U.S.-based guitarist Guitar Prasanna who will be live in concert in Goa
on January 17, is noted for his unique style of playing traditional Carnatic classical music on the modern electric guitar
KALYANI JHA | NT BUZZ
Twenty five years since his last performance in Goa, Prasanna, fondly known as Guitar Prasanna, returns in concert this weekend with ‘RAGABOP – The Intersection of Indian Music & Jazz’.
Currently based in United States, Prasanna has pioneered the performance of traditional Carnatic classical music on the modern electric guitar and has since earned global acclaim for traversing Carnatic, jazz, rock, film, and world music traditions.
His concert title borrows from one of his compositions from his album ‘Be The Change’. It features music done in his signature style developed over many years. “When I started playing Carnatic music on the guitar, there was no one to teach me. My first guru, Thiruvarur Balasubramaniam, senior Carnatic vocalist had no idea about the guitar. So I ended up pioneering that art form myself,” shares Prasanna.
His second guru A. Kanyakumari also taught him by singing. “Even though she is such an amazing violinist, she never played the violin while teaching me. So in both these cases, I had to learn from what they sing and I had to translate it into the guitar myself,” he shares.
In this way, his gurus helped him develop his ears and his creativity, which eventually led Prasanna to invent certain techniques on the guitar and create his own signature.
Prior to his Goa concert, Prasanna will also conduct a masterclass titled ‘The 3 Elements of Music – Melody, Harmony & Rhythm’ on January 16, 6 p.m. at Goa Chitra Museum, Benaulim.
“This is actually the first masterclass I’m doing anywhere in India in the last several years, and I’m excited to do that in Goa,” says the recipient of Lifetime Achievement Award for Carnatic Music by H.H. Jayendra Saraswathi in 2003. This masterclass is meant for all kinds of musicians, not
just guitarists.
“Very rarely do you come across masterclasses and workshops that are multi-instrumental, multi-genre based. And that is something that I’ve been doing around the world because my idea is to bring people together,” shares the magna cum laude graduate of Berklee College
of Music.
In this workshop, Prasanna will explore the structural, emotional and creative depth of melody, harmony, and rhythm across Indian classical, jazz, rock and fusion traditions, with demonstrations, insights, and interactive learning. Participants are welcome to bring their
instruments.
“The function of melody, harmony and rhythm is different for different styles of music be it Indian film music, Carnatic music or jazz,” he says, adding that the session will be both fun
and educational.
And sharing his tips for new musicians who would like to blend styles of music, he says, “Learn each style of music independent from the other. Focus on what you are learning first. Make time to learn things deeply, not on the surface level. If you focus on each of these elements separately without constantly muddling them up together, you will come to a stage where you will naturally bring all these together and that’s when the fun starts and the magic starts.”
As for how AI could change the music scene, Prasanna remains optimistic while warning of its side effects. “
AI will be definitely a big problem for a lot of musicians and artists. It might make their world a little dark. But it might also open up certain avenues for musicians and artists that never existed before,” he says. “All of these things, at the beginning, will be shocking but then people will find ways to connect and align with it. So I’m actually excited to see what’s going to happen with AI and music. Nobody knows. But I think it can be used creatively,” he says.
Two guitar-centric albums of Prasanna will come out in 2026. “One is traditional Carnatic music, and the other is explosion of everything that I am today in terms of how I play the guitar. It’s a very contrasting album, but the connection is my guitar,” says the musician, who will also perform in other Indian cities in February like Shillong, Kerala, Hyderabad, and Delhi.
(‘RAGABOP – The Intersection of Indian Music & Jazz’ will be held on January 17, 6 p.m. at Goa Chitra Museum, Benaulim.)
