S-r-G-P-n-S
A relatively straightforward audav raga, Sundarkali takes the swaras of ‘Ahir Bhairav no ma/dha’. Anjani Kumar Gupta’s concise bansuri rendition is the only full recording I could find (alap transcribed below), although Tanarang’s disciple Prakash Vishwanath Ringe has released a brief selection of khayal demos (and sax player Mister D Cell has used it to create ambient music). Its SrGPnS swara set, equivalent to ‘Bairagi Todi with shuddha Ga‘, brings perpetual melodic tension – as one of only a handful scales in the current Index to possess the property of ‘fragmentation’ (i.e. at least half the swaras are ‘detached’, with no swaras 7 semitones above or below: in Sundarkali’s case, re, Ga, ni). Also independently devised by Dagarvani vocalist Ashish Dha under the original title ‘Zazen‘. Not to be confused with Sundarkauns – and be aware that the name ‘Sundarkali‘ is also used as an alternate title for ‘Paraj Bhairav’. Compare to Malay Marutam, the same scale plus shuddha Dha.
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राग सुन्दरकली
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• Hindustani Raga Index •
Aroha: SrGPnS
Avroh: SnPG, PGrS
Pakad: variable, e.g. SrnSrG; GPnPGrS
Chalan: (open-form) – illustrative sequences e.g. nSrS; SrGP; PGPGrS; GPnP; GPnPGrS; SrSnPGP; PnS (Gupta)
—Anjani Kumar Gupta (2022)—
[alap, e.g. 0:02] (n)S (nSn)P S(nSnSP), P(nP) S(n) rSG r, nSnSr, SnS(nSn)P, nPSn rSGr, PnSGPn(P), P(SnSnP)G, PnSrS, P(nP) n(Sn) S(rS) P(nP) G(PG)r, S(n) PnSr, S(nSn) S, rG (r)…
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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
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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: (none found)
Also see other ragas matching the generic swaras ‘Sa-Re-Ga-Pa-Ni‘
–Swara Geometries–
• Core form: S–r–G–P–n–S
• Reverse: SRmdNS
• Complement: SRgmMdDNS
• Imperfect: 4 (re, Ga, Pa, ni)
• Detached: 3 (re, Ga, ni)
• Symmetries: none
• Murchanas: none
• Quirks: ‘fragmented‘ (at least half the swaras are detached)
–Global Translations–
• Carnatic: ~Manaranjani
S-R1-G3-P-N2-S
• Jazz: Phrygian Dominant (no 4th/6th)
1-b2-3-5-b7-8
• Pitch classes (‘fret-jumps’):
0-1-4-7-10-0
(1–3–3–3–2)
o o • • o • • o • • o • o
• Tanpura: Sa–Pa
• Names: Sundarkali, Sundarkhali, Sundar Kali (not Sundarkauns)
• Transliterations: Hindi (सुन्दरकली)
—Prakash Vishwanath Ringe (2000)—
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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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