S-R-g-m-P-d-n-S The modern form of Kaunsi Kanada is often summarised as a blend of two ragas: ‘Malkauns on the way up, and Darbari on the way down’. But the whole is more than the sum of these parts, with both sides interacting to offer labyrinthine moods – described by Debasmita Bhattacharya as one of “heavy […]
• Raag Kaunsi Kanada •
• Raag Darbari •
S-R-g-m-P-d-n-S Darbari has been described as “the emperor of ragas, and the raga of emperors”. Its majestic tones famously echoed across the marble floors of Mughal palaces in centuries past, bringing solemn relief to kings, warlords, and diplomats alike. Consequently, renditions tend to retain a grave, reverential patience, laden with heavy, vocalistic ornaments and turns. […]
• Raag Chandranandan •
S-R-g-m-P-d-nN-S Chandranandan (‘moonstruck’) is a modern classic, created by Ali Akbar Khan in a spare studio moment via spontaneously blending concepts from the Kaunsi family. The recording sold wildly – but, when concert audiences called out for the raga, he found that he had forgotten how to play it. The sarod master’s paradox-laden path of […]
• Raag Sehera •
S-R-G-M-d-n-S Among the strangest of raga scales, Sehera’s six swaras are all spaced out in two-semitone jumps (akin to the Western Whole-Tone scale and the Carnatic Gopriya). The resulting symmetries summon a curious, centreless mood (also famous as the ‘dream sequence‘ of countless soundtracks) – best explored by sarangiya Sultan Khan, who described Sehera as “the […]
• Raag Salagavarali •
S-r-g-P-D-n-S A rare ‘Ahiri no ma’ scale, combining a Todi-like poorvang with an Ahir Bhairavic uttarang. As per Rajan Parrikar: “S.N. Ratanjankar conceived of this raga…Ma is eliminated to yield the following contour: SrgPDnDS, SnDPg(P)rgrS. Brilliantly exploited by Jitendra Abisheki in a celebrated natyageeta. Watch out for the injection of a vivadi dosha via tivra Ma”. […]
• Raag Jaunpuri •
S-R-g-m-P-d-n-S Jaunpuri is a late morning raga, likely originating in the Sultanate-era music of Jaunpur in Uttar Pradesh. Rajan Parrikar describes it as an “Asavariant”, closely tied to the phraseologies of the Asavari family: some see the ragas as indistinguishable, while others consider Jaunpuri to take more ‘rounded’ melodic shapes, and permitting greater use of ni […]
• Raag Hemshri •
S-g-m-P-nN-S A night raga created by Gwalior composer and vocalist Vishwanath Rao Ringe ‘Tanarang’, essentially equivalent to ‘Tilang komal ga’. In his own words: “the mood [is] light…a very sweet melody that manifests readily in the following combinations [e.g. SgmPm, gmPnPNNS; PNSnP; PNSgNS]”. Re is banned entirely, while the raga is distinguished from Dhani by the use […]
• Raag Amiri Todi •
S-rR-g-m-P-dD-n-S Created by sarod maestro Amjad Ali Khan in 1974, inspired by vocalist Amir Khan. 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 [in] 1972, it appeared as if the light had […]
• Raag Adana •
S-R-g-m-P-d-n-S Though congruent with the swaras of Darbari, Adana favours a “lighter, flittering” treatment: skipping ga in aroha, limiting ornaments on dha, and focusing more on madhya/taar saptak (although the gmRS Kanada signature may reappear in avroh), while some may assign a higher sruti to the komal ni. The raga appears in several 17th-century ragmala […]
• Raag Sampurna Malkauns •
S-R-g-m-P-d-n-S [summary] • Raga Megalist (300+) • Search | Glossary | Tags • Hindustani Raga Index • —Kishori Amonkar (1991)— [Swaras] • 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 […]
• Raag Prabhateshwari •
S-r-g-m-P-D-n-S [summary] • Raga Megalist (300+) • Search | Glossary | Tags • Hindustani Raga Index • —Rakesh Chaurasia (2018)— [alap phrases, e.g. 0:45] mgmn DD, mgmD PP, m(g)m(g)P m, mn DPm\g, mS (P)D, D/mSD n, (Sn)mgr(Sr)S… • Classifiers • Explore hidden inter-raga connections: swara geometries, melodic features, murchana sets, ragangas, & more (also see the Full Tag […]
• Raag Jaiwanti Todi •
S-r-g-m-P-D-n-S [summary] • Raga Megalist (300+) • Search | Glossary | Tags • Hindustani Raga Index • —Pandit Jasraj (~1990s)— [Swaras] • 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 […]
• Raag Enayetkhani Kanada •
S-R-gG-m-P-d-nN-S Invented by sitarist Vilayat Khan as a tribute to his father, legendary Imdadkhani innovator Enayet Khan (although when the raga first surfaced, circa 1989, he was calling it ‘Vilayat Khani Kanada’ instead…). As per fellow Imdadkhani sitarist-scholar Deepak Raja’s ever-excellent analysis, the raga runs along the lines of “Darbari with the addition of two […]
• Raag Dhani •
S-g-m-P-n-S Despite its ‘Minor Pentatonic’ scale form enjoying global popularity as the predominant mode of blues, rock, pop, and countless other guitar-driven genres, Dhani is comparatively rare as a raga in its own right – with its swara set mostly being heard as the ‘aroha of Bhimpalasi’ rather than in isolation (…it may be the […]
• Raag Dev Gandhar •
S-R-gG-M-P-d-n-S [summary] • Raga Megalist (300+) • Search | Glossary | Tags • Hindustani Raga Index • —Vidyadhar Vyas (1982)— [Swaras] • 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 […]
• 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 Ahiri •
S-r-g-m-P-D-n-S Somewhat resembling a ‘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 origins remain […]
