S-r-g-m-D-n-S A mellifluous modern form created by Ravi Shankar in 1968 (…via a murchana rotation of Kameshwari: itself the product of backseat travel boredom in Bengal). While somewhat resembling a ‘komal re Bageshri’, Parameshwari’s hexagonal structure is ripe for open-ended experiments, summoning its own colours and tensions – and, despite its young history, has already garnered significant […]
• Raag Parameshwari •
• Raag Vachaspati •
S-R-G-M-P-D-n-S Vachaspati (‘lord of speech’) is a recent import from the South, adapted from Carnatic music’s 64th melakarta scale around the mid-20th century by artists including Ravi Shankar and Ali Akbar Khan. Consequently, its Northern form is still in a state of flux, with few firm melodic conventions aside from staying within the scale’s bounds […]
• Raag Patdeep •
S-R-g-m-P-D-N-S Derived from the Dhanashree family, Patdeep somewhat resembles a ‘shuddha Ni Bhimpalasi’ (akin to the Western Melodic Minor), with both ragas ascending pentatonically before revealing Re and Dha in descent. Its unique scale structure, which features a distinctive run of four adjacent whole-tone jumps (g>m>P>D>N), brings natural prominence to komal ga and shuddha Ni as […]
• Raag Kalavati •
S-G-P-D-n-S A playful pentatonic form, neatly structured as a stack of ‘regularly narrowing’ intervals (4>3>2>1 semitones). The wide, sparse poorvang (SG) and clustered uttarang (PDnS) combine to bring a reassuring momentum, with increasing melodic urgency as you go higher (a ‘triple jump followed by a sprint’). Most Kalavati performances tend towards energy and rhythmic charge […]
• Raag Jogkauns •
S-gG-m-P-d-N-S Created by Jagannathbuwa Purohit ‘Gunidas’ in the 1940s, Jogkauns is usually summarised as ‘Jog plus Chandrakauns’ – although the Agra vocal master’s original inception drew more from the melodies of a ‘raised Ni‘ Malkauns offshoot than from Chandrakauns, which was then still in its infancy (Parrikar: “Gunidas originally referred to his inspiration as simply ‘Kaunshi’, […]
• Raag Charukeshi •
S-R-G-m-P-d-n-S Adopted from Carnatic music, Charukeshi (‘one with beautiful hair’) calls for wide-open melodic exploration, favouring long melodies which wind around themselves while visiting the furthest reaches of all three octaves. Like many Southern scales, it may be used as a canvas for reshaping and recolouring ideas from adjacent ragas (see avirbhav), while itself presenting […]
• Raag Bhairav •
S-r-G-m-P-d-N-S Revered as the foremost raga of Lord Shiva, the morning Bhairav takes its name from Kala Bhairava (‘awe-inspiring form’) – an apocalyptic manifestation of the deity fabled in Hindu lore to have cut off one of Brahma’s five heads to silence his arrogance. Renditions reflect the gravity of these ancient tales, depicting Shiva’s resulting […]
• Raag Basant Mukhari •
S-r-G-m-P-d-n-S Effectively blending the poorvang of Bhairav with the uttarang of Bhairavi (SrGm; PdnS), Basant Mukhari’s complex history bears the imprints of multiple musical cultures. While its main modern inception is traceable to S.N. Ratanjankar’s eclectic Carnatic borrowings of the 1950s (also see Charukeshi: the same scale with komal re instead), many also explicitly link […]
• Raag Antardhwani •
S-r-g-m-d-N-S Among the youngest ragas to have found global acclaim, Antardhwani (‘sound of the inner self’) was unveiled by Shivkumar Sharma in the 1990s, who discovered its unique hexatonic shape by chance while retuning his santoor from one raga to another (although it is unknown which ones…). Adapting the geometries of Bhairavi, the raga is […]
• Raag Ahir Bhairav •
S-r-G-m-P-D-n-S Ahir Bhairav’s unique swara set is inextricably linked to visions of the Indian sunrise. While the raga’s poorvang matches that of the ‘main’ Bhairav (SrGm) its uttarang presents its own geometries, taking a shuddha Dha and komal ni (PDnS) in a manner closer the Kafi–ang (although many artists tune their Dha sruti closer to that of Bageshri […]
