S-R-G-m-P-d-n-S
A barely-documented morning raga created by Ali Akbar Khan sometime around the 1970s – named in honour of his mother (‘Malaya’) and father (‘Alam’: also the name of Khan’s son, born in 1982) [n.b. the Tamil-derived Dravidian language family of the same title is of a separate etymology, derived from ‘mala+alam’: ‘the land near the mountains’]. Prakriti with Charukeshi in its basic form (compare and contrast with Khan’s renditions of this raga), Malayalam also draws from Megh, Asavari, Tilang, and Kukubh Bilawal – with a relatively sparse melodic character predominantly focused on exploring the mid-scale GmPd space. Thus far, I can’t trace any recordings aside from the 1977 album by its creator, and a scratchy but powerful rendition from an Alauddin Khan memorial concert held circa 1986 (as ‘Malayalam Smurti‘). Compare to other Khansaab ragas including Chandranandan, Gaurimanjari, Prabhakali, Medhavi, and Suha Todi.
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राग मलयालम
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—Ali Akbar Khan (1977)—
[refrain, e.g. 20:15] G G, n\dPmP, (G)m, (mPG)m, G, GG G\R, S n\d…
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Salaman (Toumani Diabaté & Ballaké Sissoko): I’ve loved this composition since ripping it from a Frome Library CD when I was 14… Originally performed by the legendary kora duet on their ‘New Ancient Strings’ album, Based on ‘Tita’, a love song from Western Mali (…the b6 has a ‘between minor and major’ tuning…handled here with a messy bend)
And if you like this stuff then check out Derek Gripper, the true master of arranging Toumani Diabaté for the guitar! @derek_gripper
#kora #worldmusic #mali #africanmusic #guitarsolo @toumanidiabatemusic @ballake.sissoko
Sep 2
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
• 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: Thaat #27, Charukeshi, Charukauns, Gunakauns
–Proximate Forms–
Khamaj = ‘Malayalam shuddha Dha‘
Nat Bhairav = ‘Malayalam shuddha Ni‘
Darbari = ‘Malayalam komal ga‘
Basant Mukhari = ‘Malayalam komal re‘
Gangeshwari = ‘Malayalam no Re‘
Imratkauns = ‘Malayalam no Pa‘
Zeelaf = ‘Malayalam no Re/ni‘
(n.b. these are just ‘scalar similarities’, with nothing particular implied about phraseological overlap)
–Swara Geometries–
• Core form: S–R–G–m–P–d–n–S
• Reverse: SRGmPdnS (=itself)
• Complement: SrgMDNS
• Imperfect: 3 (Re, Ga, dha)
• Detached: 2 (Ga, dha)
• Symmetries: mirror (S—M)
• Murchanas: Charukeshi set
• Quirks: ‘palindromic‘ (same intervals forwards & backwards) • ‘maximal‘ (swaras are optimally ‘spread out’)
–Global Translations–
• Carnatic: Charukeshi (mela #26)
S-R2-G3-M1-P-D1-N2-S
• Jazz: Major-Minor
1-2-3-4-5-b6-b7-8
• Pitch classes (‘fret-jumps’):
0-2-4-5-7-8-10-0
(2–2–1–2–1–2–2)
o • o • o o • o o • o • o
• Tanpura: Sa–Pa (+Ga)
• Names: Malayalam, Malayalama
• Transliterations: Hindi (मलयालम)
—Ali Akbar Khan (1977)—
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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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