S-G-M-D-N-S
A captivating, challenging audav raga with all swaras appearing in their highest specific positions (i.e. no komals, and Ma, if present, is tivra: also see Bhupali, Hansadhwani, & Adbhut Kalyan). The name translates as ‘swinging’: indicative of the raga’s melodic character, which is built around ‘swaying’ motions between a SGD trio of nyas, with Ni rendered weakly and often omitted entirely in ascent (see melodic summary). The raga is prominently mentioned in numerous ancient shastras – with Sarngdeva’s 13th-century Sangita Ratnakara stating that “Bhairava, Kaushika, Hindola, Dipaka, Sri, and Megha are the six primary ragas”. Often portrayed in classical ragmala paintings with imagery of Krishna sitting in seductive pose on a swing, Hindol also has mythic links to Kamadeva, God of erotic love and romantic desire (“a handsome young man decked with ornaments, armed with a sugarcane bow and shooting arrows of flowers”). Intriguingly, the similarly-named Carnatic ‘Hindolam’ matches the swaras of the Hindustani Malkauns: leading scholars such as Jairazbhoy to argue that Hindol’s swara set may have arisen via a “semitonal shift of the ground note” (i.e. SGMDNS = ‘SgmdnS with Sa lowered a semitone’; loosely akin to the idea of ‘altered chords’ in jazz). Compare to overlapping ragas including Hindolita, Malavi, and Shankara Karan – as well as Marwa (the same scale plus komal re), Kaushik Dhwani (shuddha ma instead), and Amritvarshini (a Dha-for-Pa swap).
• Raga Masterlist (1000+) •
राग हिन्डोल
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• Hindustani Raga Index •
Aroha: DSGMDS
Avroh: SNDMGS
Pakad: e.g. S\D, D/S; G\S, S/G; G(M)G
Chalan: e.g. SD; MDS; SDSGMG; SGMD; D(N)MDS; DSGS; SDMG; MGSDS (Bor/Vyas)
• Melodic motion focuses on ‘swinging, swaying’ ornaments, particularly between the Sa-Ga-Dha trio of nyas
• Shuddha Ni is weak – rarely elongated, and regularly omitted in aroha as SGMDS (although some include it as DNMDS)
• Tivra Ma can also be used as a resting tone, but is more frequently employed to recolour ‘swinging’ motions such as G(MG)MD; GMD(M)DS
• Concluding phrases may be set up with vakra mid-scale loops such as SDMG; MGSDS – although resolutions to Sa have a curious ambiguity given its ‘detached’ status (i.e. Sa is part of no samvad pairing)
• Associated with springtime – and traditionally depicted with imagery of Krishna sitting on a swing in seductive pose, as well as being associated with Kamadeva, God of Earthly Love
—Pandit Jasraj (2002)—
[refrain, e.g. 0:48] SM G, MGS, S(NS)D (N)SS; S(D) S(D)S (N)S, (S)G (G)SS; (S)MGGMD (M)SDDMG, MGS; SM(GM) G, MGS…
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• Ragmalas •
Historic miniature paintings (learn more)
“Hindola Raga: opaque watercolour on paper” (c.1800s) / “Raga Hindola: from the Manley folio” (c.1610)
• Recent Raga Index Updates (Jul 2026): Melodic ‘snapshots’ of prachalit ragas • Up to 365 raga pages! Some highlights: Bayati, Basant Mukhari, Bilaskhani Todi, Chandranandan, DoGa Kalyan, Jog, Kalavati, Kaushiki, Malkauns, Maru, Meladalan, Parameshwari, Sarangkauns, Vachaspati (+ try out ‘Audav Meladalan‘) • What does ‘Kauns’ mean? Analysing 60+ Kauns ragas • ‘Bifurcations‘: ‘poorvang vs. uttarang’ splits • Amir Khan’s ‘168 merukhands’ • Experiments (e.g. overtonal Bhairav, jazz Malkauns) • Survey of Sa Tunings • More Masterlist ragas (1000+)
Raag Jog: exploring different ways the electric guitar can support a Dhrupad-ang nomtom (syllabic improvisation)…
(From ‘Around the World in Eight Ragas’: my show with Ashwin Baliga & Marc Clayton at Mehfil Space on 11 Jun 2026) @ashwinbaligaofficial @marc_plays_tabla @mehfilspace
#dhrupad #raga #indianmusic #icm #worldmusic
Jun 28
Raag Kafi: Electric guitar improv around the adha bandish ‘Aaj Khel Shaam Sang Hori’
