The melodic contours here ally with Raga Dhanakoni Kalyan, a recent raga conceived by the late C.R. Vyas. The swaras are drawn from the melakarta Vachaspati. The raga is developed by eliminating the dhaivat entirely and deploying elements of the Kalyan raganga. The rishab is either omitted or rendered alpa in arohi movements.

Click here for an excerpt of a classical rendition of Dhanakoni Kalyan by Jitendra Abhisheki.

Noodling around on YouTube I found another ghazal Ek khalish ko by Mehdi Hassan that co-opts the same theme. I am curious to know if Mehdi-sahab hit upon the melodic idea independently or if he absorbed it from someone else.

Also – Raga Krishna Kalyan composed by Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang” treads along similar lines (see Volume 4 of his Abhinav Geetanjali series), except that the rishab is freely deployed there in both arohi and avarohi directions.

by Rajan P. Parrikar
First published on SAWF on October 16, 2000

Namashkar.

In this article we present a review of the book Raga Malhar Darshan by Dr. Geeta Banerjee.  The material for this publication evolved from her doctoral work at Allahabad University completed under the supervision of her guru Pandit Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang.” Dr. Banerjee has been a longtime performing vocalist and was on the Music Department faculty at the University. Following Jha-sahab’s retirement she succeeded him as Head of the department.  She is now retired from active duty but maintains a part-time appointment.

Raga Malhar Darshan represents a summary of a thorough investigation of Raganga Malhar and its derivatives.  The organization of the subject matter is chronological, and three major time periods are identified in the development of the Malhars: prachina (before the 15th C), madhyakalina (15th C – 18th C) and arvachina (19th C to the present).

Ragas Shuddha Malhar, Megh Malhar and Gaud Malhar belong to the first period.  Many of the Malhars we relish today fall to the second lot.  The treatment is comprehensive, a product of first-rate scholarship.  Although the title bears the name of only one author it is clear that the shastraic backbone and many of the insights are due in no small measure to Jha-sahab himself.

Chapter 1, titled “Raganga Raga Malhar or Raga Shuddha Malhar,” cuts straight to the core.  The paterfamilias, Raga Shuddha Malhar, is traced historically as it occurs in the ancient texts such as Sangeet Ratnakara, Sangeet Parijat, Raga Manjiri, Sangeeta Darpana, Raga Tarangini and a host of other treatises.  The attendent views of the author-pandits are recorded and critiqued.  This historical section is followed by a detailed musical analysis of the Raganga Raga Shuddha Malhar.  Just what it is that constitutes the Malhar anga is fleshed out.  Comparisons and differences are drawn with two other ragas – Durga and Jaladhar Kedar – that employ the same pentatonic scale S R M P D, where M = shuddha madhyam.  Throughout the volume every theoretical discussion of a raga culminates in a collection of notated compositions: dhrupads, khayals and taranas, old (‘traditional’) and ‘new’ (mostly Ramrang’s compositions).

Chapter 2 lays the groundwork for the time-framed Malhar prakars of the chapters following.

Chapter 3 discusses the prachina prakars.

Chapter 4 addresses the madhyakalina period.

Chapter 5 deals with the arvachina ragas (see Footnote for the names of the actual ragas covered).

The major prakars are put under the lens and analyzed; their variations are also dealt with.  For instance, Gaud Malhar has a less-familiar version that deploys komal gandhar, Nat Malhar comes in two flavours, one of them with both gandhars, and the more common type with only shuddha gandhar.  A distinction is drawn between Megh and Megh Malhar and variations of the latter are fleshed out.  The compositions are for the most part offered only in the principal versions (so determined by the author’s background).

In Chapter 6 the sampoorna jati Malhars are assessed.

Geeta Banerjee and Ramashreya Jha
in Goa (2000)

Chapter 7 reviews a few recently-hatched (i.e. conceived by Ramrang) Malhars and their compositions.

The concluding Chapter 8 contains a brief discussion on rasa and its realization in the different Malhars.

There have been other published works dedicated to the Malhars.  For instance, the volume Malhar Ke Prakaar by Jaisukhlal Shah, which contains some useful traditional compositions but is otherwise a rather sloppy piece of work and called as such by Dr. Banerjee in her prefatory remarks.  Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande gives a detailed discussion on the Malhars in his magnum opus, Hindustani Sangeet Paddhati, from which Dr. Banerjee has freely drawn on.

Two features of Raga Malhar Darshan make it particularly outstanding.  One is the assemblage of many traditional compositions many of which are not easily accessible. Furthermore, Jha-sahab’s own compositions are a testament to his creative genius and stature as one of the preeminent Hindustani vaggeyakaras of our time.

Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande

Of particular profit to the serious student or performer is the methodology of raga analysis that is proposed.  The reader is introduced to the shastraic language and familiarized with the kind of critical thinking necessary for an inquiry into the innards of a raga.  Jha-sahab’s earlier volumes demonstrate well this approach where the raga is taken apart swara-by-swara and then re-constituted.  Although Jha-sahab’s pedagogic virtuosity and analytical acumen are fomidable, he credits Bhatkhande for “showing me the way.”  But Ramrang is no uncritical follower, no “lakeer ke faqeer“.  In a recorded conversation with Satyasheel Deshpande, Jha-sahab leaves no doubt of the debt owed Bhatkhande. That conversation brings to mind a moving passage that Satyasheel’s father, Vamanrao Deshpande, wrote decades ago concerning his first meeting with Chaturpandit Bhatkhande:

“…Around this time Panditji was terminally ill with cancer. Once I expressed a desire to be introduced to Panditji and Bhal with great alacrity took me to his bungalow at Walkeshwar. Panditji was lying on his back on his bed, beneath a window in the ground floor room, with both arms on his chest. Bhal introduced me saying, ‘He is an Accountant – also practises music’ and seated me on Panditji’s bed. Panditji stroked me on my back and said, ‘Educated people should take an interest in music. Continue working hard at it. You will find our Bhal very useful.’ I consider the touch of his hand on my back as one of the most significant happenings of my life. I also consider that my subsequent progress in music and whatever little I wrote on the subject is a direct fruit of his blessing…” (Between Two Tanpuras).

A translation of a passage from Raga Malhar Darshan illustrates a typical analysis.  Similar analyses are to be found in Jha-sahab’s own volumes.

On the swara prayogas in Raga Megh Malhar:

The remaining swaras in Megh Malhar are similarly illuminated and the raga is then put back together.  These tools of raga analysis should be part of every serious student’s armoury, for they give insight into the raga’s genetic blueprint.  At a later point in time I will post clips, time and weather permitting, of this swara-by-swara dissection demonstrated by Jha-sahab in delineating the scale-congruent Ragas Megh, Megh Malhar and Madhmadh Sarang. [Update: Listen to it here.]

Ramashreya Jha "Ramrang"
(© Rajan P. Parrikar)

Two areas for improvement suggest themselves.  An index at the end of the volume would have been useful.  If Jha-sahab can be pursuaded to record a CD-ROM of the outlines of all the compositions in the book, that would constitute a document of immeasurable archival value.

A few samplers of the bandishes in the book are now offered.  Jha-sahab sings his composition in Raga Gaud Malhar: jhingura jhanana jhanakara.

The following two clips are in Raga Chhaya Malhar.

Ramrang first provides an outline of the composition (of Kunwar Shyam) as received from his guru, Bholanath Bhatt: sakhee Shyama nahin aaye.

And the same composition by Bhimsen Joshi.

The final clip is a traditional composition in the uncommon Raga Arun Malhar, in Ramrang‘s voice: kaha na gaye saiyyan.

For a discussion on Ragas Chhaya Malhar and Arun Malhar, see A Tale of Two Malhars. A medley of Ramrang’s compositions may also be found in Ramrang – A Bouquet of Compositions and A Stroll in Ramrang’s Garden.

Footnote
(Ragas in Raga Malhar Darshan)

Chapter 1 (Raganga Raga Malhar):
Shuddha Malhar

Chapter 3 (prachina):
Megh, Megh Malhar
Gaud Malhar

Chapter 4 (madhyakalina):
Miyan Malhar
Soor Malhar
Ramdasi Malhar
Nat Malhar
Mirabai ki Malhar
Dhulia Malhar
Gaudgiri Malhar
Charju ki Malhar
Jayant Malhar

Chapter 5 (arvachina):
Samant Malhar
Chanchalsas Malhar
Arun Malhar
Roopmanjari Malhar
Chhaya Malhar
Tilak Malhar
Sorath Malhar
Des Malhar
Sveta Malhar
Nayaki Malhar
Kedar Malhar
Jhanjh Malhar
Chandra Malhar

Chapter 7 (nava-nirmita)
Mahendra Malhar
Anjani Malhar
Janaki Malhar

by Rajan P. Parrikar
First published on SAWF on April 29, 2002

Part 1 | Part 2

On this page we address Bhairavi’s manifestation in many other forms prevalent in Hindustani music.

Pandit Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang” has put together a special Bhairavi Baithak.  In this remarkable session recorded in May 2002 at his home in Allahabad, he ranges over several compositions of varied design and genre, traditional and self-composed. To me this shall forever remain an example of Ramrang’s overwhelming love and kindness especially in light of his fragile health at the time.  When I said I was doing a feature on Bhairavi and that I would like his input, he at once recorded a session himself and mailed me the tape.  The recording was made with very basic equipment, hence the quality of the audio is not as good as we would have liked.  Nevertheless, what a priceless document!

Several items in this pool have been published in Jha-sahab’s 5th volume of Abhinava Geetanjali.  His presentation here is prototypic, not in the manner of a full concert-style rendition.  The intention is solely to illustrate and illuminate the underlying raga features.  The highlights include Jha-sahab’s exhibition of uccharana and gestures germane to the genre under review; pertinent remarks punctuate the proceedings.

Bhairavi Baithak

by

Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang”

Jha-sahab opens with a traditional dhrupad in praise of Lord Shiva: bhasma anga Gori sanga.

Ramrang’s own khayal: Bhairavi Bhavani devi.

Switching tracks, Jha-sahab takes on the dadra: naina lage.

Another dadra in Sindh Bhairavi, this one set to Keherwa: na ja balama pardeswa.

The next several items are based in the thumri genre.