• Raag Prabhateshwari •
S-r-g-m-P-D-n-S A seldom-heard raga created by bansuriya Hariprasad Chaurasia, which (to my ears) resembles a blend of the morning Ahir Bhairav and the late night Bageshri. His student Rajendra Teredesai describes it as having “all the hues…beautiful, complex, yet spiritually uplifting…full of pathos and bhakti ras…a state of perpetual divine bliss”. Prakriti with Ahiri, the raga […]
• Raag Bairagi Todi •
S-r-g-P-n-S Created by Ravi Shankar, Bairagi Todi replaces Bairagi’s shuddha ma with a Todi-intoned ati-komal ga, retaining the concise audav structure while presenting an odd mix of narrow and wide intervals. Sometimes matched with unusual talas (e.g. Shankar’s original is in Sade-Gyarah: a ‘fractional’ 11.5 matra cycle divided ‘4-4-2-1.5‘), the raga is explorable in all saptak, […]
• Raag Ahir Lalit •
S-r-G-mM-D-n-S Introduced by Ravi Shankar, drawing from the swara material of three morning ragas: Ahiri, Ahir Bhairav, and Lalit. As per Deepak Raja, “for most listeners, Ahir Lalit will be unable to escape the shadow of Ahir Bhairav over the Lalit facet of the raga…since Ahiri is heard mainly as a Bhairav / Ahir Bhairav […]
• Raag Tivrakauns •
S-g-M-d-n-S A one-off experiment by rare raga connoisseur Abhirang, formed by changing Malkauns’ shuddha ma vadi to its tivra variant. This shift renders both Sa and Ma ‘detached’ (i.e. with no swaras either 7 semitones above or below them: a property shared by only Harikauns and Sehera), meaning that conclusive resolutions towards the raga’s two […]
• Raag Madhukauns •
S-g-M-P-n-S A curious ‘Dhani tivra Ma’ scale introduced by vocalist Amir Khan via a ‘ma-murchana’ of Chandrakauns (listen to his sargam-demo of the process below). Full of inescapable tension, with 3 of the 5 swaras being imperfect, and the disbalancing Ma–ni sangati on stark display. Sometimes considered identical to Khan’s Chandramadhu, created as part of […]
• Raag Rasikpriya •
S-gG-M-P-nN-S A direct borrowing of Carnatic music’s 72nd melakarta scale: which, as the final position on the wheel, has all its swaras set to their highest available positions. In Hindustani music, the equivalent principle would produce Yaman (SRGMPDNS), but the South Indian system allows three variants for each of Re, Ga, Dha, & Ni, with […]
• Raag Prabhakali •
S-r-G-m-P-d-n-S An Ali Akbar Khan invention, prakriti with Basant Mukhari. As per the liner notes to the raga’s 1964 LP release, “It permits only five notes in aroha, dropping [Ga & Ni]. For avroh, it admits all the seven notes…[re & dha] are flats as in Bhairav, and hence it is essentially a morning melody. […]
• Raag Nat Bhairav •
S-R-G-m-P-d-N-S Associated with Ravi Shankar’s 20th-century experiments (although not, contrary to common perception, directly invented by him), Nat Bhairav is named for its combination of Nat in poorvang and Bhairav in uttarang. Flavours of Bhairav tend to dominate, including an ati-komal dha and vakra phrases resolving with GmRS (adapting Bhairav’s GmrS). Expounded mainly in madhya saptak, its […]
• Raag Monomanjari •
S-r-G-M-P-D-nN-S Created by Maihar sitar legend Nikhil Banerjee (“…I’m quite satisfied with one of my Sonodisc LPs: Raag Monomanjari”). From Narendra Datar’s 1989 review of this record: “A jod raga…a remarkable combination [of] Kalavati and Marwa. Kalavati is a very joyful late night melody, whereas Marwa is an early evening melody that portrays pathos. In […]
• Raag Madhuvanti •
S-R-g-M-P-D-N-S A shringara raga of recent origin, Madhuvanti is geared towards evoking a ‘sweet’ flavour (‘madhu’ means ‘honey’). Rajan Parrikar cites “shared credits for its development…Vilayat Khan is said to have conceived it [in the] 1940s…and around the same time, Vamanrao Padhye of Kolhapur composed a similar raga and called it ‘Ambika’, after the Goddess”. […]
