S-R-m-P-D-n-S

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A spacious, folksy raga of the late evening, Gorakh Kalyan (named for the Gorakhpur region of Uttar Pradesh) has fabled associations with Saint Gorakhnath, an 11th-century yogi mystic-musician who is said to have travelled throughout the Subcontinent in search of spiritual wisdom and sonic enrichment. Despite its name, the raga’s modern form has no discernible links to the Kalyan-ang, instead focusing on Ga-skipping motions such as SRm; RmRSn. Some performers include only four swaras in aroha (SRmD), with Deepak Raja linking this facet to its possible origins in a now-extinct audav raga known as ‘Gorakhi’ – itself an offshoot of the ‘chatuswari‘ Bhavani (SRmD). This upward sparsity leaves room for winding lines in the descent, which may often resolve to the komal ni of mandra saptak (e.g. Praveen Sheolikar’s outstanding violin rendition below). Prakriti with Narayani and Durgawati – see melodic summary, and compare to proximate forms such as Saraswati (the same scale with tivra Ma instead) and Miyan ki Sarang (which allows both Ni).

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Aroha: nSRm, DnDS

Avroh: SnDPmRS, nDS

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Pakad: variable, e.g. SRmnD; RmRSn

Chalan: variable – illustrative sequences e.g. SRm; RmRSn; nDS; mRm; mD; DnDm; mRnDS; mDnDm; mR; Rn; nDS (Parrikar/Thakurdas)

• Despite its ‘Kalyan’ title, it displays few discernible hints of the Kalyan-ang – instead falling closer to the phraseologies of the Khamaj family

• Aroha movements focus on the ‘chatuswari’ Sa-Re-ma-Dha, hinting at Bhavani and Durga (RmR; DSRm) – while the addition of komal ni allows for chayas of Bageshri (Dm; mDnD; DnS) and Jhinjhoti (DmPDS; nDP)

• Pa is generally weak, although treatments are diverse, with some artists using it more prominently in avroh (e.g. DPm; mDPmRS) – and similarly, the presence and use of shuddha Ga can vary

• Low-octave komal ni is a popular melodic endpoint, with the sam often placed on it to conclude descending motions (e.g. mRSn; mDmRSn)

• Usually interpreted as a straightforward, folksy form – with clear, direct, reassuring melodies which hide little from the listener

• Compositions •

—Buddhadev DasGupta (Senia-Shahjahanpur sarod):

• [tintal] mDPmRS nD, S(m)R mmPD (R)S nnDD (hear me play this gat on electric guitar!)

–Praveen Sheolikar (2018)–

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“The four varna [states] are located in the nature of the individual…A yogi experiences all men and women, and all races and castes within himself. Therefore, he has no hatred for anybody, and only love for every being…” (Saint Gorakhnath‘s Siddha Siddhanta Paddhati)

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—Context—

Origins, myths, quirks, & more

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[COMING SOON: click here to hasten the project’s expansion, so all 365+ raga pages can eventually look more like these]

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—Phraseologies—

Melodies, movements, characteristics…

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[coming soon]

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—Raga Parichay demo (2022)—

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“Pa is a weak note, and some prefer to avoid it completely (if used, it generally occurs in a descending glide between Dha and ma). Sa and ma are strong, and komal ni – particularly in the lower octave – is an important resting note. Omitting komal ni [DSRm; DPm] can give an impression of Durga, whereas including komal ni can create a feeling of Bageshri…” (Joep Bor)

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—Listen—

A brief selection of superb renditions

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–Kushal Das (2022)–

• Maihar sitar (13m): the modern master explores the full stretch of his strings at a 2022 baithak organised by Bazm-e-Khas, supported by Zuhaib Ahmed Khan’s tabla – with his double-tumba and tawaf sympathetic strings combining to draw new harmonic colours from the raga’s wide-jumping geometries amidst comparably straightforward ornamentation patterns (as well as some explicit chordal playing, e.g. 3:25):

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[refrain, e.g. 6:15] R(mR)R S(n)S, S RRm D n(SnR) n(Sn)n, n(S), S(D), R(mR)R (S)n (S)R (R)S; R(mR)R S(n)S, S RRm D n…

