• Raag Mohankauns •

S-gG-m-d-n-S


As recounted in The Hindu, Mohankauns “was spontaneously created by Ravi Shankar in 1949. On hearing of [Mohandas K.] Gandhi’s death, Pandit-ji was asked by All India Radio to play a piece dedicated to the Mahatma. On the spot, he created a variation of…Malkauns”. As well as the occasional use of shuddha Re, his new raga adds a shuddha Ga in aroha, bringing special prominence to a ‘Ga-Ni-Dhacatchphrase: chosen by Shankar to spell out the Mahatma’s surname [here‘s the sloppily-distilled motif on own sitar, also audible in Shankar’s take below at 1:56, 12:57, 18:58, etc: and see my Alphamelodics: the hidden sounds of words article for more!]. Also recorded by Zia Mohiuddin Dagar on the rudra veena, as well as Nazakat & Salamat Ali Khan‘s spellbinding vocal duet.


Raga Megalist (365+) •
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Hindustani Raga Index •

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—Ravi Shankar (1981)—


[refrain, e.g. 18:44] G GGm, n (n)d d, (dm)G Gm, G(R)Gm, m m(d) G m S, (n)d dd, (dS)n nnS S, (m)GGm, (m)G n d(nd), (dm)G, GGm, G(R)Gm, m…

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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

Double: rR | gG | mM | dD | nN

Thaat: 10 | 32Enclosed | Inexact

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

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

Symmetries: Mirror | Rotation | Palindr.


Aroha: Audav | Shadav | Sampurna

Avroh: Audav | Shadav | Sampurna

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

Samay: Morning | Aftern. | Eve. | Night

Murchana: Bhup. | Bihag | Bilaw. | Charu.

Raganga: Bhairav | Malhar | Kan. | Todi

Construction: Jod | Mishra | Oddball

Origin: Ancient | Carnatic | Modern

Dominance: Poorvang | Uttarang

Prevalence: A-list | Prachalit | Aprach.

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–Swara Geometries–

Core form: S-gG-m-d-n-S
Reverse: SRGPdDS (=none)
Inverse: Ni; SRgPdnS (=none)
Imperfect: 2 (Sa, Ga)
Detached: 1 (Ga)
Symmetries: mirror (G—n)
Murchanas: Hemshri set

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–Global Translations–

Carnatic: ~Ragavardhini
S-G2-G3-M1-D1-N2-S
Jazz: Epogimic
1-b3-3-4-b6-b7-8
Pitch classes (‘fret-jumps’):
0-3-4-5-8-10-0
(3–1–1–3–2–2)

o • • o o o • • o • o • o


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• Tanpura: Sa–ma (+dha)
• Names: Mohankauns, Mohan Kauns

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—Nazakat & Salamat Ali Khan (1978)—

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Hindustani Raga Index

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! [out 2023]

Megalist (365+ ragas)
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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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