How Do We Identify A Raag When We Hear It - Page 5

RAG ASAWARI (ASAVARI)

by David Courtney, Ph.D.

Ragmala Painting of Ragini Asawari (reproduction of Mewar school)

DESCRIPTION

Rag Asawari is considered to be the fundamental rag in Asawari that. There are several film songs in Asavari; one common one is "Meri Yad Me Tum Na Ansu Bahana". Asawvari is a morning rag. It is Audav - Sampurna due to the ommission of the Ga and Ni in the ascending structure. For those who still adhere to the Vadi/ Samvadi theory, it has been suggested that the vadi is Dha and the samvadi is Ga.

There are several rags which share the same that. Jaunpuri and Darbari Kanada are two of the most common examples. Therfore, it is important to pay attention to the pakad to keep from impinging upon them.

There is considerable disagreement concerning the Re. It seems that there are three schools of thought. The predominant view is that only shuddha Re is used. There is another school, which suggests that both shauddha and komal can be used. Finally, there are those that contend that only the komal Re be used.

AROHANA

AVAROHANA

JATI

Audav / Sampurna

TIME

Morning

Asawari that

PAKAD

DRONE

Sa - Pa -

RAG BAHAR

by David Courtney, Ph.D.

DESCRIPTION

Bahar is a very popular springtime rag. During the spring, it may be sung at any time of the day. There are a number of film songs which use this rag; "Chham Chham Nachat Ayi Bahar" and "Sakal Bana Gagan Chalat Puravai" are two examples (more examples). However during any other season, it is a night time rag. Bahar has a very distinctive character. It uses both Nishads; it uses shuddha Ni (natural 7th) in the arohana and the komal Ni in the avarohana. For those who are still inclined towards the Vadi / Samvadi theory, it has been suggested that Ma is the vadi and Sa is the samvadi. This rag cannot be performed straight but must be executed in a vakra fashion; for it is the characteristic twists which give this rag its form. The pakad is therefore extremely important.

AROHANA

AVAROHANA

JATI

Shadav - Sampurna

TIME

Spring

THAT

Kafi That

PAKAD

DRONE

Sa - Pa

RAG BHAIRAV

by David Courtney, Ph.D.

Ragmala Painting of Rag Bhairav (circa A.D. 1620-25)

DESCRIPTION

Rag Bhairav is a very common rag. According to mythology, it was the first rag. It is belived that it emanated directly from the face of Mahadev (Shiva). It is a very well known rag but it is seldom heard because it is a morning rag and most performances are in the evening. Kalingada is very similar and is more likely to be heard by most concert goers.

The use of Bharav in film music is much more flexible. The informal treatment means that there is a lot of overlap with Kalingada. This leads to lively discussions as to whether particular songs are in Kalingada or in Bhairav. Furthermore, there is no adherence to particular times with most film songs. Pehaps the most famous example is "Mohe Bhul Gaye Sanvariyan" from the film "Baiju Bawara". For a larger list of film songs in Bhairav, check "Rags Used in the Films" (Bhairav).

Bhairav has a very simple structure. It is sampurna - sampurna. For those who still adhere to the Vadi / Samvadi theory, it has been suggested that Dha is the vadi and Re is the samvadi. Re and Dha should have a heavy undolan (slow shake) to define its character. Bhairav's characteristics are:

AROHANA

AVAROHANA

JATI

Sampurna - Sampurna

TIME

Morning

THAT

Bhairav That

DRONE

Sa - Pa

RAG BHAIRAVI

by David Courtney, Ph.D.

Ragmala Painting of Rag Bhairavi (Sirohi-Rajasthan circa A.D. 1725)

DESCRIPTION

This rag is the main representative of Bhairavi That. It has traditionally been performed in the early morning hours. However, due to the fact that performances lasted all night, it has now become common to consider Bhairavi to be the finale. Today this rag is performed at any time provided it is the concluding piece. A few common songs in this rag are, "Babul Mora Naihar Chutohe Jai", "Jyot Se Jyot Jagate Chalo", and "Laga Chunari Me Dag Chupaun Kaise". Please check Film Songs in Rags (Bhairavi).

There are two approaches to the performance of Bhairavi: Shuddha Bhairavi and Sindhi (Sindhu) Bhairavi. In Shuddha Bhairavi, only the notes of Bhairavi That are used. In Sindhu Bhairavi, all of the swar, both komal and tivra are used. These are opposite extremes in philosophy. Contemporary practice tends to flow somewhere in between these two approaches, although the degree seems to be a question of individual artistic interpretation.

