S-R-G-mM-P-D-N-S

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Associated with Lord Krishna, Nand (also known as ‘Anandi’ or ‘Anandi Kalyan’) rose to prominence around the turn of the 20th century – initially gaining renown through a pair of bandishes by Mehboob Khan ‘Daraspiya’ (Dhundu Bare Saiyan) and Vilayat Hussain Khan ‘Pranpiya’ (Ajahun Na Aye). Aarshin Karande describes the raga as being “regarded for its swelling sweetness and complex structure”, while Tanarang links it to Bihag, Hameer, Kamod, and Gaud Sarang, recommending a differentiation sequence of GmPDNP; DMP; GmDPRS (“soothing and full of karuna…can be expanded in madhya and taar saptak”). Refer to melodic breakdowns from r/ICM and Rajan Parrikar (“a masterful synthesis of melodic calculation and aesthetic imperatives: the contours of Nand do not obtain from simple, linear tonal ribbons”) – as well as Sandeep Bagchee’s pitch-extraction analysis summarised below (“Ramashreya Jha describes it as a ‘lively and pleasing’ raga, though its joy is somewhat tempered by a wistfulness: probably because of the lyrics of various bandishes. Lyrics cannot be ignored as a determinant of mood…”).

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• Hindustani Raga Index •

—Budhaditya Mukherjee (2019)—

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[gat, e.g. 1:29] SGm/D D(PMP), (G)RR S, (N)S, G, G (P)mG (G)P, P(GP) P(MP) D(PMP), GmP D(NPDN) N(DP) D(M) P(MP), P(G)Gm/D(PMP), (G)RR S, S G…

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• More •

Histories, melodies, mythologies, etc…

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After the initial publication of this page in late 2023, I’ve received plenty of invaluable feedback, which is constantly fed back into the project (which, like India’s string instruments, requires constant retuning…). One such contributor was Sandeep Bagchee – author of the 1998 book Understanding Raga Music – who sent in an insigitful critique of my Bhairavi chalan. He has also published an intriguing analysis of three Nand recordings (The Joy of Nand), including the following highlights…

 

• Melodic features: “Nand is a raga of the middle octave, with Pa forming its focus. Re is omitted in ascent, but emphasized [in] a characteristic descent that ends in a meend, namely DP(MG)R S. This P\R glide can be regarded as the raga’s signature – although this feature is notated in different ways by different sources. Pandit [Ramashreya] Jha indicates movements of SGmDP (MG)R\S; G(R)Gm; mGP; GMPDN(D)P; D(P)MP(m)G. Other characteristic phrases include SGmG/P and [mandra] R\NDP, both with glides, as well as GmPDNPDMP“.

 

• Kumar Gandharva recording: “On first hearing Gandharva’s Rajan Aba to Aja, I was at a loss to place it as Nand…[What] made it sound different? This question, lodged in my brain like an earworm, has bothered me over the years…[But] the availability of pitch-extraction software has aided my analysis…Kumarji’s rendition is in drut tintal, and the presentation of the bandish is mainly through the mukhda, which is repeated a number of times and varied (the second line of the sthayi figures only twice, and the second line of the antara only once). According to Magriel’s sthayi transcription, the word ‘rajana’ is sung to the tones P(MPG)RS, while ‘aba to’ is sung as SGM/P, ‘aja’ as G/P, and ‘re’ as D\M. Both ‘rajana’ and ‘aba to’ are repeated in similar fashion…”

 

“Thus on this basis, the mukhda embodies Nand’s [GmDPRS] signature phrase identified by both Jha and Parrikar…The tones used for ‘rajana’ over the various cycles are GRS, PRS, MPRS, DPRS, nPRS, etc: thus, a descent to Sa via Re is presented in all repetitions of the word. However, the Pa to Re meend is not evident to the ordinary listener, as these swaras are often not linked to each other, and where joint, the Re follows the Pa far too quickly. In the case of the next two words [‘aja re’], the gradual rise from Pa to Dha and then the drop to Ma conveys the meend (as does the entire phrase at around 15 seconds, where the melody ascends from Re in the lower register as ‘G/m\G(M)P; P/D). The first line of the antara also receives attention [P/R, N, PD\P, P/S, SNSS]. Here, too, the abruptness of the rendering does not possess the gentle gradualness that one expects from a meend…”.

