Raga 1

RagaA raga (Sanskrit rāga राग, Tamil irāgam இராகம், Telugu "Raagam" రాగం, Kannada "Raaga" ರಾಗ, Malayalam

rāgam രാഗം literally "colour, hue" but also "beauty, melody"; also spelled raag, raaga, ragam)[1] is one of themelodic modes used in Indian classical music.A raga uses a series of five or more musical notes upon which a melody is constructed. However, it is important toremember that the way the notes are approached and rendered in musical phrases and the mood they convey aremore important in defining a raga than the notes themselves. In the Indian musical tradition, rāgas are associatedwith different times of the day, or with seasons. Indian classical music is always set in a rāga. Non-classical musicsuch as popular Indian film songs and ghazals sometimes use rāgas in their compositions.Joep Bor of the Rotterdam Conservatory of Music defined Raga as "tonal framework for composition andimprovisation."[2] Nazir Jairazbhoy, chairman of UCLA's department of ethnomusicology, characterized ragas asseparated by scale, line of ascent and descent, transilience, emphasized notes and register, and intonation andornaments.[3]

TerminologyThe Sanskrit word rāga is defined as 'the act of colouring or dyeing' (the mind and mood/emotions in this context)and therefore metaphorically means 'any feeling or passion especially love, affection, sympathy, desire, interest,motivation, joy, or delight.' Therefore, the word is used in the literal sense of 'the act of dyeing,' and also 'color, hue,tint,' especially the color red in the Sanskrit epics, and in the figurative sense of 'something that colors one'semotions.' A figurative sense of the word as 'passion, love, desire, delight' is also found in the Mahabharata. Thespecialized sense of 'loveliness, beauty,' especially of voice or song, emerges in Classical Sanskrit, used by Kalidasaand in the Panchatantra.[4]

The term first occurs in a technical context in the Brihaddeshi (dated ca. 5th to 8th century),[5] where it is describedas "a combination of tones which, with beautiful illuminating graces, pleases the people in general".Rāginī (Devanagari: रागिनी) is a term for the "feminine" counterpart or "wife" to a rāga. The rāga-rāgini scheme fromabout the 14th century aligned 6 "male" rāgas with 6 "wives."

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Nature of rāga

Raga Shree recital to Krishna and Radha, Ragamala paintings, 19thcentury

योऽसौ ध्वनिविशेषस्तु स्वरवर्णविभूषितः ।रञ्जको जनचित्तानां स च राग उदाहृतः ।।"That which is a special dhwani (tune), isbedecked with swara (notes) and varna and iscolorful or delightful to the minds of the people,is said to be rāga" - Matanga in the Brihaddeshi.

The basic mode of reference in modern Hindustanipractice (known commonly as the shuddha - basic -form) is a set which is equivalent to the Western Ionianmode (the major scale) — this is called Bilawal thaatin Hindustani music (the Carnatic analogue would beSankarabharanam). In both systems, the ground (ortonic), Shadja, Sa, and a pure fifth above, Pancham, Pa,are fixed and essentially sacrosanct tones. In theHindustani system, in a given seven-tone mode, thesecond, third, sixth, and seventh notes can be natural(shuddha, lit. 'pure') or flat (komal, 'soft') but neversharp, and the fourth note can be natural or sharp (tivra)but never flat, making up the twelve notes in theWestern equal tempered chromatic scale (Westernenharmonic pitch equivalences like, for example, A♯and B♭ do not apply; e.g. Re tivra may, to a Westernmusician appear enharmonic to Ga shuddha in that system, but in practice is not.) A Western-style C chromatic scalecould therefore theoretically have the notes C, D♭, D, E♭, E, F, F♯, G, A♭, A, B♭, B.

The Carnatic system has three versions — a lower, medium, and higher form — of all the notes except Sa, Ma andPa. Ma has two versions (lower and higher), while Sa and Pa are invariant. Rāgas can also specify microtonalchanges to this scale: a flatter second, a sharper seventh, and so forth. Tradition has it that the octave consists of (adivision into) 22 microtones ("shrutis"). Furthermore, individual performers treat pitches quite differently, and theprecise intonation of a given note depends on melodic context. There is no absolute pitch (such as the modernwestern standard A = 440 Hz); instead, each performance simply picks a ground note, which also serves as thedrone, and the other scale degrees follow relative to the ground note. The Carnatic system embarks from a muchdifferent shuddha (fundamental) scalar formation, that is, shuddha here is the lowest-pitched swara.By comparison, using the common tonic "C" for a western musician:

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Carnatic Swara Carnatic Notation Hindustani Swara Hindustani Notation Western E.T.

