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Compiling global examples of music in the Phrygian Pentatonic Scale

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1-b3-4-b6-b7

(C-E^b-F-A^b-B^b)

o • • o • o • • o • o • o

• Phrygian Pentatonic: Sounds •

Real-world examples of the scale in action:

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• General: As discussed, Malkauns’ underlying ‘pentatonic scale‘ interval structure is a truly transcultural sonic artefact, turning up across the world of music. However, most examples are set to its more common rotations, the ‘Major’ and ‘Minor’ (SRGPDS & SgmPnS: see Bhupali & Dhani for respective global congruents) – likely due to Malkauns’ ‘fifth-less‘ format. Its exact pattern does, however, turn up in its own right across a variety of cultures, as well as being hinted at in many more – especially those which treat the concept of ‘root‘ with more flexibility than Indian raga or Western classical (i.e. if no tone is a clear root, any pentatonic piece can resemble Malkauns). Aside from South India‘s historically-overlapping Hindolam, analogues of the sequence can be found in Ethiopia (referred to as ‘Shegaye Kinit‘), China (below, on the guzheng: a ‘heterochordal half-tube zither’), and Cambodia (a haunting solo by a khloy reedist: “the Khmer Rouge spared his life for his musicianship, and his son claims to have seen an elephant cry from hearing his music…”).

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• India: The scale’s most prominent global incarnation is undoubtedly the Hindustani Raag Malkauns: an ancient raga of ‘severe tranquility’, fabled to have been invented by the goddess Parvati to soothe Lord Shiva’s murderous tandav dance of destruction. The same sequence also appears in South Indian Carnatic music, known as Ragam Hindolam (n.b. the Northern Raag Hindol is thought to have arisen via ‘flattening the root’ of the Southern Hindolam: giving 1-3-#4-6-7).

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—Raag Malkauns (North India)—

Hariprasad Chaurasia (bansuri)

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“If you’re not in a serious mood, then don’t play or sing Malkauns. You must take extra care with this raga. It is a favourite raga of the djinns [spirits], you see. If you can charm them – if they like the way you are playing it – they will do anything for you. But if they don’t, they will kill you.” (a warning from sarod legend Ali Akbar Khan to his students)

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• Phrygian Pentatonic: More •

Features, classifiers, quirks, etc…

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[analysis: coming soon]

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—Classifiers & Quirks—

• Modes: Pentatonic set (Major Pent.; Suspended Pent.; Phrygian Pent.; Scottish Pent.; Minor Pent.)
• Quirks: Anhemitonic; Atritonal; Maximal; Reflectional symmetry (imperfect: root; detached: none)
• Names: Phrygian Pentatonic (Western); Malkauns (Hindustani); Hindolam (Carnatic)

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n.b. For more detailed geometric and mathematical analysis, refer to this scale’s entry in Ian Ring’s fantastic Exciting Universe of Music Theory project (for which I am an occasional ‘raga consultant’)

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