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–Soumik Datta (2018)–

• Shahjahanpur sarod (11m): a famous drut tintal gat from the young UK-based sarodiya, filmed at London’s Barbican Centre for Darbar 2018 with Sukhvinder Singh on tabla (also hear the same composition recorded by his guru Buddhadev Dasgupta):

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[gat, e.g. 1:33] D, mDPmRS n D, SR(D)mD S(R)S nn DD; mDPmRS n D…

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• Guitaragas •

My attempts to capture the raga on electric guitar (see more on my Insta)

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—Gorakh Kalyan on guitar (gat)—

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Covering the beautiful Buddhadev Dasgupta tintal gat above…

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–Further Recordings–

• Salamat & Nazakat Ali Khan (7m): a 1961 studio rendition from the pioneering brothers of the Sham Chaurasi gharana
• Ken Zuckerman (10m): Ali Akbar Khan‘s senior disciple at Darbar 2021 (also hear his trio of self-composed gats)
• Aslam Khan (11m): an AUTRIM pitch-graph (“A plea to the protector; to take across the boat that is stuck in a whirlpool”)
• Vishwa Mohan Bhatt & Ronu Majumdar (20m): an enchanting, space-sharing jugalbandi built from contrasting textures
• Nityanand Haldipur (34m): the Benares bansuriya plays a stellar 2017 show at Mumbai’s Sharada Sangeet Vidyalay
• Sawani Shende (46m): live at Bazm-e-Khas in 2020, with Charudatta Phadke on harmonium and Rahul Gole on tabla
• Shivkumar Sharma (48m): rapid santoor gats are driven forth by Shafaat Ahmed Khan’s ever-sublime accompaniment
• Debasmita Bhattacharya (54m): she once told me it was her favourite raga (also hear her guru Buddhadev Dasgupta’s take)
• Pandit Jasraj (77m): showcasing long, sustained tones at a 1984 Durgapur concert, with Mahapurush Mishra on tabla

 

• Classifiers •

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

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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 | 32 | Enclosed | Inexact

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

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

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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.

• Prakriti: Narayani, Durgawati

See all shadav ragas which omit Ga

–Proximate Forms–

Khamaj = ‘Gorakh Kalyan add Ga‘

Kafi = ‘Gorakh Kalyan add ga‘

Megh = ‘Gorakh Kalyan no Dha‘

Durga = ‘Gorakh Kalyan no ni‘

Saraswati = ‘Gorakh Kalyan tivra Ma‘

(n.b. these are just ‘scalar similarities’, with nothing particular implied about phraseological overlap)

–Swara Geometries–

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• Core form: S–R–m–P–D–n–S

• Reverse: SRgmPnS (=Nayaki Kanada)

• Complement: SrgGMdNS

• Imperfect: 1 (Dha)

• Detached: none

• Symmetries: mirror (gG—Dn)

• Murchanas: Shankara set

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• Quirks: ‘self-shadowing‘ (negative form=core form) • ‘atritonal‘ (no available tritones)

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–Global Translations–

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• Carnatic: ~Andolika

S-R₂-M₁-P-D₂-N₂-S

• Jazz: Mixolydian (no 3rd)

1-2-4-5-6-b7-8

• Pitch classes (‘fret-jumps’):

0-2-5-7-9-10-0

(2–3–2–2–1–2)

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o • o • • o • o • o o • o

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• Tanpura: Sa–ma (+Dha)

• Names: Gorakh Kalyan, Gorakha Kalyan, Gorakh

• Transliterations: Hindi (गोरख कल्याण); Kannada (ಗೋರಕ್ ಕಲ್ಯಾಣ್)

—More—

Further info: links, listenings, learnings, etc

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• Raag Gorakh Kalyan: [coming soon]

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• Header audio: Drut tintal gat by Senia-Shahjahanpur sarodiya Buddhadev Das Gupta (1993)
• Header image: ‘The Morning Raga’, agricultural village landscape in West Bengal (Abhijit Kar Gupta)

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