The Vadi / Samvadi system is generally discounted by modern musicologists; those who still adhere to this theory find Bhairavi to be particularly problematic. The vadi is usually considered to be Ma and the samvadi is usually considered to be Sa. However, Ga, Dha, and Pa have also been suggested as important notes.

AROHANA

AVAROHANA

JATI

Sampurna - Sampurna

TIME

Early morning or conclusion of performance

THAT

Bhairavi That

PAKAD

DRONE

Sa - Pa

RAG BHIMPALASI

by David Courtney, Ph.D.

DESCRIPTION

Bhimpalasi (a.k.a., Bhimpilasi or Bheempalasi) is a rag which is very much associated with a hot Indian afternoon. It has five notes ascending and seven notes descending.

Bhimpalasi is derived from Kafi that. This that is very crowded with numerous similar rags, so it is very important to pay attention to their pakads, otherwise one may inadvertently impinge upon them, and thus spoil the performance.

AROHANA

AVAROHANA

JATI

Audav - Sampurna

VADI

Ma

SAMVADI

Sa

TIME

Afternoon

THAT

KAFI THAT

DRONE

Sa - Pa

RAG BHUPALI (BHOOPALI)

by David Courtney, Ph.D.

Ragmala Painting of Rag Bhupali (circa A.D. 1850)

DESCRIPTION

Bhupali is a a very common rag. Other transliterations are Bhoopali or Bhoopaali. In South Indian music, this is refered to as Mohanam.

This rag appears to be very ancient. It is based upon a pentatonic structure that is found in many parts of the world. It is belived by many scholars that the pentatonic scales; of which Bhupali is one, were prevalent in the middle and far-East by the first millennium B.C. This scale has been in China for many centuries; it is also found in the folk music of northern Britain. Yet, it is not clear whether the scale developed independently or spread through cultural interchange. Either way, it has been around for a long time and is very popular. Common songs based upon this rag include "Jyoti Kalash Chalke" or "Pankha Hoti To Ud Ati Re".

This rag underscores a curious weakness in the system of thats. It is classified under Kalyan that; however, madhyam is totally absent. There is a related rag called Deshkar which has the same scale, yet Deshkar is classified under Bilawal that. This means that the missing madhyam of Bhupali is tivra (i.e., augmented 4th) while the missing madhyam in Deshkar is shuddha (i.e., natural 4th). This is interesting, but totally insupportable by any objective musical criteria.

The methodology for determining the character of the missing notes is not clear. It may be an extension of an earlier tradition. Bhatkhande stated that some musicians consider this rag to be synonymous with Bhup Kalyan (Bhatkhande 1985a). However, most musicians consider Bhup Kalyan to be synonymous with Shuddha Kalyan, and not Bhupali (Rao 1980). It may be that Bhatkhande's decision was partly based upon a desire to support his theory on the timings of the rags.

Such discussions are interesting but not of very great practical value. Regardless of the reasons for the classification, there is a conventional acceptance of Bhupali's inclusion in Kalyan that. We may question the methodology, but we really have nothing to gain by trying to ascribe it to a different that.

Yet there is a question that is of tremendous practical concern; the structure and definition of Bhupali is changing. This rag has been embraced by the lighter musical styles such as gazal, film music, etc. Such traditions have not given prominence to the pakad; instead there is a simple reliance upon the modality to define the rag. Since only simple scaler characteristics are used, there is a mixing with Deshkar and Shuddha Kalyan. The result is that many modern musicians fail to maintain a clear distinction between Bhupali, Shuddha Kalyan, and Deshkar. If the practice continues, it may force us to reconsider the definition of these three rags.

AROHANA

AVAROHANA

JATI

Audav - Audav

VADI

Ga -

SAMVADI

Dha

TIME

First part of night

THAT

Kalyan That

PAKAD

DRONE

Sa - Pa

RAG BIHAG (BEHAG)

by David Courtney, Ph.D.

DESCRIPTION

This rag is very popular. Some common songs in this rag are "Boliye Surali Boliyan", "Hamare Dil Se Na Jana Dhokna Na Khana", and "Tere Sur Aur Mere Geet". It is a late night rag (9:00pm-midnight) of audav-sampurna jati. Its strong characteristic is the use of both madhyams. Opinion differs as to which Ma should be given prominence. The orthodox approach is to give importance to the shuddha Ma. However, more modern interpretations tend to give importance to the tivra Ma. It is this emphasis on tivra Ma which causes some musicians to assign this rag to Kalyan that.