 

• Kesarbai Kerkar recording: “Kesarbai’s recording consists only of the sthayi (‘E bare saiyan; Tohe sakala bana dhu dhu’), with no antara. Her rendering is leisurely, with a gradual ascent from the first syllable, which rises without a break from Sa to Dha via Ga and ma, and descends as G\R [on] the word ‘bare’. Thus, Nand’s characteristic signature is brought forward at the outset. ‘Saiyan’, which follows, is stretched to the tones GmP in an ascent, with following words sung [with] GmGGm; GPMD…and lastly, ‘dhu dhu’ is sung to GmGM/PDP. Thereafter, the mukhda is repeated…The taans, with their gradual descents, provide the ‘lilting’ effect that seems to form the essence of Nand. The prayoga PDSRGRS, RNDP is heard in the latter portion, a little after 2 minutes. This is followed by quicker ascending-descending taans before the piece ends…”.

 

• Amir Khan recording: “Amir Khan’s [rendition] consists of the Daraspiya bandish in jhoomra taal [~16 mins long] followed by an ektal bandish [~8 mins]. In both cases, only the sthayi is sung. The words of the [ektal] are ‘Mana baira baira cahat; Tumare darasa dekhana koo balama’…One sees broadly the predominance of an ‘arched contour’ rising from Sa to Pa, Dha, or Ni before dropping down to Re or Sa, both in the case of the mukhda and the second line of the sthayi. In the sargam taans that follow, beginning with SGmPDNmP; GmDPM\RS, the upper tetrachord is explored with phrases such as PDNPNPDMP…These are followed by akaar taans towards the end, where taar Pa is reached. Repetitions of the mukhda intersperse these passages, and the mukhda sung slowly in akaar clearly brings out the melodic signature of the raga…”

(Also refer to Nicolas Magriel & Lalita du Perron’s original bandish transcriptions in their 2013 book The Songs of Khayal)

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—Amir Khan (1970s)—

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“Having examined the raga’s melodic features, we are now in a position to sum up the discussion. To the ordinary listener, Nand reveals itself through its ascent and its particularly appealing descent. The attractive meend that follows at the end of the characteristic phrase is what identifies the raga, and imprints itself on the mind. This feature is clearly brought out in Kesarbai’s rendition of the Daraspiya bandish. In the case of Amir Khan’s ektal recording, this feature is also clearly discernible. However, in Kumar Gandharva’s rendition, this does not come out [so] clearly…” (Sandeep Bagchee)

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—Imagery: Krishna carving—

“Be fearless and pure; never waver in your determination or your spiritual dedication. Give freely; be self-controlled, sincere, truthful, loving, and full of the desire to serve. Learn to be detached, and to take joy in renunciation. Do not get angry, or harm any living creature, but be compassionate and gentle. Cultivate vigor, patience, will, purity; avoid malice and pride. Then, you will achieve your destiny…” (Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita)

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• 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

Double: rR | gG | mM | dD | nN

Thaat: 10 | 32 | Enclosed | Inexact

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

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

Symmetries: Mirror | Rotation | Palindr.

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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.

• Prakriti: Bihag, Hameer, Kamod, Maru Bihag, Pat Bihag, Chayanat, Gaud Sarang, Shyam Kalyan, Khem Kalyan, Lakshmi Kalyan, Sanjh Saravali

–Proximate Forms–

Bilawal = ‘Nand only ma‘

Yaman = ‘Nand only Ma‘

Bhankari = ‘Nand komal re‘

Shankara = ‘Nand no Ma‘

Chandni Kedar = ‘Nand double Ni‘

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

–Swara Geometries–

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• Core form: S–R–G–mM–P–D–N–S

• Reverse: SrgmMPdnS

• Negative: 3-2-5-2

• Imperfect: 1 (Ma)

• Detached: none

• Symmetries: mirror (mM—NS)

• Murchanas: Bihag set

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• Quirks: ‘maximal‘ (swaras are optimally ‘spread out’)

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–Global Translations–

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• Carnatic: ~Behag

S-R₂-G₃-M₁-M₂-P-D₂-N₃-S

• Jazz: Lydionian

1-2-3-4-#4-5-6-7-8

• Pitch classes (‘fret-jumps’):

0-2-4-5-6-7-9-11-0

(2–2–1–1–1–2–2–1)

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o • o • o o o o • o • o o

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• Tanpura: Sa–Pa (+Ni)

• Names: Nand, Naand, Anand, Anandi, Ananda Kalyan

• Transliterations: Hindi (नंद)

—Vilayat Khan/Bismillah Khan (~2000s)—