Jha-sahab opens with a vilambit thumri, pausing to touch upon the antecedents of this class: rasiya raina ga’i.

This older form of thumri, known as bandish-ki-thumri, is Ramrang’s own composition: ma’i re muraliyan.

Next in line are two compositions, both bandish-ki-thumri, of the legendary thumri composer “Lalan Piya.”

Lalan Piya (c.1850-1927) was the nom de plume of Nandalal Sharma of Farrukhabad. In his book, Indian Music, Thakur Jaideva Singh writes: “…In the later half of the nineteenth century, a movement of composing thumaris on the pattern of gats of instrumental music like sitar or sarod had started. These thumaris were mostly of fast tempo. There were some good composers of this type of thumari. None, however, surpassed Lalan Piya in the composition of such thumaris…His compositions were of such svelte, rhythmic variations that it was difficult for a tabla accompanist to catch the sam. He composed hundreds of thumaris. They were all of bandish (well-set improvised) pattern and in medium or fast tempo. They were mostly on the pattern of gats (fast instrumental compositions) of sitar…Some texts of his thumaris are extraordinary from another point of view. For instance, some of his thumaris are ‘onthabanda’ i.e., none of the words of such a thumari is labial. Such thumaris are not merely padding of words. They have also beautiful poetic content...”

Jha-sahab presents “Lalan Piya.”

Ramamshreya Jha "Ramrang" and the author in Goa

Ramrang pries open gems of another famed composer, “Kunwar Shyam“ (see Jaipurwales: The Lost Link for more on ‘Kunwar Shyam’): baata chalata mori chunari.

A different build, this time set to Addha tala: Nandlala daro gulaal.

The next two thumri selections are taken “madhyam se” (i.e. with the tonic is shifted to madhyam).

First, Kunwar Shyam’s rachana: suno suno ji na daro.

This “madhyam se” thumri is a composition of Jha-sahab’s guru Bholanath Bhatt whose adopted colophon was “Das Shyam” (see A Tale of Two Malhars for more on Bholanath Bhatt): jina javi ji aaja ko’u.

Ramrang introduces another genre, the tappa.

The Bhairavi Baithak concludes with a bhajan of Kabir: ya bidha mana ko.

Jha-sahab‘s parting remarks concludes this baithak.

Pandit Bhatkhande was a composer of great merit.  Parveen Sultana amplifies on his famous sadra: Bhavani dayani. [Update: Dr. V.N. Muthukumar informs that according to Inder Kishore, this composition is attributed to Anand Kishore Singh of the Betia dhrupad tradition.  I need to confirm this.]

(L-R): V.N. Bhatkhande, Shankarrao
Karnad, Bhalchandra Sukthankar,
Brijkishan Koul, Rai Umanath
Bali

Bhairavi’s looming presence in the Indian musical mind is in no small measure on account of its nexus with the land’s religious and spiritual repertoire.  No bhajani baithak can be complete without a generous dose of Bhairavi.  Sample an early Bhimsen Joshi rendering this Hari bhajan: jo bhaje Hari ko sada.

Bhairavi lends itself well to brisk, taut bandishes.  Exemplifying this type of composition is a bandish of Tassaduq Hussain Khan “Vinodpiya” (1879-1940) rendered by Jitendra Abhisheki: payaliyan baje re.

Mushtaq Hussain Khan

Of similar vintage is this old, well-worn cheez dealt by Shaila Datar: dekho mori churiyan.

The American khayal vocalist Shri Warren Senders has earned for himself the sobriquet “Bostonbuwa.”  In this recording of a Mumbai mehfil, Bostonbuwa unleashes a tarana.

From tarana it is a hop and skip to tappa for which Bhairavi is fertile ground.  First, the Rampur-Sahaswan buzurg Mushtaq Hussain Khan.

Among the current crop, Malini Rajurkar is the reigning tappa specialist.

Tappa was dear to the Gwalior elders.  Three marvelous instances of Krishnarao Shankar Pandit are attached.

Krishnarao Shankar Pandit

The first is a younger KRSP at the peak of his powers.

The next two are unpublished items of a later KRSP.

KRSP – 2.

KRSP – 3.

Govindrao Tembe

The nanga Emperor Ali Akbar Khan recently spent quality time pissin’ & partyin’ in his San Rafael swamp on the occasion of his 80th birthday (Happy Birthday, Alu! Pssssst, time to now dispatch you to the knackers).  Mr Alubhai has let the grass grow under his sarod for years (it is now perhaps longer than the hair coming out of his ears).  Long ago, before he went to the winds, Alumeister had the capacity for a good Bhairavi.  Here we must make do with a ho-hum effort.

The swarasmith par excellence, perhaps the greatest Hindustani instrumentalist of the past 50 years - Bismillah Khan – reminds us of the good ol’ festive times in India.

Abdul Halim Jaffer Khan never quite got the recognition he deserved as a sitar player of high class.  He breaks a few squares with Sindhu Bhairavi-esque variations.

Omkarnath Thakur

Listening to harmonium solos for over 3 minutes is pure torture no matter how adept the player. But Govindrao Tembe was special.  His abilities touched a wide range of artistic activity: author, playwright, actor, composer and musician. Govindrao’s wizardry on the harmonium was admired even by the likes of Alladiya Khansaheb and Kesarbai Kerkar.  This scratchy 78 rpm reveals why.