• Raag Kirwani •
S-R-g-m-P-d-N-S Despite its congruence with the Western Harmonic Minor, Kirwani has origins in the Carnatic Keeravani: thus leading to its popularity in North-South jugalbandi duets, offering artists from both cultures a rich expanse of shared melodic territory. Like many Southern imports, Kirwani is comparatively ‘open’, allowing for near-free use of all seven swaras in ascent […]
• Raag Kalingada •
S-r-G-m-P-d-N-S Kalingada shares the same seven swaras as Bhairav, but approaches them differently – preferring a straighter, less ornamented character (as per Rajan Parrikar: “Kalingada has a flippant mien…far less austere than Bhairav. The Ga and Pa are advanced to positions of influence, [and] the swara-lagav is mostly linear, without the andolit treatment prevalent in […]
• Raag Deen Todi •
S-r-g-m-D-n-S A near-extinct raga of uncertain origin, Deen Todi takes an ‘Ahiri no Pa’ form. Best preserved via an astonishing rendition by Kamalesh Maitra on the tabla tarang (a semicircle of 13 sruti-tuned dayan drums: below), accompanied by a multiphonic cluster of tanpura drones (tuned DnrS). Parveen Sultana has also sung it live, and seems to […]
• Raag Anand Bhairav •
S-r-G-m-P-D-nN-S As per Rajan Parrikar, “the komal dha in Bhairav is replaced by its shuddha counterpart. The komal ni is parachuted into the scheme in an [avroh phrase] SDnP, inspired by Bilawal (in Bhairav-ang ragas where either Re or Dha is rendered shuddha, the ma tends to assume a powerful role, and is often elevated to a […]
• Raag Rangeshwari •
S-R-g-m-P-N-S Like Parameshwari and Gangeshwari, Rangeshwari (‘Lord of Colours’) was created in 1968 via murchana rotation of Ravi Shankar’s Kameshwari (itself dreamed up during a long car journey through Bengal). Resembles a ‘no Dha’ filtering of either Patdeep or Kirwani, although its swara set seems to be unique – with Shankar’s takes tending towards wide-open, poorvang-dominant […]
• Raag Kameshwari •
S-R-M-P-D-n-S Dreamed up by Ravi Shankar during a long car journey in Chengali, sometime in March 1968. As explained by his widow Sukanya: “While riding in the car, he conceived the nucleus of a melodic form that he later developed and called Kameshwari (‘Lordess of Love’). By using the old murchana and swara bheda system, […]
• Raag Gangeshwari •
S-G-m-P-d-n-S Like Parameshwari and Rangeshwari, Gangeshwari (‘Lord of the Ganges River’) was created in 1968 via murchana rotation of Ravi Shankar’s Kameshwari (itself dreamed up during a car ride through Bengal). Its unique swara set, lacking in reflective symmetries, most closely resembles a ‘no Re’ version of either Charukeshi or Basant Mukhari (or alternatively, ‘Gopika Basant shuddha […]
• Raag Devshri •
S-R-M-P-n-S An intriguing-but-uncommon audav raga resembling ‘Megh tivra Ma’ (or ‘Vachaspati no Ga/Dha’). Its unique swara set is distinguished by a disbalance in how Sa and Pa are ‘enclosed’ by the swaras above and below (nSR: ‘2-2’, MPn: ‘1-3’) – offering curious contrast with the symmetry of the R–M–n ‘equilateral triangle’ (a ‘4-4-4’ aug. triad). Described by […]
• Raag Chandrakauns •
S-g-m-d-N-S Chandrakauns is a spacious raga of relatively modern origin, only becoming distinct from divergent strains of ‘shuddha Ni Malkauns’ by around the mid-20th century. This Ni-for-ni replacement removes much of Malkauns’ symmetry and intervallic balance, with the chromatic leading-tone resolution (Ni>Sa) bringing more prominence to both swaras. Due to these sharper tensions, it is often […]
• Raag Zeelaf •
S-G-m-P-d-S A rare audav raga fabled to have been created by 13th-century qawwali pioneer Amir Khusrau, somewhat resembling ‘Charukeshi minus Re & ni’. As per Rajan Parrikar, “this haunting pentatonic melody is composed of the following swaras: SGmPd: Jitendra Abhisheki gives a superb account with his own composition. Notice the strong ma…[and] the subtle Gm/S meend”. […]
