S-rR-g-m-P-d-n-S An antique late morning raga, listed in lakshanagranthas as a ragini of Malkauns, Asavari’s modern incarnation comprises two variants: an older, Dhrupad-rooted ‘komal re’ form, and a more recent set of ‘shuddha Re’ interpretations. Both forms of the raga call for complex connective motions and expressive alankar around dha, which some artists tune to […]
• Raag Asavari •
• Raag Basant Bahar •
S-rR-gG-mM-P-dD-nN-S A complex jod raga which, due to its parentage, has the rare distinction of using all 12 swara positions in its core form (Basant: SrGMPdNS + Bahar: SRgmPDnNS). While there are other ragas which do allow the use of all swaras, they tend to be either combinational experiments (e.g. Patmanjari, a blend of five […]
• Raag Patmanjari •
(S-rR-gG-mM-P-dD-nN-S) Said by some to be more of a ‘performance concept’ than a single raga, ‘Patmanjari’ translates as ‘Bouquet of Five Ragas’. Debate persists over whether the form should be interpreted as an open challenge to blend five ragas of an artist’s own choosing, or whether it entails five specific ragas – and, if so, […]
• Raag Madhusurja •
S-rR-mM-P-n-S A Kumar Gandharva creation, inspired by witnessing the plight of a goat as it was led past his house on the way to be sacrificed at a nearby Kali temple. To collate a few common tellings: “When the goat realises, it starts pleading to save its life. The vilambit bandish describes these prayers [‘bachaale […]
• Raag Lakshmi Todi •
S-rR-gG-m-P-dD-n-S A complex multi-melodic blend named after the Hindu goddess of power, beauty, prosperity, and good fortune (Lakshmi: ‘she who leads to the goal’) – which imports the movements of several other ragas into a general Todi framework. Abhirang’s breakdown discusses “shades of Jaunpuri (RmPSdP; nSRndP), Dev Gandhar (RnSRGm), Gaud (SRGmGm; mGRGm), Kafi (RmPDnS), Gandhari […]
• Raag Asa Bhairav •
S-rR-G-m-P-D-N-S A joining of Bhairav and the archaic Sikh form Asa (Sanskrit for ‘Hope’), matching the swaras of ‘Bilawal double-Re’ – with the shuddha taken in ascent, and the komal in descent. Parrikar notes that “the Bhairav-ang is expressed in the poorvang [e.g. Gm(G)rS], and the rest of the contour looks to Asa [e.g. S, S(m)RmP, […]
• Raag Gaurimanjari •
S-rR-G-mM-P-d-nN-S An intricate ten-toned raga created by Ali Akbar Khan via blending ideas from across the Lalit–Gauri spectrum (Gaurimanjari: ‘Bouquet of Gauris’) – notable for its winding melodic motions and dense, crowded swara-space (some renditions employ all swaras except komal ga). Its core form also possesses the ultra-rare property of rotational symmetry (i.e. the interval […]
• Raag Jaun Bhairav •
S-rR-gG-m-P-d-nN-S A jod raga fashioned by Agra vocalist Jagannathbuwa Purohit ‘Gunidas’ (also the creator of Jogkauns and Swanandi), combining ideas from two well-known morning ragas – Jaunpuri and Bhairav. Parrikar points to to the “crowded swara-space”, with both komal and shuddha variants of Re, Ga, and Ni on display: meaning that the entire komal ni […]
• Raag Amiri Todi •
S-rR-g-m-P-dD-n-S Created by sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan in 1974, catalysed by the untimely passing of legendary vocalist Amir Khan the same year. As recounted to Indian Express in 2009: “My love and reverence for Khansaheb does not stem only from his music, but for his truly kind and humble nature. When he died, it appeared […]
• Raag Adi Basant •
S-rR-G-m-P-D-N-S An ancient form of Basant (‘Springtime’), named for its connections to the ceremonies of that season. Many see Adi Basant as the latter’s main ancestor, highlighting its historic prevalence in Dhrupad and Haveli Sangeet – and some, including Maihar musicians, consider it inseparable from Shuddha Basant (‘shuddha’, as well as referring to ‘pure’ or […]