We now turn to the thumri anga material.  At the head of the line is Bade Ghulam Ali Khan.  This rare, unpublished instance finds him engaged in an informal session, playing with the Bhairavi bag of tricks.

This classic BGAK recording is more familiar: naina more tarase.

Rasoolan Bai is enchanting in this cut.  Notice the thumri-induced shuddha nishad mentioned earlier by Jha-sahab.

Bismillah Khan with brother Shamsuddin

A bandish-ki-thumri, courtesy Vasantrao Deshpande.

Abdul Karim Khan‘s jamuna ke teer, among the nation’s cultural treasures.

A promising student of Omkarnath Thakur and Balkrishnabuwa Kapileshwari (Abdul Karim Khan’s direct disciple), Yeshwantrai Purohit‘s was a life cut short.  His manner exudes vestiges of Abdul Karim Khan.

Kesarbai Kerkar‘s old recording in Raga Bhairavi represents India’s music on the plaque carried aboard NASA’s Voyager spacecraft that is now coasting in the desolate vastness of interstellar space.  It is a magnificent performance: jaata kahan ho.

Mallikarjun Mansur takes off his high brow hat for a change.

Anjanibai Malpekar

The pièce de résistance of the thumri round – a recording of Anjanibai Malpekar administering taleem to Begum Akhtar.

Anjanibai Malpekar (1883-1974) from Goa – not to be confused with the Agra vocalist, Anjanibai Lolienkar, also from Goa – trained under Nazir Khan, one of the founders of the Bhendibazar Gharana (the others being Chajju Khan and Khadim Hussain Khan). Anjanibai was known in her day for both for her musical gifts and her uncommon beauty.  Kishori Amonkar, currently the greatest living Hindustani musician, had the privilege of being tutored by Anjanibai.  In Between Two Tanpuras, Vamanrao Deshpande has this passage: ”…Another of Kishori’s gurus was Anjanibai Malpekar. Anjanibai loved Kishori dearly, especially because of her great musical talent.  She often said to Kishori, “In you, your mother has given birth to a real gem.  Go and tell your mother that I said this.”  Tonal sensitivity was something Kishori was born with.  But she goes to great lengths to admit that her enchanting glide (meend) was taught to her by Anjanibai…”

Begum Akhtar

The senior Dagar brothers, N. Moinuddin and N. Aminuddin.

Meerabai‘s entreaty in mat ja jogi is renewed by Omkarnath Thakur, in what is surely among the most memorable Bhairavis.

We rein in these peregrinations with the celebrated lament that has become synonymous with Bhairavi.  Wajid Ali Shah, engulfed in wrenching grief, famously cried babul mora naihara chhooto jay (see Appendix at the end of this essay).  Scores of musicians have clocked in their versions keeping alive the memory of Wajid Ali’s acute distress.

Khadim Hussain Khan of Agra.

Siddeshwari Devi.

Kesarbai Kerkar.

Siddheshwari Devi

Kishori Amonkar.

“Aftab-e-Mousiqui” Faiyyaz Hussain Khan.

Kesarbai Kerkar

Our odyssey concludes with the supreme Bhairavi rendition of our age, among the finest pieces of recorded music in human history.  K.L. Saigal‘s performance has earned the imprimatur and unvarnished admiration of the greatest classical masters, and it has for decades seized the imagination of every lay Indian.  This recording from STREET SINGER (1938) is one of the reasons why, in Bertrand Russell’s words, “the human race is worth preserving.”

Upon Saigal-sahab’s babul mora no human voice can improve.

It has been a pleasure and a privilege to bring to you these set of notes.  Men of the calibre of Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande – with their telescopic vision, capacity for sadhana, keen intellect, and ability to effect positive social change – come by very infrequently.  Between these instances of great men are longer periods when humbler hands must remain ceaselessly at work nurturing and keeping the flame of raga burning.  And so, “to these serving hands mine also shall belong.”

Bade Ghulam Ali Khan with his family

Acknowledgements

I am indebted to Romesh Aeri for his steady support and for allowing me unrestricted access to his vast holdings.  The assistance of Ashok Ambardar and Ajay Nerurkar has been both valuable and critical.  Sir Vish Krishnan is peerless in his knowledge and prehensile understanding of the diverse genres in India’s music mosaic.  The challenge for me was to pare the enormous amount of material he repeatedly deposited at my door.

Special thanks to Prashanth Sharangapani, Ajit Akolkar, Guri Singh, V.N. Muthukumar and Shubha Mudgal.  Dhananjay Naniwadekar supplied an important recording for this feature.

This effort would not have gone beyond a couple of installments had it not been for Anita Thakur‘s unswerving dedication to the cause.

[1] Read more about Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande.

[2] Read more about Wajid Ali Shah and ‘Babul Mora‘.

[3] Read more about K.L. Saigal.

Part 1 | Part 2

by Rajan P. Parrikar
First published on South Asian Women’s Forum (SAWF) on April 29, 2002

Part 1 | Part 2

Rajan Parrikar at
the Kennedy Space Centre (1989)
Photo by: Dr. Anand Bariya

Namashkar.