Bihag has a moderately complex structure. This is due to the large number of rags which use both madhyams. One must pay particular attention to the pakad or else one may impinge upon Hamir, Yaman Kalyan, Kedar, or any of a number of related rags. The swarup (pakad) is Pa M Ga Ma Ga. For those who still adhere to the vadi / samvadi theory, it has been suggested that the vadi is Ga and the samvadi is Ni. The Re and Dha are not used in the arohana but are used in the avarohana.

AROHANA

AVAROHANA

JATI

Audav-Sampurna

TIME

Late night

THAT

Bilawal that

PAKAD

DRONE

Sa - Pa

RAG BILAWAL

by David Courtney, Ph.D.

Ragmala Painting of Rag (Ragaputra) Bilawal (Kangra, Pahadi - circa A.D. 1790)

DESCRIPTION

Rag Bilawal is the most basic rag in Bilawal that. Indeed, the name of the that is derived from this rag. Interestingly enough, this rag has been declining in popularity over the years. This rag is sometimes referred to as Shuddha Bilawal to distinguish it from the more popular Alhiya Bilawal.

Bilawal is considerd by most to be Sampurna - Sampurna. However, some are of the opinion that it should be considered Shadav - Sampurna due to the weakness of its Ga in the arohana.

The vadi / samavadi theory is generally discounted by modern musicologists, but for those who are inclined to follow this, it has been suggested that the vadi and samavadi are Dha and Re respectively.

AROHANA

AVAROHANA

JATI

Sampurna - Sampurna

TIME

Morning

THAT

Bilawal that

DRONE

Sa - Pa

RAG DARBARI KANADA

by David Courtney, Ph.D.

DESCRIPTION

There can be no doubt that Darbari Kanada is one of the most popular rags in the entire North Indian system of classical music. A few common songs are "Ghunghat Ke Pat Khol Re Tohe Piya Milenge", "Jhana Jhanak Tori Baje Payaliaya", "Mujhe Tumse Kuch Bhi Na Chahiye", "O Duniya Ke Rakhwale". This rag is also known as Durbari, or Darbari Kanara and a host of other transliterations. It is said to have been invented by Tansen who sang in the durbar (royal court) of the Emperor Akbar, hence the name Darbari Kanada.

The vadi / samavadi theory is generally discounted by modern musicologists, but for those who are inclined to follow this, Darbari Kanada has been particularly problematic. Some suggest that Re and Dha are the vadi and samvadi; however, others suggest that it should be Ga and Dha.

Darbari Kanada has some interesting musical characteristics. It is a night time rag. It is said to be sampurna - sampurna, but it must be presented in a vakra (twisted) fashion to distinguish it from related rags such as Jaunpuri, Asawari, or Adana. It is especially important to emphasize the lower register (mandra saptak) and the lower tetrachord (i.e., purvang) to distinguish this rag from Adana.

Darbari Kanada has an interesting approach to its intervals. The minor 3rd (komal Ga) and the minor 6th (komal Dha) are much lower than usually found; this lower than normal flattening is often referred to in Indian music as ati-komal. Therefore, ati-komal Ga is just ever-so-slightly higher than a natural 2nd (shuddha Re) and the ati-komal Dha is just ever so slightly higher than a natural 5th (Pa). It is this extreme alteration of the intervals that helps give Darbari Kanada its distinctive character.

Here are Darbari Kanada's overall characteristics:

AROHANA

AVAROHANA

JATI

Sampurna - Sampurna

TIME

Night

THAT

Asawari That

DRONE

Sa - Pa

Rag Gujari Todi

by David Courtney, Ph.D.

Ragmala Painting of Rag (Ragini) Gujari (Kulu, Pahadi - circa A.D. 1750)

DESCRIPTION

Gujari Todi is a very common morning rag in Todi That. There are a number of popular film songs in Gujari Todi, including Ik Tha Bachapan.

There are fundamental differences between Mian Ki Todi and Gujari Todi. Where Mian-ki-Todi has a Pa that is very weak, Gujari Todi has no Pa at all, therefore they sound very similar. The absence of Pa makes this rag shadav - shadav jati. As is typical of the vadi / samvadi theory there are differences of opinion concerning the vadi and samvadi; Dha, Ga, and Re have variously been declared to occupy these positions.

AROHANA

AVAROHANA

JATI

Shadav - Shadav

TIME

morning

THAT

Todi That

PAKAD

DRONE

Sa - Komal Dha