• Raag Simhendra Madhyamam •
S-R-g-M-P-d-N-S Borrowed from a South Indian ragam (melakarta scale #57), Simhendra Madhyamam takes the form of a ‘Kirwani tivra Ma’, ‘Todi shuddha re’, or ‘Madhuvanti komal dha’. Despite the popularity of its Carnatic congruent (hailed by Charulatha Mani as “regal, meditative, bold, and striking”), the raga remains relatively rare in the North – with its […]
• Raag Shivawanti •
S-R-g-M-P-D-S A barely-documented modern creation of sitar and surbahar legend Imrat Khan – kindly brought to my attention by his former student Chris Stephens via the Chandrakantha forum: “In regard to the ‘idiosyncratic’ Etawah ragas, here’s a video of [Khan] playing Shivawanti, which he described as a combination of Madhuvanti and Shivranjani. I captured this […]
• Raag Rasaranjani •
S-R-m-D-N-S A rare, oddly-shaped audav raga formed by omitting Ga and Pa from Bilawal thaat – essentially, ‘removing the major triad from the major scale’ (it can also be seen as ‘Chatuswari Bhavani plus Ni’, Rajeshwari Re-for-ga’, or ‘Durga Ni-for-Pa’). Vocalist Sakuntala Narasimhan, introducing a drut khayal, cites Rasaranjani as an innovation of her Rampur […]
• Raag Malayalam •
S-R-G-m-P-d-n-S A barely-documented morning raga created by Ali Akbar Khan sometime around the 1970s – named in honour of his mother (‘Malaya’) and father (‘Alam’: also the name of Khan’s son, born in 1982) [n.b. the Tamil-derived Dravidian language family of the same title is of a separate etymology, derived from ‘mala+alam’: ‘the land near the […]
• Raag Madhukant •
S-R-g-M-P-D-n-S An oddly-shaped and thinly-analysed sampurna raga, taking the shape of ‘Madhuvanti’s poorvang + Kafi’s uttarang’ (or ‘Kafi tivra Ma’). Analysed by Jairazbhoy in 1971: “Ragas in which the Pa has a leading note [MP], while the Sa does not [nS]…Madhukauns and Madhukant are both modern ragas which appear to be evolving rapidly…Madhukant [is] unstable […]
• Raag Jogiya •
S-r-m-P-d-N-S Jogiya (from Sanskrit yogi: ‘state of union’) is a shadav raga of considerable mystique. Tanarang recounts “a characteristic mood of devotion and detachment…Jogiya has komal re and dha like Bhairav, however they are not oscillated…and shuddha ma is powerful as nyas and vadi”. Generally expandable in madhya and taar saptaks, the raga’s geometries revolve […]
• Raag Jaiwanti Todi •
S-r-g-m-P-D-n-S An Ahiri–prakriti raga introduced by Maharaja Jaiwant Singh Waghela: a hereditary King of Sanand who also gained wide renown as a vocalist, music educator, spiritual teacher, and generous patron of the nascent Mewati gharana (also hear his famous Mata Kalika bandish). Some link its twists and turns to the melodic lineages of Jaunpuri, Todi, […]
• Raag Gauri •
S-r-G-m-P-d-N-S Described by Deepak Raja as “difficult to render in its purity”, Gauri is associated with viraha shringara (‘the piety arising from the separation of lovers’). The raga had at least two distinct forms as far back as the 16th century, and continues to manifest in several variations – spanning a main Bhairav-ang ‘shuddha ma‘ […]
• Raag Devranjani •
S-m-P-d-N-S Stretched by the emptiness of a vast S-m poorvang jump, Devranjani is formed by removing the Re and Ga from Bhairav. Abhirang offers up both ‘shuddha Ni’ and ‘double Ni’ variants, with the former appearing to be predominant – while Bhatkhande’s early 20th-century works discuss the importance of the ascending phrase Sm, mP as a […]
• Raag Devata Bhairav •
S-r-gG-m-P-d-N-S A double-Ga Bhairav derivative, introduced by Agra gharana pioneer Azmat Hussain Khan ‘Dilrang’. As per Parrikar, the raga is distinguished from its parent with “the introduction of [an] avroh pragoya via the komal ga [mgrS]”. Some artists include subtle touches of komal ni, including Jitendra Abhisheki – who sings a madhyang-focused bandish (to me, somewhat reminiscent […]
• Raag Chandramadhu •