Our voyages in the ocean of raga have connected us with worlds both familiar and alien.  We now stand in sight of what shall mark our terminus ad quem – Raga Bhairavi.  A synoptic account of this melody, universally prescribed for ringing down the curtain on a Hindustani mehfil, makes for the final chapter of these chronicles.

Throughout our discussion, M = shuddha madhyam and m = teevra madhyam.

The word “Bhairavi” derives from one of the eight forms of the Devi, born in the burial grounds.  So fanatically loved and widely embraced is Raga Bhairavi that its elemental imprint is firmly fixed in the mind of  even the untutored Indian rasika. Bhairavi is also one of the ten fundamental Hindustani thats proposed by the great sangeetaggya Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande. Its swara-set hews to the 8th Carnatic melakarta, Hanumatodi: S r g M P d n.

Although Bhairavi is a major league raga, it stands apart from other ragas of like stature in one important aspect: its use of all 12 swaras, a signal feature of the Bhairavi praxis.  The five vivadi swaras that are not members of the original set are implemented judiciously, without injury to the raga-dharma.  In this latter form the melody instantiated is often termed “Mishra Bhairavi.”

Dhrupad and dhamar compositions abound in Bhairavi.  Khayal servings usually come in the form of druta compositions.  Bhairavi finds extensive application in auxiliary genres such as tarana, tappa and thumri.  Vilambit khayal presentations are rare although such compositions have been conceived (eg. by S.N. Ratanjankar).  Outside the realm of Classical proper, it is impossible to tread without frequent run-ins with Bhairavi.  It inhabits every conceivable Indian musical form – bhajan, geet, ghazal, qawwali, natyasangeet, Rabby shongeet - you name it.

The central Bhairavi themes will be first fleshed out followed by a brief discussion of the normative variations.  Clearly, much detail will be left unwritten.  The curious reader will have opportunities aplenty to partake of the minutiae at the accompanying audio banquet.

The driving phrases of the poorvanga are:

S n’ S r g M [g] r S
The square brackets on gandhar signify a shake of that swara that is sui generis to Bhairavi. This cluster at once precipitates the essence of Bhairavi.

g M d P, d P M P (M)g, M (g)r S
The rishab and/or pancham are often skipped in arohi prayogas, viz., n’ S g M d P.

The uttaranga forays are launched via: g M d n S”.
This tonal phrase is Malkauns-like.  An extension of the idea is: g M d n S”, d n S” r” n S” (n)d P.

Since Bhairavi is a sampoorna raga, linear (“sapat“) runs of the S r g M P d n S” kind are frequently admitted.

Stitching together these elemental strips, a chalan of the ‘shuddha‘ swaroopa of Bhairavi is formulated:

S n S g M d P, (M)g M P d M P (M)g, d’ n’ S r [g] r S

g M d n S”, S” r” n S” (n)d P, d P M P (M)g, S r g M, (g)r S

The typical modus operandi for each the five vivadi swaras is now outlined.

Shuddha rishab: arohi - S, d’ n’ S R [g] r S ; avarohi - P, d P M P (M)g R g, r S.
Invocation of the vivadi R is common in most Bhairavi renditions.

Shuddha dhaivat: g M P d P, D n d P

Teevra madhyam: P d M P (M)g, g M m g r S

Shuddha nishad: S, r N’ S, d’ n’ S r [g] r S r N’ S

Shuddha gandhar: S r g M, M G M, S r G r S
Notice that shuddha gandhar does not lend itself to as good a fit in the Bhairavi aesthetic.

The nyasa swaras are S, g and P; in addition, M and d are often sought for elongation.  Care has to be observed in the treatment of d so as to keep Asavari anga at bay.  As to the vadi, there is no prevailing consensus.  Traditionally, M has been considered for the role but in recent times the accent has shifted to other swaras.  For instance, Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang” argues in his classic work Abhinava Geetanjali that d and G are the vadi and samvadi, respectively.  These differences in outlook notwithstanding, there is no mistaking the core of Bhairavi.

A variation known as Sindhu Bhairavi retains all the mannerisms of the parent but with rishab augmented to its shuddha shade. These days Sindhu Bhairavi is sung with both rishabs and both dhaivats. Other variants such as Jangla Bhairavi, Kasuri Bhairavi and such like also exist. These are relatively minor offshoots originating from the Bhairavi stem; I prefer to locate them all under the “Mishra Bhairavi” rubric.

Ramashreya Jha "Ramrang"
(© Rajan P. Parrikar)

This completes our prolegomenon on Bhairavi’s structural matters.  The raga affords a wide compass for rumination, and numerous melodic templates with which to develop its motif have evolved.

Obiter dictum: The profoundly significant Raga Bilaskhani Todi is carved out of swaras from the Bhairavi campus.  The kinship ends there, for Bilaskhani Todi is a horse of an entirely different colour with its special prayogas, its Todi-anga uccharana and its meends.  An inadvertent step into Bhairavi territory may deal the kiss of death to Bilaskhani.