• Raag Khat •
S-rR-gG-m-P-dD-n-S Often described as one of the most complex Hindustani forms, Khat (Sanskrit: ‘six’) is based on the idea of combining six different ragas – although the precise six chosen may vary between performers. Subbha Rao’s Raga Nidhi volumes cites two main forms (“Suha, Kanada, Sarang, Desi, Gandhari, & Sughrai” and “Ramkali, Asavari, Todi, Gujiri, […]
• Raag Devgandhari Todi •
S-rR-gG-m-P-d-n-S A modification of Dev Gandhar, devised by Agra vocalist S.N. Ratanjankar via the addition of a Todi-like komal re – thus filling the entire Sa-to-ma swara space. Also recorded by his student K.G. Ginde, who extends this hemitonic run (and leans further into Todi’s geometries) by including touches of shuddha Ni, also reworking some […]
• Raag Bhairav Bahar •
S-rR-gG-m-P-D-nN-S A ten-toned multi-jod raga, Bhairav Bahar’s descent blends the melodic signatures of several disparate ragas, notably including the springtime Bahar – although, as per Darbhanga Dhrupad vocalist Premkumar Mallick, flavours of Bhairav should dominate the overall impression. Bose gives a vadi–samvadi of ma–Sa, while also mentioning the existence of an alternate ‘double-Dha’ version (thus […]
• Raag Abheri Todi •
S-rR-gG-m-P-d-n-S Summarised by musicologist and critic Rajan Parrikar as “an obscure [Todi] variant, in which strands of Asavari and Khamaj are tied to the Todi-ang”. His guru Ramrang’s rendition of the raga revolves around phrases such as PmPm\g; mPn\d; SRnS; rnSRG, whereas Srikant Bakre‘s take also visits the shuddha Dha (bandish transcribed in full below) […]
• Raag Bahaduri Todi •
S-rR-g-m-P-d-n-S Described by Parrikar as “an exceedingly beautiful raga, known for aesthetic unity in spite of its convoluted structure…the disparate constituents are tied together by special sancharis, and the intonation is mediated by meends”. He cites two distinct versions of the raga in modern circulation (neither of which appear to be linked to the Carnatic […]
• Raag Gandhari •
S-rR-g-m-P-d-n-S Described by Parrikar as “an Asavariant of ancient vintage, [with] no consensus regarding its contemporary swarupa”, the modern Gandhari usually appears in double-Re form – although some variants also employ double-Ga and/or double-Dha. Many renditions follow a ‘Jaunpuri-plus’ framework, seasoning this raga with komal re in concluding phrases (e.g. nPndPmg, grgrS). Sometimes known as […]
• Raag Roopkali •
S-rR-G-mM-P-d-N-S A variation of Ramkali, which is distinguished through a general avoidance of komal ni and sporadic inclusion of shuddha Re. Renditions generally focus on the mid-scale region, with all five specific swaras from shuddha Ga to komal dha available for use (GmMPd). Khadim Hussain Khan’s twisting melodies tend to pair tivra Ma with Pa above, […]
• Raag Jait •
S-rR-G-P-D-S A charming audav raga with several disparate branches. In particular, the treatment of Re varies (some render it komal, and others shuddha, while Jaipur-Atrauli singers employ both forms) – with Dha, which must be taken vakra, also showing up in both its variants (albeit not within the same performance). Indeed, even renditions by the […]
• Raag Tilak Bhairav •
S-rR-G-m-P-dD-N-S An ultra-rare raga associated with Imdadkhani composer Dhruva Tara Joshi, spanning the full swara sets of Bhairav and Tilak Kamod. Although initially a sitarist, Joshi’s sole traceable take of the raga is a vocal-only rendition from a lecture-demo (seemingly the result of an injury forcing him away from the strings) – which concisely interweaves […]
