INdian Clasical Music

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BASICS UNDERSTANDING OF INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC AND RAAGAS Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni Sa

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“Music enjoys a superior role in the education of the whole man. The soul, which has seen most of truth, shall come to birth as a philosopher a beauty lover or a fervent musician. Education in music is most sovereign because more than anything else rhythm and harmony find their way to the innermost soul. Music is the one single force most capable of projecting all intuitive knowledge into a philosophic synthesis. Music is a moral law. It gives a soul to the universe. Wings to the mind. Flight to the imagination, charm and life to everything. It is the essence of order and leads to all that is good just and beautiful.” (Plato).

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In North Indian classical music each traditional ragas is based on a variation of ten basic musical scales or “thaats”. The ten “thaats” are: * BILAWAL *KHAMAJ *KAFI *ASAVARI *BHAIRAVI *BHAIRAV *KALYAN *MARWAH *POORVI *TODI If one were to pick a raga at random, it should be possible to find that it is based on one of these thaats. A Thaat must have seven notes out of the twelve notes, 7 Shuddha, 4 Komal (Re, Ga, Dha, Ni), and 1 Teevra (Ma) placed in an ascending order.

1. Bilawal: Bilawal is the most basic of all the ten thaats. This is a morning raag and its pictorial descriptions creates sensuous ambience. Raags in Bilawal Thaat : Deskar, Haunsdhwani, Shankara, Listen to these links on You Tube in Haunsadhawanihttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LC25683jMwkhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCWNFY9vudg&feature2. Khamaj: The raags of this thaat are romantic (Shringar Ras) hence this raag is mostly rendered in the form of light classical thumris, tappas, horis, kajris etc. Raag Khamaj is considered to be a flirtatious raag. Raags in Khamaj Thaat: Rageshree, Desh, Tilak Kamod, Jaijaiwanti. : 

1. Bilawal: Bilawal is the most basic of all the ten thaats. This is a morning raag and its pictorial descriptions creates sensuous ambience. Raags in Bilawal Thaat : Deskar, Haunsdhwani, Shankara, Listen to these links on You Tube in Haunsadhawanihttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LC25683jMwkhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCWNFY9vudg&feature2. Khamaj: The raags of this thaat are romantic (Shringar Ras) hence this raag is mostly rendered in the form of light classical thumris, tappas, horis, kajris etc. Raag Khamaj is considered to be a flirtatious raag. Raags in Khamaj Thaat: Rageshree, Desh, Tilak Kamod, Jaijaiwanti.

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3. Kafi: Raag Kafi is one of the oldest raags. Kafi is a late evening raag and said to convey the mood of spring time. Raags in Kafi Thaat : Dhanashree, Bhimpalasi, Pilu, Megh Malhar, Shuddha Sarang, Bageshwari 4. Asavari: Asavari is full of “tyag” and creates a mood of renunciation, sacrifice and pathos. It is best suited for late morning. Raags in Asavari Thaat : Asavari, Darbari, Adana, Jaunpuri 5. Bhairav: Bhairav is one of the names of Lord Shiva. The raag has embedded in it masculine and ascetic attributes of Shiva. This raag is usually performed in a devotional mood in the early morning hours. Raags in Bhairav Thaat: Ramkali, Gunkali, Jogiya, and Lalat.

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6. Bhairavi: Bhairavi is named after “shakti” personified as Parvati. Bhairavi is a powerful raag filled with devotion and compassion. Bhairavi is actually performed early in the morning in a peaceful, serious and occasionally sad mood. Traditionally it is rendered as the last item of a program, for its unique fullness of sentiments as well as its wide scope of the tonal combinations. Raags in Bhairavi Thaat : Malkauns, Bilaskhani Todi, Bhupali, Kaunsi Kanada

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7. Kalyan: Kalyan thaat consists of an important group of evening raags. Characterized by the teevra “Madhyam”, this thaat literally means good luck. It is considered to be soothing raag. As a result, it is performed in the evening at the beginning of a concert. Raags in Kalyan Thaat: Yaman, Bhupali, Hindol, Kedar, Kamod, and the various variations of the basic Kalyan like Shuddha Kalyan, Shyam Kalyan, Yaman Kalyan, Khem Kalyan, and Haunsdhwani. 8. Marwah: The mood of the Marwa family raags is strong and easily recognized. It generates a feeling and atmosphere of sunset with night approaching rapidly. The onrushing darkness awakens in many observers, a feeling of anxiety and solemn expectation. Raags in Marwa Thaat: Marwa, Puriya, Bhatiyaar, Bibhas, and Sohoni.

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9. Poorvi: Poorvi is a serious and a mysterious raag and is performed soon after sunset. Raags in Poorvi Thaat: Puriya Dhanashree, Gauri, Shree, Paraj, Basant. 10. Todi. Todi is the king of all thaats. Todi represents the mood of adoration with a gentle, loving sentiment and it is traditionally performed in the late morning. Raags in Todi Thaat: Miyan Ki Todi, Gujari Todi, Madhuvanti, and Multani. Listen to this site for Multani http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95X7JahBxR4&feature=related

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Raags and Time: In Hindustani classical music each raag is rendered only at a specific time. The time of the raag depends on the “vaadi” and the “anuvadi” swars. Some raags are seasonal in nature. The traditional associations with respect to the season are: Monsoon - Raag Megh, Autumn - Raag Bhairav, Winter - Raag Malkauns, Spring - Raag Hindol. The 24 hours of a day are divided into 2 parts: From 12 AM to 12 PM – This is called Poorva Bhaag and raags sung in this period are called poorva raags. From 12 PM to 12 AM – This is called Uttar Bhaag and the raags in this period are called uttar raags. The part of the saptak (octave) from Sa to Ma (Sa Re Ga Ma) is called poorvarang (earlier part) of a raag and from Ma to Sa (Pa Dha Ni Sa) is called uttarang (later part) of the raag.Poorvarang raags: These raags are sung in the poorva bhag of the day. Uttarang raags: These raags are sung in the uttar bhaag of the day