(From ‘Around the World in Eight Ragas’: my show with Ashwin Baliga & Marc Clayton at Mehfil Space on 11 Jun 2026) @ashwinbaligaofficial @marc_plays_tabla @mehfilspace
#raga #indianmusic #icm #worldmusic #ragaguitar
Jun 22
Raag Jog: some sawal-jawab (‘question-answer’) fun with Marc Clayton on tabla
(From ‘Around the World in Eight Ragas’: my show with Ashwin Baliga & Marc Clayton at Mehfil Space on 11 Jun 2026) @ashwinbaligaofficial @marc_plays_tabla @mehfilspace
#raga #indianmusic #icm #worldmusic #ragaguitar
Jun 15
Some tintal improv around a wonderful Durga bandish I’ll be playing at @mehfilspace @the_rose_hill in Brighton on Thu 11th June! with vocalist @ashwinbaligaofficial and @marc_plays_tabla
https://therosehill.co.uk/event/the-mehfil-space-presents-around-the-world-in-8-ragas/
‘Around the World in 8 Ragas’: exploring cross-cultural melodic forms (e.g. scales that turn up independently in Japan, India, Mali, etc)
#indianmusic #raga #icm #brightonmusic #ragaguitar
Jun 10
Come see me play some bendy raga-guitar at @mehfilspace @the_rose_hill in Brighton on Thu 11th June! with vocalist @ashwinbaligaofficial and @marc_plays_tabla
https://therosehill.co.uk/event/the-mehfil-space-presents-around-the-world-in-8-ragas/
‘Around the World in 8 Ragas’: exploring cross-cultural melodic forms (e.g. scales that turn up independently in Japan, India, Mali, etc) – including this piece, a famous Bhairavi bhajan by Pt. Bhimsen Joshi (Jo Bhaje Hari Ko Sada)
#bhajan #raga #indianmusic #brightonmusic #ragaguitar
Jun 5
tomato can jungle/DnB (distracted while cooking)
#drumming #percussion #dnb #jungle
May 23
A great Jaunpuri gat from Senia-Shahjahanpur sarod legend Pt Buddhadev DasGupta, full of fast bends and slides (originally released for Joep Bor’s 1997 Raga Guide, in many ways a precursor to my own raga index)
Raag Jaunpuri: a late morning raga, likely originating in the Sultanate-era music of Jaunpur in Uttar Pradesh (as per Subodh Agrawal: “The rulers of Jaunpur were keen patrons of the arts, and the last one – Sultan Hussain Sharqi – was himself a distinguished musician; it is probable that the Jaunpuri flavor of Asavari was developed by him, or under his patronage“). Rajan Parrikar elaborates on its “Asavariant” status, noting that some (including Omkarnath Thakur) see it as essentially indistinguishable from Shuddha Re Asavari, while others consider Jaunpuri to follow more ‘rounded’ melodic motions…
#sarod #ragaguitar #stratocaster #worldmusic #jaunpur
May 6
just for fun…I had to defend the honour of my main instrument against my second instrument (many thanks to @mountainhead for the original video, as well as some tasty bends) – still no match for the surbahar’s meend range though!
#sitar #guitar #raga #bends #ragaguitar
May 4
• 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 | 32 | Enclosed | 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.
• Prakriti: (none found)
Also see other ragas matching the generic swaras ‘Sa-Ga-Ma-Dha-Ni‘
–Swara Geometries–
• Core form: S–G–M–D–N–S
• Reverse: SrgMdS
• Complement: SrRgmPdnS (=Bahaduri Todi)
• Imperfect: 2 (Sa, Ma)
• Detached: 1 (Sa)
• Symmetries: none
• Murchanas: Shivranjani set
• Quirks: ‘detached Sa‘
–Global Translations–
• Carnatic: ~Sunadavinodini
S-G3-M2-D2-N3-S
• Jazz: Lydian (no 2nd/5th)
1-3-#4-6-7-8
• Pitch classes (‘fret-jumps’):
0-4-6-9-11-0
(4–2–3–2–1)
o • • • o • o • • o • o o
• Tanpura: Sa–Ni (+Dha)
• Names: Hindol, Hindoli (not the Carnatic ‘Hindolam‘ – although the ragas likely share historic overlap: see above)
• Transliterations: Hindi (हिंडोल); Bengali (হিন্দোল); Punjabi (ਹਿੰਡੋਲ); Kannada (ಹಿಂದೋಲ್)
—Uday Bhawalkar (2024)—
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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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