S-r-G-M-P-D-nN-S
A scale with no apparent prakritis unveiled by sitar icon Nikhil Banerjee some time in the 1970s (in his own words: “I’m quite satisfied with one of my Sonodisc LPs, Raag Monomanjari: that’s my favourite so far…”). From Narendra Datar’s 1989 review of this record: “A jod raga…a remarkable combination of Kalavati and Marwa. Kalavati is a very joyful late night melody, whereas Marwa is an early evening melody which portrays pathos. In Monomanjari, one can feel a delicate interweaving of these two contrasting moods…a highly intellectual and emotional appeal”. More recently, the raga has been kept alive by sitarist and multi-instrumentalist Chris Stephens, who in 2025 released a tantalising solo sitar rendition (“Manomanjari’s mood is a mixture of light and heavy, serene and harsh, romance and pathos…So far, only sitarists have performed this raga; I would love to hear it on sarod, surbahar, or sarangi…”). Also see other Banerjee inventions such as Chandrakaushiki and Madhyam se Bhairavi – and compare to other ragas created by 20th-century sitarists such as Parameshwari, Madhyami, Imratkauns, Tulsikauns, Shiv Manjari, Enayetkhani Kanada, and Ek Prakar ki Kauns.
• Raga Masterlist (1000+) •
राग मोनोमंजरी
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• Hindustani Raga Index •
—Nikhil Banerjee (~1970s)—
[theme, e.g. 45:28] MPD(SnS) D(nDP), M(P)MG, G, M(D)MGr, r, S, S, N(S) (N)S N\D, D(PMP), P M(P), D, r, r, S…
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• Recent Raga Index Updates (Sep 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+)
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: (none found)
–Swara Geometries–
• Core form: S–r–G–M–P–D–nN–S
• Reverse: SrRgmMdNS
• Complement: SRgmdS
• Imperfect: 3 (re, Pa, ni)
• Detached: 1 (ni)
• Symmetries: none
• Murchanas: none
–Global Translations–
• Carnatic: ~Gamanasrama
S-R1-G3-M2-P-D2-N2-N3-S
• Jazz: Lydian b2 (dbl. 7th)
1-b2-3-#4-5-6-b7-7-8
• Pitch classes (‘fret-jumps’):
0-1-4-6-7-9-10-11-0
(1–3–2–1–2–1–1–1)
o o • • o • o o • o o o o
• Tanpura: Sa–Pa
• Names: Monomanjari, Manomanjiri, Manamanjari
• Transliterations: Hindi (मोनोमंजरी)
—Nikhil Banerjee (1972)—
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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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