S-r-G-M-P-D-n-S
A mysterious sampurna form which follows the swara set of ‘Ahir Bhairav tivra Ma’, ‘Vachaspati komal re’, or ‘Puriya Kalyan komal ni’ (I’ve also seen the scale referred to as ‘Persian Vachaspati’ and ‘Ram Puriya Kalyan’). The ‘Rampriya’ moniker derives from a congruent Carnatic raga, although it is unclear whether this is a post-hoc addition or a hint at its Hindustani origins – especially given that Amir Khan’s rendition is explicitly based on a Persian ruba’i (4-line rhyming poem) penned by Sarmand Kashani, an Armenian-born mystic who moved to India in the early 17th-century, becoming a naked faqir (wandering ascetic) and eventually being beheaded by Aurangzeb. Khan’s supposed ‘Rampriya’, said to have been recorded at the Ranchi Rotary Club Hall in 1971, soon after he had recovered from a bout of pneumonia, also features subtle touches of shuddha ma [n.b. at times, the tabla accompanist struggled: “Khan interrupts himself to explain the tempo of the ‘Ti-Re-Ki-Te’, but the…cumulative beats of his ‘jhoomra’ fall somewhere around 21 rather than 14. The incredible part is that Khansahib…managed to mould his performance around this mistaken accompaniment”]. Rampriya has since been recorded by Indore vocalist Gokulotsavji Maharaj (set to his own bandish) and Mewati esraj exponent Pamalka Karunanayake (“in love with this scale…just peculiar!”) – although stable melodic conventions are hard to discern (see other ‘open-form‘ ragas). The same SrGMPDnS scale, if interpreted as ‘Ahir Bhairav tivra Ma’, is sometimes known as Indira Kalyan.
• Raga Masterlist (1000+) •
राग रामप्रिया
Search | Glossary | Tags
• Hindustani Raga Index •
Aroha: SrGMPDnS
Avroh: SnDPMGrS
Pakad: variable, e.g. nSnDP; MGrGrS
Chalan: (open-form)
—Amir Khan (1971)—
[ruba’i, e.g. 1:18] S(nMGPMnDSn)D D(n)P (M)P, (Gr)r, G (GrS), D(Sn) D(nD) n\D P(MP), P(MP) P(MPM) P/n(DSn)S, P(M) S(n)G, M(GrSnS)n\D(P) P(DPnDn)D (nD) n(SnS)nDP, P(MP) S\n(SnSD), (S)nSS S(nS), S(nSn)G G(MG), (SGPM)P P, (MP)M (P)M, M/P S(r)G, S(nGSMGPMP)M G\rG, rS…
Support open-access, AI-free raga musicology by joining my PATREON. And to learn raga & global music on guitar, try some online lessons: get in touch to book a free taster session!
• Carnatic Origins •
—Ragam Ramapriya (mela #52)—
(Tirupathi P. Saikumar)
–All ragas of Carnatic origin–
• 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: Thaat #10
Also compare to other members of the Kalyan raganga (designation based on the ‘Ram Puriya Kalyan’ incarnation above)
–Swara Geometries–
• Core form: S–r–G–M–P–D–n–S
• Reverse: SRgmMdNS
• Complement: SRgmdNS
• Imperfect: 4 (re, Ga, Pa, ni)
• Detached: 1 (ni)
• Symmetries: none
• Murchanas: none
• Quirks: ‘tivra Ma, komal ni‘ (rarest pairing)
–Global Translations–
• Carnatic: Ramapriya (mela #52)
S-R1-G3-M2-P-D2-N2-S
• Jazz: Lydian Dominant b2
1-b2-3-#4-5-6-b7-8
• Pitch classes (‘fret-jumps’):
0-1-4-6-7-9-10-0
(1–3–2–1–2–1–2)
o o • • o • o o • o o • o
• Tanpura: Sa–Pa
• Names: Rampriya, Ram Priya, Ramapriya, (‘Ram Puriya Kalyan‘ / ‘Persian Vachaspati‘)
• Transliterations: Hindi (रामप्रिया)
—Gokulotsavji Maharaj (~2010s)—
• ‘Guitaragas’ | My Music •
See more raga-guitar on my Instagram
• Learn ragas & filmi on guitar! •
Share these ragas! My site is 100% reliant on organic visitors – send this page to fellow sonic searchers!
—Join my PATREON!—
The Raga Index will always remain open-access & ad-free: however, this approach doesn’t pay the bills! I put as much into these resources as time and finances allow – so, to hasten the project’s expansion, you can:
• Support the Raga Index! •
—Riyaz-focused notations & bandish—
—Resurrecting rare and ancient ragas—
—Further melodic & geometric analysis—
—Ensuring that high-quality raga knowledge will remain open to all, at no cost: free from commercial motive!—
—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 besides!
–Masterlist (1000+ ragas)–
• Search: Find your new favourite •
• Tags: Classifying the ragascape •
• Glossary: Raga jargon demystified •
• Murchanas: Swara-set rotations •
• Thaat: Bhatkhande’s base scales •
• Bifurcations: Poorvangs/uttarangs •
• Ragatable: Analytical connections •
• Kaunsis: Listing 60+ Kauns ragas •
• Tanpuras: Divine overtonal drones •
• Quotes: Musings from raga artists •
• Talas: Hindustani rhythm cycles •
• Instruments: Singing sculptures •
¡Random Raga!
—Search the Raga Index—
(NEW: search by swaras/varjits)
• Feedback / Contact •
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!
• Projects & articles: full list •
(Get in touch for Zoom lessons!)
my site is ad-free, AI-free, & open-access