Sa S Sa S C

Shuddha Ri R1 Komal Re r D♭

Chatusruti Ri R2 Shuddha Re R D

Shatsruti Ri R3 D♯

Shuddha Ga G1 E♭♭

Sadharana Ga G2 Komal G g E♭

Antara Ga G3 Shuddha Ga G E

Shuddha Ma M1 Shuddha Ma M F

Prati Ma M2 Teevra Ma M+ F♯

Pa P Pa P G

Shuddha Dha D1 Komal Dha d A♭

Chatusruti Dha D2 Shuddha Dha D A

Shatsruti Dha D3 A♯

Shuddha Ni N1 B♭♭

Kaisika Ni N2 Komal Ni n B♭

Kakali Ni N3 Shuddha Ni N B

Rāgas and their seasons

Vasant Ragini, Ragamala, Rajput, Kota,Rajasthan. 1770. Vasant is the raga of spring. Thepainting depicts Hindu god Krishna dancing with

maidens.

Many Hindustani (North Indian) rāgas are prescribed for the particulartime of a day or a season. When performed at the suggested time, therāga has its maximum effect. For example, many of the Malhar groupof rāgas, which are ascribed the magical power to bring rain, areperformed during the monsoon. However, these prescriptions are notstrictly followed, especially since modern concerts are generally heldin the evening. There has also been a growing tendency over the lastcentury for North Indian musicians to adopt South Indian rāgas, whichdo not come with any particular time associated with them. The resultof these various influences is that there is increasing flexibility as towhen rāgas may be performed.

Notations

Although notes are an important part of rāga practice, they alone do notmake the rāga. A rāga is more than a scale, and many rāgas share thesame scale. The underlying scale may have five, six or seven tonesmade up of swaras. Rāgas that have five swaras are called audava(औडव) rāgas; those with six, shaadava (षाडव); and with seven, sampurna(संपूर्ण, Sanskrit for 'complete'). Those rāgas that do not follow the strictascending or descending order of swaras are called vakra (वक्र)('crooked') rāgas.

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The mood of the rāga and the way the notes are approached and used are more important than the notes it uses. Forexample, Darbari Kanada and Jaunpuri share the same notes but are entirely different in their renderings. Similarly,although Bilaskhani Todi is classified under the Bhairavi thaat because of the notes it uses, it is actually closer toTodi than to Bhairavi.

Northern and southern differencesThe two streams of Indian classical music, Carnatic music and Hindustani music, have independent sets of rāgas.There is some overlap, but more "false friendship" (where rāga names overlap, but rāga form does not). In northIndia, the rāgas have been primarily categorised into ten thaats or parent scales (by Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande,1860-1936); South India uses an older and even more systematic classification scheme called the melakartaclassification, with 72 parent (melakarta) rāgas. Overall there is a greater identification of rāga with scale in thesouth than in the north, where such an identification is impossible. Rāgas in north Indian music system follow the'law of consonances' established by Bharata in his Natyashastra, which does not tolerate deviation even at the shrutilevel.As rāgas were transmitted orally from teacher to student, some rāgas can vary greatly across regions, traditions andstyles. Many ragas have also been evolving over the centuries. There have been efforts to codify and standardise rāgaperformance in theory from their first mention in Matanga's Brihaddeshi (c. tenth century).

Carnatic rāgaIn Carnatic music, rāgas are classified as Janaka rāgas and Janya rāgas. Janaka rāgas are the rāgas from which theJanya rāgas are created. Janaka rāgas are grouped together using a scheme called Katapayadi sutra and are organisedas Melakarta rāgas. A Melakarta rāga is one which has all seven notes in both the ārōhanam (ascending scale) andavarōhanam (descending scale). Some Melakarta rāgas are Harikambhoji, Kalyani, Kharaharapriya,Mayamalavagowla, Sankarabharanam and Todi.Janya rāgas are derived from the Janaka rāgas using a combination of the swarams (usually a subset of swarams)from the parent rāga. Some janya rāgas are Abheri, Abhogi, Bhairavi, Hindolam, Mohanam and Kambhoji. See thefull List of Janya Ragas for more.Each rāga has a definite collection and orders of swaras (the basic notes). In Carnatic music, there are 7 basic notesof which there are a total of 16 varieties. The seven basic swarams of Carnatic music are: Sa, Ri, Ga, Ma, Pa, Da, Ni.