In its width and penetration the work of Pandit Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang” is the only one in recent times that approaches the standards established by Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande (see Appendix at the end of this essay).  Jha-sahab regards Bhatkhande as his param-guru, and has critically extended the Chaturpandit’s ideas on the nature and structure of raga.  Jha-sahab’s raganubhava is an accretion of decades of reflection and play.  To get there, the raga must have done time in your mind.  Mere taleem won’t cut it.  A musician with years of rigorous taleem and not much else is little more than a well-trained dog.  This point cannot be underscored enough, for the Hindustani firmament is littered with the droppings of these “lakeer-ke-faqeer” chumps, these viveka-atrophied baboons.

Jha-sahab‘s parley opens with a demonstration of the vivadi swaras and then turns to the ragavachaka prayogas.  There is also a discussion of Bilaskhani Todi vis-a-vis Bhairavi.  This session (like many in this series of articles) was recorded over a California-to-Allahabad telephone link.

Bhairavi has been cultivated extravagantly by the Hindi film music composers.  Many of the lasting creations of the 20th C have their roots in this raga.  The distinction between ‘light’ and ‘classical’ is largely moot in this case since a good Bhairavi rendition is seen as “Bhairavi” without regard to genre or source.  Indeed, as will be clear soon, the greatest Bhairavi on record sprung not under the auspices of the Classical world but through the artistry of a musical genius affiliated with the popular imagination.

K.L. Saigal

The banquet we are about to sink our teeth into contains many inviting items, but bear in mind that it represents a tiny sample of the Bhairavi goodies extant.  From this point on, I intend to practice severe economy of word and chime in only when, and if, necessary (if I can help it).

We begin with an invocation to that abiding symbol of learning, Goddess Saraswati.  The text is a traditional description of the devi.  The tune, credited to Allaudin Khan, was adapted by composer Jaidev for ALAAP (1977).  Lata Mangeshkar is assisted by Dilraj Kaur: Mata Saraswati Sharada.

There has not been a greater exponent of Bhairavi than K. L. Saigal and this is not an opinion.  It is in the fitness of things that we steal some moments with Saigal-sahab.

This number from MY SISTER (1944) was composed by Pankaj Mullick: aie katib-e-taqdeer.

Every Bhairavi that Saigal touched turned to gold.  Soordas’s famous bhajan, for instance, from BHAKTA SOORDAS (1942), set to music by Gyan Dutt: Madhukar Shyam hamare chor.

With this song on your lips, your small-beer tale of a life can acquire the sheen of an epic at dinner parties.  Composer Naushad pulls in an all-time pleaser for SHAHJEHAN (1946): jab dil hi toot gaya.

Lata Mangeshkar

These Saigal numbers reveal his mastery of Bhairavi and his flair for joining melody to word.

From KISMAT (1943), composer Anil Biswas, singer Amirbai Karnataki: ab tere siva.

A quick flavour of the creative ferment in Bhairavi can be had by examining Lata Mangeshkar‘s oeuvre.

From DULARI (1949), composer Naushad: aie dil tujhe.

It was fresh then and it is fresh now.  The classic from GOONJ UTHI SHEHNAI (1959) composed by Vasant Desai: dil ka khilona.

Composer Madan Mohan, film DEKH KABEERA ROYA (1957): tu pyar kare.

Chitragupta‘s tune in MAIN CHUP RAHUNGI (1962): tumhi ho mata.

Ravi Shankar‘s classic from ANURADHA (1960): sanware sanware.

S.D. Burman in TERE MERE SAPNE (1971): jaise Radha ne.

Lata and Rafi

It is fashionable in the West to talk about the “complexity and beauty” of African drumming or the “intoxicating beauty” of Gammelan or this and that and the other.  The ‘savage’ has now turned noble.  Long before the advent of these childish Western fads, the brilliant Indian duo of Shankar-Jaikishan scoured the world’s musical hotbeds incorporating into their work the best from all lands while staying true to their Indian soul.  For instance, their adaptation of this number of the legendary Arab chanteuse, Umm Kulthum (1898-1975)…

…for the runaway superhit from AWARA (1951): ghar aaya mera pardesi.

Shankar-Jaikishan‘s fondness for Bhairavi and their unshakeable faith in Lata‘s artistry stood at the cradle of many of our national chants.  These five corkers are all rooted in the soil of the land.

PATITA (1953), kisi ne apna bana ke.

(L-R): Anil Biswas, Lata, Pannalal Ghosh

MAYUR PANKH (1954), kushiyonke chand.

SEEMA (1955), suno chhoti si.

This number from BASANT BAHAR (1956) is also famous for Pannalal Ghosh‘s interludes on the bansuri: main piya teri.

DIL APNA AUR PREET PARAYI (1960), dil apna aur preet parayi.

Enter Mohammad Rafi.

From Naushad‘s workshop, this sparkling number was forged for MELA (1948): yeh zindagi ke mele.

Mahatma Gandhi

Some years ago, a vast and shameless Bong conspiracy to wangle a brilliant Goan composer as one of their own was exposed.  The man in question was N. Datta (Datta Naik), who teamed with Sahir Ludhianvi to give us many unforgettable numbers.  From DHOOL KA PHOOL (1959), in Mohammad Rafi‘s voice: tu Hindu banega na Musalman banega.

