. Over the years, these explorations have gradually evolved into a structured learning framework, allowing serious learners to access not just techniques, but the underlying musical thought process behind Indian genres on the guitar.
Impact of Guitar in the modern world
✓ It is estimated that around 50 crores (500 million) people currently play guitar in the world.
✓ There are currently more than 2 crores (20 million) monthly search of word ‘guitar’ in ‘India’ (offline + online).
One crores being official figure of google search.
RAGAS ON GUITAR LIST
RADIO
indian fOLK (FILM/BOLLYWOOD)
ragas on guitar
INDO-WESTERN FUSION
NOTE – BOLLYWOOD PLAYLIST IS ONLY FOR KAPIL’S GUITAR DEMONSTRATION. THEY ARE NOT PART OF LIBRARY AS THEY BELONG TO THEIR RESPECTIVE COPYRIGHT OWNERS.
THE CONTENT IS FURTHER EXPANDED & DEVELOPED INTO PRO-TRANSCRIPTIONS, PLAY ALONG TRACKS FOR PRO-LEVEL APPLICATIONS TO HELP INSTITUTIONS, TEACHERS & GUITARISTS IN THE FORM OF LIBRARY, COURSE & REPERTOIRE.
audio tracks
100+ AUDIO TRACKS OF THE SHEET MUSIC
booklets
100+ PRO TRANSCRIPTION BOOKS CONTAINING STAFF NOTATIONS & TABULATURE (TABS)
These are not merely transcription booklets, but detailed sheet music designed for advanced teaching and live performances. The complete kit will include transcriptions of over 100 songs, including some from the list above.
Indian Genres on Guitar represents a long-term, practice-based research initiative led by Kapil Srivastava over more than two decades, examining the adaptation, interpretation, and performance of Indian musical forms on the guitar.
This sustained research has resulted in the development of over 20 specialised modules focused exclusively on Indian genres in guitar performance. These modules collectively form a distinct pedagogical framework within the Guitarmonk learning ecosystem, separate from Western genre studies such as Bluegrass or Blues-based traditions.
The outcomes of this research span performance, pedagogy, and applied musical exploration, including:
Indian Guitar Radio — a raga-focused interpretative platform
Reinterpretation of Bollywood Music on Guitar — structured, complete guitar arrangements
Guitar Excellence Program — a research-informed excellence model in guitar pedagogy
Ragas on Guitar Performances — applied performance-based research
Endless Guitar — long-form performance concepts and repertoire development
Jhala on Guitar — rhythmic and stylistic adaptation of traditional Jhala techniques
Tremolo Picking on Guitar — technique-based research applied to Indian musical phrasing
Together, these initiatives demonstrate an applied research methodology that integrates performance, pedagogy, and musical analysis — contributing toward expanding the representation and evolution of Indian music on the guitar.
We create a lot of music that has never been tried on guitar (as seen in the example). It’s a blessed opportunity for us to bring this never-before-heard guitar music to the guitar-loving community.
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I try to play every single piece—whether it’s a melody or a part originally played on other instruments like the flute, sitar, etc.—on the guitar. The goal is to showcase the richness of this instrument and to build a legacy for this genre to be explored globally.