Related rāgasEven though Janya rāgas are subsets of Janaka rāgas in notation and representation, the differences between the childragas are clear due to the differences like•• some notes that figure more in a particular rāga compared to another, while other notes used sparingly• some notes may be sung with gamaka, stress, elongation, etc., in one rāga compared to other•• specific phrases used and other phrases to be avoided in a rāga (so as to avoid deviation into another rāga's

domain)• the scales of some ragas may contain at least one swara that does not figure in their janaka ragas. Such ragas are

termed as bhashanga ragas. Ragas such as Bhairavi, Kambhoji, Bilahari, Devagandhari, and Neelambari fallunder this category.

•• An important fact to be noted is to never sing Bhairavi and Kharaharapriya together, since, the prayogas whilesinging aalapana are almost the same, with the Suddha dha of Bhairavi being the only difference between the two.

The effect of the rāgas are different from each other, even if they notationally use same swarams (or subset of swarams between each other) due to above subjective differences related to bhava and rasa (mood caused in the listener). The artists have to ensure the same when elaborating on a rāga, as has been followed and expected on each

Raga 5

rāga, without digressing into the phrases of another related rāga.

Rāga-rāgini

Basohli painting of Ragaputra Velavala, son ofthe raga Bhairava.

The rāga-rāgini scheme is a classification scheme used from the 14thcentury to the 19th century. It usually consists of 6 'male' rāgas eachwith 6 'wives' (rāginis) and a number of sons (putras) and even'daughters-in-law'. As it did not agree with various other schemes, andthe 'related' rāgas had very little or no similarity, the rāga-rāginischeme is no longer very popular.[6]

Rāgas and rāginis were often pictured as Hindu gods, Rajput princesand aristocratic women in an eternal cycle of love, longing andfulfilment.[6]

References[1] "Raag" is the modern Hindi pronunciation used by Hindustani musicians; "ragam" is

the pronunciation in Tamil.[2] Bor, Joep; Rao, Suvarnalata; Van der Meer, Wim; Harvey, Jane (1999). The Raga

Guide. Nimbus Records. p. 181. ISBN 0-9543976-0-6.[3] Jairazbhoy, Nazir Ali (1995). The Rāgs of North Indian music (http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=hGLRqLscf78C& pg=PA45). Popular

Prakashan. p. 45. ISBN 81-7154-395-2. .[4] Monier-Williams, A Sanskrit-English Dictionary (1899)[5][5] Kaufmann(1968) p. 41[6][6] Bor 1999

Literature• Bhatkhande, Vishnu Narayan (1968-73), Kramika Pustaka Malika, Hathras: Sangeet Karyalaya.• Bor, Joep (1999), The Rāga Guide, Charlottesville,Virginia: Nimbus Records• Daniélou, Alain (1949), Northern Indian Music, Calcutta: Visva Bharati• Jairazbhoy, N.A. (1995), The Rags of North Indian Music: Their Structure & Evolution, Bombay: Popular

Prakashan• Kaufmann, Walter (1968), The Ragas of North India, Calcutta: Oxford & IBH Publishing Company• Moutal, Patrick (1991), Hindustani Raga Index

• Moutal, Patrick (1991), A Comparative Study of Selected Hindustani Ragas

Some Ragamala paintings can be found in:• Bautze, J (1987), Indian Miniature Paintings c:1590 to c. 1850, Amsterdam: Galerie Saundarya Lahari,

ISBN 90-72085-01-9• Gangoly, O.C. (1934), Rāgas and Rāginis, Calcutta

•• Ragas and raginis by Amiyanath Sanyal (English) ORIENT LONGMANS 1959 printed by S.C.Ghosh,Calcutta Press, Wellington Squate, Calcutta (Link: www.dli.ernet.in)

•• Sangita Ratnakara of Sarangadeva (Raga Adyaya) ( -do- )

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External links• A step-by-step introduction to the concept of raga for beginners (http:/ / raag-hindustani. com/ Scales1. html)• Rajan Parrikar Music Archive - detailed analyses of ragas backed by rare audio recordings (http:/ / www. parrikar.

org/ )• Comprehensive reference on raagas (http:/ / www. soundofindia. com/ raagas. asp)• Krsna Kirtana Songs Ragamala (http:/ / www. kksongs. org/ ragamala) — an informative database with over

ninety rāgas (audio clips coming soon), tutorial on the North Indian notation system, rāga classification, andexplanation of how rāgas work.

