Shivkumar Sharma (* 1938) is credited with establishing the santoor as a classical solo instrument. He is the son of classical singer Uma Dutt Sharma and learnt vocal and tabla from early childhood. He overcame the resistence of conservative critics in course of time by modifying the Kashmiri folk santoor and inventing new playing techniques to make it suitable for raga music. Shivkumar Sharma has published more than 100 recordings. In 1986 he received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award and in 2001 the Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian Indian state medal.