S-g-M-P-n-S An angular pentatonic form conjured up by vocalist Amir Khan only a short time before his untimely death in a 1974 car accident – indeed, it is unclear if he ever formally named his new creation (I’ve seen it referred to as ‘Bhushwati’ and ‘Amarpriya’, and at least two posthumous releases just list it […]
• Raag Bihad Bhairav •
S-r-gG-m-P-D-nN-S A ‘double-Ga, double-Ni’ creation of Bhairav-loving vocalist Kumar Gandharva (also see Bhavmat Bhairav & Rati Bhairav). Bose describes how “the projection of the raga is done mainly around Sa…the aroha poorvang is similar to Jogiya [Srm: also Gunakri], and it has a small portion of Shivmat Bhairav” [e.g. rgrS], giving pakad such as Srm; GrS […]
• Raag Anjani Kalyan •
S-R-g-M-P-D-N-S A creation of vocalist Ramashreya Jha ‘Ramrang’, named in honour of Lord Hanuman. As per his student Rajan Parrikar, “the basic idea involves rendering the aroha of Madhuvanti sampurna, by taking in both [shuddha] Re and Dha. The aroha contour thus…permits the advance of Kalyan-like clusters”. Abhirang’s rendition of Ramrang’s bandish (below: Hanana Hanumana […]
• Raag Abhogi •
S-R-g-m-D-S The Carnatic-imported Abhogi is a rare ‘audav Kanada’ raga – somewhat resembling ‘Darbari no Pa/ni’ (or, if the mgmRS Kanada signature is de-emphasised, ‘Bageshri aroha no ni’). As per Tanarang, the raga’s capacity for Darbaric poorvang movements “creates a deep atmosphere…[which] can be expanded in all the three octaves” – while the ultra-sparse uttarang […]
• Raag Reva •
S-r-G-P-d-S A rare pentatonic raga, Reva is often described as the ‘evening counterpart’ to Bibhas (or the ‘jawab to its sawal’), matching this samay designation by taking after the Poorvi–ang rather than Bibhas’ Bhairav-ang roots. Chiefly, its movements are distinguished from Bibhas via poorvang-focused sangatis including Gr; rS; SrrS, along with a greater exploration of […]
• Raag Milan Gandhar •
S-gG-P-D-n-S An enchanting yet ultra-rare raga created by pioneering Punjabi vocalist Salamat Ali Khan, running along the lines of ‘Kalavati with komal ga in avroh’ (often as PDPgS or SngS), bringing shades of Kafi. A 1965 Salamat & Nazakat performance in Kabul (bandish: Piya More Angan Aaye & Tana Dhere Na Dhim), emphatically places the […]
• Raag Tanseni Madhuvanti •
S-R-g-M-P-D-nN-S A captivating offshoot of Madhuvanti, named ‘Tanseni’ for its use of a Miyan ki Malhar-flavoured double-Ni sangati (although the Nn pairing also appears consecutively in descent). Associated with the Rampur sarangi tradition, most prominently Hamid & Zahid Khan – as per the liner notes to Hamid’s ektal rendition: “it also resembles Multani…it is of […]
• Raag Ahiri •
S-r-g-m-P-D-n-S Somewhat resembling ‘Bageshri komal re’, ‘Ahir Bhairav komal ga’, or ‘Bhairavi shuddha Dha’, Ahiri favours long, kaleidoscopic melodies, laden with shapes from proximate ragas. Artists may seek to accentuate the ‘equilateral triangle’ of nyas (r–m–D: an augmented triad), also drawing from its murchana-set neighbours Patdeep, Charukeshi, and Vachaspati. Matches the Carnatic Natakapriya, although ultimate origins remain […]
• Raag Saraswati •
S-R-M-P-D-n-S Arising as a ‘janya’ offshoot of the Carnatic Vachaspati (the 64th melakarta scale), Saraswati is named after the four-armed Hindu goddess of music, art, and learning – also venerated in Thailand as ‘Surasawadee’, Myanmar as ‘Thurathadi’, China as ‘Biancaitian’, and Tibet as ‘Yang-Chen-Ma’ (the word derives from ‘saras+wati’: ‘she who possesses flowing water’, associated […]
• Raag Dakshinatya Basant •
S-r-G-m-P-D-N-S A springtime raga described by sarodiya Joydeep Mukherjee as “very rare…adapted from Carnatic music” (hear him play it on “a very rare instrument, the Radhika Mohanveena”, created by Radhika Mohan Maitra in 1948 – accompanied by Subhasish Sabyasachi, “the first ambidextrous percussionist of India“). Sometimes known as ‘Carnatic Basant’ (to distinguish it from the […]