(L-R): Jaikishan, Shankar, Lata, Talat

Mahatma Gandhi’s life is celebrated in song by the poet Rajinder Kishan, music composers Husanlal-Bhagatram, and Mohammad Rafi: suno suno aie duniyawalon Bapu ki yeh amar kahani.

Lata Mangeshkar and Mohammad Rafi in a soft Khayyam composition from SHOLA AUR SHABNAM (1961): jeet hi lenge.

Composer Roshan‘s turn.  From DEVAR (1966), this is Mukesh‘s sole entry: aaya hain mujhe phir yaad.

Ladies, it is time to pull out your hankies.  Talat-bhai, the quivering doyen of the ronaa-dhonaa brigade, is here.  From DAGH (1952), composers Shankar-Jaikishan: aie mere dil kahin.

O.P. Nayyar goes balle balle, that unappetising Bhangra ritual invented by uncouth Punju primates.  Asha Bhonsle and Shamshad Begum in NAYA DAUR (1957): reshmi salvar kurta.

Lata and Kishore Kumar

Pt. Kishore Kumar‘s garden has a few Bhairavi lilies blooming.  Such as this riveting masterpiece from AMAR PREM (1971) fashioned by R.D. Burman: chingari ko’i bhadke.

S.D. Burman cajoles Panditji into nibbling at a few vivadi swaras in GAMBLER (1971): dil aaja shayar hain.

The great man once again in BEMISAL (1982) under R.D. Burman: kisi baat par main.

That completes our Hindi film-based round.  We next turn to melodies in other languages.

Dnyaneshwar‘s transcendental words in this Pasayadan are set to music by Hridaynath Mangeshkar and recited by Lata.

Jyotsna Bhole

Marathi natyasangeet has liberally drawn on Bhairavi.  The famous musician-actress of yesteryear, Jyotsna Bhole, in the drama KULAVADHU (1942), with music composed by Master Krishnarao: bola amrutabola.

Veer Savarkar

Jyotsnatai was born Durga Kelekar in a tiny village in Goa, younger sister of Girijabai Kelekar (Jitendra Abhisheki’s first guru).  I am often asked about the suffixes “tai” and “bai” used on names of Maharashtrian and Goan women.  Research has shown that they are tied to the woman’s biological cycle: “tai” is assumed at the crack of puberty and automatically turns to “bai” at the conclusion of menopause.  As for women over 60 pretending to be the self-righteous virgins – we call them “Lata-didi.”

The Marathi drama SANYASTA KHADGA (1931) written by the Indian nationalist and freedom fighter Veer Savarkar features Dinanath Mangeshkar‘s arresting Bhairavi: sukatatachi jagi ya.

Kumar Gandharva

The Marathi musical EKACH PYALA (1919) is packed with memorable tunes.  Kumar Gandharva: prabhuaji gamala.

Over to the Department of Kannada.  Basavanna‘s vacana is tuned and rendered by Basavraj Rajguru: chakorange chandramana.

Rabindranath Tagore is represented through his famous mor beena delivered here by Debabrata Biswas.

We round off this section with a clip of Greek Rembetika music set in the scale of Bhairavi.

The Bhairavi story continues in Part 2.

Part 1 | Part 2

by Rajan P. Parrikar
First published on SAWF on January 14, 2002

Part 1 | Part 2

Yaman – The Classical View

Much of the material marshaled on this page remains unpublished.  So let’s right away hitch our wagon to a star and soak in the ananda of Yaman.

Ramashreya Jha "Ramrang"
(© Rajan P. Parrikar)

Pandit Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang” ‘s meditations in music have spanned over six decades.  Raga Kalyan is very dear to him, the milch-cow that keeps his creative urn churning.  Jha-sahab has fashioned over two score and more compositions of varied designs in Yaman, some of them decidedly among the finest of all time.  My personal favourite is the dheema Teentala composition about Lord Shiva - devana deva Mahadeva hara – with its sam located on the mandra nishad.  As the composition unfolds so does the raga.  The development is organic and systematically moves from one strata to another.  This manner of elaboration is known in the trade as “asthai bharna” (lit. to fill the asthai) and is characteristic of the tradition of Jha-sahab’s guru, Bholanath Bhatt.  Although popular a few decades back, this type of gayaki is rarely heard nowadays.

Jha-sahab is in fine fettle in what is surely one of the great expositions of Yaman.

Ramrang‘s bandish – ranga de ranga de – packs a catchy punch.  In the latter part of the clip, he engages in shoptalk and concludes with a dramatic flourish. The alert listener will notice the route taken by the tan on the word “more“: GmPDND (i.e. without skipping pancham).

The mind of a great vaggeyakara is seldom at rest.  This composition came to be during the course of an evening stroll: tumari aasa lagi aaja.

Jha-sahab sketches a khayalnuma.

Take stock of Jha-sahab‘s treatment of M in Yaman Kalyan.  Some of his tonal constructs are novel, not part of the run-of-the-mill routine.  Only those in whos minds the raga has done time can work this kind of magic.  The text draws on an episode from the Ramayana: nirakha nirakha gagana.

Bholanath Bhatt

Another pleasing instance of shuddha madhyam: sangata keenhe guniyana ki.

