S-R-G-mM-P-D-N-S
Taking the general form of ‘Yaman Kalyan seasoned with Bihag’, Sanjh Saravali (‘Evening Melody’) was devised by Vilayat Khan in the late 1970s. Fellow Imdadkhani sitarist Deepak Raja, aided by input from Vilayat himself, describes the raga as “incorporating fleeting impressions of several Kalyan ragas, including Nand Kalyan and Chayanat…its melodic identity rests on hide-and-seek between several allied ragas” (see avirbhav/tirobhav) – revolving around an alternation between “Yaman Kalyan in the lower octave and lower tetrachord [PMGmRG]…and phrases from Bihag [NDNSN] in uttarang”, amidst a “nondescript treatment of the two Ma swaras”. Raja adds that “the Ustad described it as a ‘beautiful [melody] which had composed itself’…Sanjh Saravali evokes a combination of the tranquil and the solemn. There might be a hint of the romantic, but it is a stoic romanticism, devoid of any vivacity…”). Since recorded by Ulhas Kashalkar and Baljit Singh (on the tar shehnai). Compare to other members of the Kalyan and Bihag ragangas – and see other Vilayat creations including Pancham se Pilu (a murchana of the parent raga) and Enayetkhani Kanada (initially named after himself, then retitled in honour of his father).
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राग सांझ सारावली
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—Vilayat Khan (2000)—
[gat, e.g. 0:34] (G)P, (P)G, (G)R G, G(m)G, (RN)S, N R G M, M(DP) G, S, N, NS, N(Sn)DP, DP, PD(NS), (G)P, (P)G…
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Multi-step meend in Raag Bageshri: some riyaz improv in one of my all-time favourite ragas
#raga #jazzguitar #indianmusic #icm #londonmusic
Sep 30
E8 Boogie (Squarepusher): @sqpusher did I get them right? Tried to work out guitar voicings for this curious chord sequence in E8 Boogie (…originally at the request of a student!)
Original: Squarepusher/Tom Jenkinson (from 1997’s Hard Normal Daddy)
#jungle #jazzguitar #warprecords #idm #dnb @warprecords
Sep 27
Raag Jaiwanti Todi (SrgmPDnS): An Ahiri-prakriti raga introduced by Maharaja Jaiwant Singh Waghela (1904-1980): the hereditary ruler of Sanand who gained wide renown as a spiritual teacher, vocal educator, and generous patron of the nascent Mewati gharana (also the creator of Gyankali and other ragas). Sung here by his student Pandit Jasraj – a bandish I’ve always loved, especially the ferocious taan and colourful harmonium accompaniment…
—Original: Pandit Jasraj (khayal); Appa Jalgaonkar (harmonium); Nizamuddin Khan? (tabla)
#raga #khayal #indianmusic #worldmusic #icm
Sep 22
Raag Prabhateshwari (SrgmPDnS): A mysterious raga created by Hariprasad Chaurasia, played here by his nephew Rakesh – resembling a blend of the morning Ahir Bhairav and the late night Bageshri. I was inspired to learn the raga when researching Maa Annapurna Devi’s time teaching Hariprasad (many thanks to my crack team of experts including Rupak Kulkarni, Alam Khan, George Ruckert, Suresh Vyas, Anindya Banerjee, and Gopi Shanker, who all gave valuable assistance in illuminating the raga’s origins)
—Original: Rakesh Chaurasia (bansuri), live at Darbar 2008 @chaurasia_rakesh @darbarfestival
#raga #darbarfestival #indianmusic #bansuri #worldmusic
Sep 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: Bihag, Nand, Hameer, Kamod, Maru Bihag, Pat Bihag, Chayanat, Gaud Sarang, Shyam Kalyan, Khem Kalyan, Lakshmi Kalyan
Also compare to other members of the Kalyan and Bihag ragangas
–Proximate Forms–
Bilawal = ‘Sanjh Sarav. only ma‘
Yaman = ‘Sanjh Sarav. only Ma‘
Bhankari = ‘Sanjh Sarav. komal re‘
Shankara = ‘Sanjh Sarav. no Ma‘
Chandni Kedar = ‘Sanjh Sarav. double Ni‘
(n.b. these are just ‘scalar similarities’, with nothing particular implied about phraseological overlap)
–Swara Geometries–
• Core form: S–R–G–mM–P–D–N–S
• Reverse: SrgmMPdnS
• Complement: SrgdnS
• Imperfect: 1 (Ma)
• Detached: none
• Symmetries: mirror (mM—NS)
• Murchanas: Bihag set
• Quirks: ‘maximal‘ (swaras are optimally ‘spread out’)
–Global Translations–
• 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)
o • o • o o o o • o • o o
• Tanpura: Sa–Pa
• Names: Sanjh Saravali, Saanjh Sarawali, Sanjhsaravali
• Transliterations: Hindi (सांझ सारावली)
—Baljit Singh (2018)—
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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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