The increasing penetration of the Internet in India, improved bandwidths and free or nominal download and upload charges have heralded a new trend in the music industry - online music lessons.

Originally a western concept, the idea is booming in India with many enthusiasts taking up coaching in Indian music via music websites.

It works both ways. Students, who are mostly working professionals, can learn at their leisure, and the gurus, net savvy musicians themselves, can balance their erratic performance schedules with online teaching sessions.

Online lessons also make good fiscal sense.

Says www.indiamusicinfo.com director Bharath Subramanium, "The lessons on our website are available at nominal prices, starting from Rs 100. We also offer packages costing Rs 400 for a four hours video. Apart from the revenue received from the download by subscribers, the income for the website also comes via advertising by advertisers on our site."

The websites also need to invest for making their website acquainted among the subscribers, with the help of online campaigns and word of mouth publicity. Subramanium says the concept of online music lessons is picking up in India now. "The main reason is the time availability and what matters more is the easy accessibility of renowned maestros online, like in our website we have uploaded vocal lessons by Neyveli Santanagopalan, a prominent vocalist in Chennai."

Another website imparting online guitar lessons is www.theguitarthing.com. Started by Chandresh Kudwa, the leading guitarist of band Dream Out Loud, the website claims to be India's first interactive online guitar website. Says Kudwa, "It is mainly word of mouth publicity that works for online lessons and we also have to invest in Google ads for passing around the word about the website. Being a part of various bands also helps me as people approach after shows and express their desire to learn instruments.
The coverage provided by the media also helps in increasing awareness about the website. An online website is a proof of authenticity for people who don't know me personally and are interested in taking up the guitar as a hobby. Learning lessons online has an advantage of time and comes as a comfort for the learner as they can download and learn lessons at their own pace. But above all, there are people who are inclined towards music and take up learning music seriously via online sites". Sites like theguitarthing.com are also not looking at quick bucks in the short term, but are focusing on promoting their websites and becoming established players in the long run.

Raghav Sachar, an upcoming music director and a self taught master of 30 musical instruments says, When I was learning to play these instruments, the concept of online music lessons did not exist in India but video CDs were available. I believe the concept of learning online is excellent as India lacks in schools for western music and youngsters today are inclined towards learning that music because of western influences. Although I am not sure that by learning online the student can attain a proficiency level as it entirely depends on their individual caliber. It requires great patience, focus and determination to learn lessons online on our own without help from a personal tutor.

Notes of dissent

The conservatives among the music veterans however do not agree with this logic. Bickram Ghosh, one of the most dynamic tabla players in the country, believes in the traditional method of learning music. Elucidating his point, he says, "I was a part of an online programme where my prerecorded tabla lessons along with my father Pt. Shankar Ghosh's pieces were uploaded in an audio- visual format by a French company. But I strictly think that online lessons are feasible only if there is no guru available for the learners. Our Indian music is a Gurumukhi vidya where the presence of guru is essential. It is worth adding that the concept works well for senior learners but not for amateurs who need to know the basics before learning the nuances of the art."

"The excellence in learning online mainly depends on the imitating power of the student. Yet, there are many intricacies as in vocal singing where the guru explains the use of the tongue, the part of the throat to be used and other technicalities, which can be picked up only in one to one learning.

Even though the videos in the lessons focus on the movement of hand in case of instruments, the alignment of the hand of the learner watching the video may not be correct and would result in incorrect beats. The interesting part of online lessons is that it is interactive and resolving queries have become easier but still nothing better than personal teaching," avers Ghosh.

Leslie Lewis, guitarist and part of the 'Colonial Cousins' also believes that by learning online, it is possible to learn only the technical aspects of music. "To have an in depth knowledge, it is necessary to learn the notes and notations of music by being in the presence of the teacher. By taking up online lessons, it is possible to learn the language of the art form but the style cannot be copied," he maintains.

Recollecting his own experiences of learning the guitar, Lewis says, "One advantage that comes along with online lessons is that the learners get to see popular maestros playing and the focus is on the movement of their hands on the instruments. I remember, as a kid I went crazy thinking about how a guitarist played a note and could not get it on my own guitar until I saw his playing one day. So, this comes as an advantage as the kids can see the musician performing the notes and can try on their own instrument instantly."

Sanjoy Bandopadhyay, a prominent sitarist based in Kolkata, started his own online music learning classes seven years ago. Online music, he feels, has brought the global student-teacher community closer. "I started online teaching at www.indianmusiclessons.com as I thought that with the increasing popularity of the Indian Classical Music around the world, a group of music lovers has become interested in learning our music seriously. I have been taking online instrumental lessons for more than seven years now and my students vary from places like Bangladesh, Pakistan, Australia, Canada etc. and I believe that it is almost like face to face learning. We engage in video conferencing with the students and clarify doubts via mails and chats. I would say it is mainly due to the tech savvy generation and easy accessibility of internet that the concept is booming. We offer packages like 10 lessons in four dollars and so on".

The website offers lessons in Sitar, Tabla, Indian Classical Vocal (Khyal and Thumri), Flute, Sarod and Pakhawaj by renowned artists like Angshubha Banerjee, Saradindu Adhikary, Bhaskar Mukherjee and many more.

There are many who have benefited from online music lessons, one such student is Ashlyn Antony, a media professional who says, "I am fond of rock music and I love the way they play guitar in shows and concerts. I had a desire to learn the guitar but my profession didn't permit me. I learnt about online lessons from my friends and downloaded a few videos at nominal prices of Rs 50 or Rs 100 via credit cards. Learning like this comes with an advantage of time and at my convenience".

Whether there is much money involved in it or not, the concept is definitely here to stay with many takers lined up and the foresight of website owners of further boom in the online music lessons industry.