‘When I did finally get the guitar, it didn’t seem that difficult to me, to be able to make a good noise
out of it’
—Eric Clapton, Guitarist and vocalist
Of course, Eric Clapton made more than just noise and there are hundreds in Pune who are keen to do the same. The western stringed instrument has today emerged as arguably, the most popular western musical instrument among music students.
Ask any guitar guru in the city and they will stick a graph in your face which shows a sharp spike in the number of guitar wielding students over the last ten years.
Shitalchandra Kulkarni (42), a guitarist and teacher, terms the popularity of the instrument as “expansion in band width” of guitar students. “Some ten years ago, I had mostly young students coming to me. Today, the group ranges from age 10 to 50 years with older students coming to learn the instrument,” Kulkarni said.
Likewise, Vinit Alurkar (31), an Aundh based guitarist and teacher who has 200 students, said, “I get at least 15-20 new inquiries every month and have a waiting list of 30 students.”
Of course there are varying views on the guitar’s popularity.
Alurkar opines that the guitar’s portability and flexibility makes it popular. “The tone of an acoustic guitar is very pleasant. Younger Indians are getting westernised and consider the instrument cooler than the harmonium and the sitar. It is also easy to learn and suits the fast food generation of young Indians,” Alurkar said.
Meanwhile, Kulkarni prefers to point out the technical strengths of the instrument. “The guitar gives you the frequency of a three band width. The six strings are distributed into three segments: low, medium and high frequency. This makes the guitar sound very pleasant to the ear. This is one of the important reasons for its popularity,” Kulkarni said.
On the other hand, Sanjeev Pandkar (42), Gokhalenagar based guitarist and teacher felt that the guitar had become a popular instrument because it is easy to learn. “The basic chords can be learnt in six months. Most students are able to strum the guitar, accompany singers and sing songs themselves,” However, as Pandkar cautions, “Even one lifetime is not enough to master the instrument.”
Students and teachers alike have their own little guitar love story to narrate.
“Since my childhood, I have been fascinated to see Bollywood and Hollywood actors with guitars slung around their necks. This inspired me to take up the instrument,” Pandkar confessed.
Kulkarni said that his whole life revolves around the instrument. “All my popularity, respect and achievements have stemmed from the guitar. The guitar is my life,” Kulkarni said.
Kumar Mangwani (43) city based architect who renewed his guitar classes 18 months ago said, “I used to learn guitar as a school boy, but now I have once again started playing the instrument, because it keeps me young at heart.”
Similarly, dyslexic student, Arjun Agarwal (15), said that the guitar has actually helped him fight his condition successfully.
“The use of both hands has improved my writing and increased my speed. It has also improved my self confidence.”
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