• Hindustani Raga Sangeet Online (http:/ / moutal. eu/ indian-music. html) A rare collection of audio & videoarchives from 1902. Radio programs dedicated to famous ragas.

• Online quick reference of rāgams (http:/ / webspace. webring. com/ people/ dv/ vasudevanvrv/ carnatic/ raagams.htm) in Carnatic music.

• Basics of Hindustani Classical Music for Listeners: a downloadable PDF (http:/ / atulnene. com/ hcmprimer.html), and an online video talk (http:/ / urtalk. kpoint. in/ kapsule/ gcc-066a675a-74c2-4f57-8d7b-6b1e82c0583b).Includes "What is a Raga"?

Article Sources and Contributors 7

Article Sources and ContributorsRaga  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=508973522  Contributors: 2SSophie, Adwaitjoshi, Ahung, Aksi great, Alansohn, Alex n, Allisonmarieanne, Ambarish, Amirdhagopal,Anarchivist, Animeshkulkarni, Annamacharya Vaibhavam, Arjun024, Ashwath Rabindranath, Ashwinijaya, B9 hummingbird hovering, Badagnani, Bharatveer, Calaf, CambridgeBayWeather,Capricorn42, Champ1979, Champaign, Chandrahas Piduri, Charukesi, Chhajlaniv1, Chris the speller, Cminard, Daedalus969, Dbachmann, Deeptrivia, Deltabeignet, DerHexer, Dforest,Dhamit21, Dhesi, Drummerdave1, EdChem, Egoels, Eirik, Ekabhishek, Epioinopaponton, Excirial, FrancoGG, Gautam3, Gene Nygaard, Gh5046, Ghanonmatta, Gnanapiti, Gokhul, Gokulmadhavan, Gopikoundinya, Gr8naru, GregorB, Guaka, Gwalla, H3rcul3s, Harisingh, Hekerui, Hu12, Huangdi, Hyacinth, Iammusicfreak, Icarusgeek, Imc, Impy4ever, Introferious, JaGa, Jagged85, Jan civil, Jarble, Jeff3000, Jerome Kohl, Jhirvi, John Quincy Adding Machine, JohnI, Jossi, Julesd, Kappa, Kaustuv, Keenan Pepper, Kh7, KirtanDevotee, Kksongs, LAAFan, Lerdthenerd,Light current, LilHelpa, LordSimonofShropshire, Lotje, MER-C, MPerel, Madbassist, MarkC77, Matt Gies, Meco, Mellery, MoRsE, Mr. Kalish, Mrahaim, Mukundan, Namjap, Nataraja,NawlinWiki, Ncmvocalist, Neelix, Nizonstolz, Orderinchaos, PMDrive1061, Parrikar, Pepve, Pgan002, Philip Trueman, Prash n rao, Pstarbuck, Pulkitsingh01, Raas1234, RagaBhakta, Ragaist,Raguks, RedWolf, Redheylin, Redtigerxyz, Rigadoun, Roland zh, Rynsaha, S.dedalus, SWFlash, Saga City, Samjones9booyakasha, Sanpra1989, Sciurinæ, Seth Ilys, Sharifruet, Shobhit102,Shreevatsa, Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington, Sivaraj, Skal, Smdevesh, Sojarumojaru, Sp3z1aL, SpacemanSpiff, Srinivasaraju, Srkris, SteinbDJ, Sudhir V Gadre, Summer Song, TUF-KAT,Tabalji, Tabisini, Tanaats, Tevildo, Thadius856, The Rationalist, The wub, Trusilver, Tukamhane, Ultimus, Updatehelper, Ushajayaraman, VasuVR, Vegaswikian, Veggieburgerfish, Venu62,WereSpielChequers, Wiki-uk, Wmahan, Zerokitsune, 278 anonymous edits

Image Sources, Licenses and ContributorsImage:Sri Raga recital to Krishna-Radha, 19th century.jpg  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Sri_Raga_recital_to_Krishna-Radha,_19th_century.jpg  License: PublicDomain  Contributors: Abhishekjoshi, Johnbod, Roland zhFile:Vasant Ragini, Ragamala, Rajput, 1770.jpg  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Vasant_Ragini,_Ragamala,_Rajput,_1770.jpg  License: Public Domain  Contributors:Abhishekjoshi, Ekabhishek, Mattes, Roland zh, WmpearlFile:Ragaputra Velavala of Bhairava.jpg  Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Ragaputra_Velavala_of_Bhairava.jpg  License: Public Domain  Contributors: Abhishekjoshi,BostonMA

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