• Raag Bhairav Bahar •

S-rR-gG-m-P-D-nN-S


A ten-toned multi-jod raga, Bhairav Bahar’s descent blends the melodic signatures of several disparate ragas, notably including the springtime Bahar – although, as per Darbhanga Dhrupad vocalist Premkumar Mallick, flavours of Bhairav should dominate the overall impression. Bose gives a vadisamvadi of maSa, while also mentioning the existence of an alternate ‘double-Dha’ version (thus allowing for the use of every swara position except tivra Ma). Refer to recordings by Bhimsen Joshi, Apoorva Gokhale, and Vilayat Khan (at the 1981 BBC Proms with Zakir Hussain on tabla, also showcasing the Imdadkhani sitarist‘s impressive vocal skills) – as well as Rajan Parrikar’s rundown of further renditions. Compare to other members of the Bhairav raganga.


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—Apoorva Gokhale (2018)—


[bandish, e.g. 43:47] mG m/nD, D(nSN)S, nD(n)P, mg(mP)m G\r S, mG m/nD, D(nSN)S

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• Classifiers •

Explore hidden inter-raga connections: swara geometries, melodic features, murchana sets, ragangas, & more (also see the Full Tag List):


Swaras: -4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10+

Sapta: Audav | Shadav | Sampurna

Poorvang: SRGM | SRG | SRM | SGM

Uttarang: PDNS | PDS | PNS | DNS

Varjit: Re | Ga | Ma | Pa | Dha | Ni

Thaat: 10 | 32Enclosed | Inexact

Chal: All-shuddha | All-komal | Ma-tivra

Gaps: Anh. | Hemi. | 3-row | 4-row | 5-row


Aroha: Audav | Shadav | Sampurna

Avroh: Audav | Shadav | Sampurna

Jati: Equal | Balanced | Av.+1 | Av.+2

Samay: Morning | Aftern. | Eve. | Night

Construction: Jod | Mishra | Oddball

Origin: Ancient | Carnatic | Modern

Dominance: Poorvang | Uttarang

Prevalence: A-list | Prachalit | Aprach.

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• Prakriti: (none found)
Also compare to other members of the Bhairav raganga

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–Swara Geometries–

Core form: SrRgGmPDnNS
Reverse: SrRgmPdDnNS
Complement: SMdS
Imperfect: 2 (re, Ni)
Detached: 1 (re)
Symmetries: mirror (r—P)
Murchanas: none

Quirks: maximal‘ (swaras are optimally ‘spread out’)

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–Global Translations–

Carnatic: ~Basant Bahaar
S-R1-R2-G2-G3-M1-P-D2-N2-N3-S
Jazz: Ionian (dbl. 2nd/3rd/7th)
1-b2-2-b3-3-4-5-6-b7-7-8
Pitch classes (‘fret-jumps’):
0-1-2-3-4-5-7-9-10-11-0
(1–1–1–1–1–2–2–1–1–1)

o o o o o o • o • o o o o


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• Tanpura: Sa–Pa
• Names: Bhairav Bahar, Bahar Bhairava
• Transliterations: Hindi (भैरव बहार); Bengali (ভৈরব বাহার)

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—Vilayat Khan (1981)—

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An open-ended project seeking to bring North Indian raga closer to all who approach with open ears. Combines direct input from dozens of leading Hindustani artists with in-depth insights from music history, global theory, performance practice, cognitive science, and much more besides!

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George Howlett is a London-based musician, writer, and teacher (guitars, sitar, tabla, & santoor). Above all I seek to enthuse fellow sonic searchers, interconnecting fresh vibrations with the voices, cultures, and passions behind them. See Homepage for more, and hit me up for Lessons!

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