The long drawn out vilambit khayal, typically set in Ektala, has become the standard vehicle for raga expression today.  Ramrang‘s composition pits him against the celebrated ‘Sadarang’ with their identical opening bols, mera mana bandha leeno re.  The similarity stops there as the compositions differ significantly in all other respects.  Jha-sahab‘s canvas is melodically and textually richer.

Shubha Mudgal parlays her guru’s composition.

The mere mention of Omkarnath Thakur is enough to send the fat into the fire.  The shuddha madhyam is liberally courted in this play on Sadarang’s canoncial khayal, mera mana.  Omkarnath (sometimes called “Ahamkarnath” for his not inconsiderable ego) steals the thunder from the Gods in this erumpent, high-voltage drama.  He tops it off with the traditional mandara mana laye.

Vasantrao Deshpande‘s treatment is staid by comparison.  The shuddha madhyam here is sparing.

In an interesting variation, Vasantrao drops the pancham altogether in a raga he brands Raj Kalyan.  The relief-inducing nyasa on the pancham is missing, giving this raga a restive persona: araja suno. (Update: A reader sent feedback saying that Vasantrao thought of this raga as Marwa with a shuddha rishab.  My description of it as “restive” is apposite in light of this for that is a deliberate effect Vasantrao seems to have aimed for.)

Shubha Mudgal
(© Rajan P. Parrikar)

Ulhas Kashalkar handles a bandish favoured by the Gwalior musicians, in Tilwada: jiya manata.

Faiyyaz Khan brings his imperial gayaki to bear on Yaman Kalyan as graceful meends and a judicious shuddha madhyam decorate this unpublished recording.

Dinkar Kaikini brings his own compositions – the vilambit, he mana kaise gaoon, is followed by the lithe matwari aaja hoon.

This rare item of the Agrawali Zohrabai singing the well-known cheez, piharva tihari comes with linear SRGmPDN runs.

The Rampur-Sahaswan statement from its distinguished representative, the late Nissar Hussain Khan.  The traditional khayal, kaise ki, is followed with piharva tihari.  Notice the explicit SRGm sargam beginning at around 8:02 into the clip.

A supreme master of the ‘big’ ragas, Bhimsen Joshi‘s is a powerful presence in this raga.  He is not one to put much store by the textual content but he has an unerring sense of and respect for bandish structure.  The shuddha madhyam-laden piyabina ratiya in Jhaptala is paired with the scintillating eri aali piyabina.

We turn to Gwalior.

Rahimat Khan (1852-1922), the second son of the Gwalior pioneer Haddu Khan, was among the most renowned musicians of India in his time.  Some of the influential names impacted by his artistry include Abdul Karim Khan, Bhaskarbuwa Bakhale, Omkarnath Thakur and – much to the chagrin of dad Alladiya Khan – Manji Khan.  Rahimat Khan‘s explosive tans are preserved in this invaluable archival recording published recently by HMV.

Amir Khan

The khayalnuma, a form where tarana bols are dressed up in khayal clothing, is a Gwalior specialty  Sharatchandra Arolkar‘s rendition in vilambit Jhoomra is followed by the now-familiar piharva tihari.

Rahimat Khan

The traditional cheez, langarva turaka jina chhuvo, comes alive in the pliant voice of D.V. Paluskar.

Interestingly, Jha-sahab sketches the same cheez with a small twist: he transposes the second word “turaka” to “tu kara.”

Jha-sahab has composed a jod (match) of the foregoing composition, co-opting its key phrases.  Nachiketa Sharma gives an account: banwari na karo na karo.

Kashinath Bodas puts to good effect a composition of his guru Balwantrai Bhatt “Bhavrang”: sukha data sabana ke Shankara.

Kumar Gandharva always has an ace or two up his sleeve.  Notice the soupçon of shuddha madhyam served with a khatka in his own composition: mukha tero karo.

Master Krishnarao places the sam on the tar saptaka shadaj in his composition rendered by Shaila Datar: preethama saiyyan lagi re.

Whenever you run a ‘big’ raga by Amir Khan he cannot help but erect a monument.  In this unpublished recording the great man sings a khayal in vilambit Jhoomra, kajra kaise darun, which has its sam located on the mandra nishad, and follows it up with the breezy aiso sughara sundarava balamava.

Basavraj Rajguru emphasizes teevra madhyam in the earlier half of the clip, its solidity furnishing a contrast to the weak and circumspect shuddha madhyam.

A prized recording of the sarangi-nawaz Bundu Khan.

Bundu Khan

In this 1966 mehfil in Hyderabad, Bade Ghulam Ali Khan begins gingerly before warming up.

Salamat Ali Khan.

A couple of offerings from the Dagar dudes.  First, Rahimuddin Khan Dagar‘s alap.

The resounding tones of Z.M. Dagar‘s rudra beena in this unpublished recording.

We pick up on a jhala in an old jugalbandi of Vilayat Khan and Mr. Alubhai Khan, the (naked) Emperor of San Rafael who has been resting on his oars for a few decades now.

Vilayat Khan and Bismillah Khan.

Nivruttibuwa Sarnaik, compelling as usual.

Kishori Amonkar‘s extended rendition of eri aali piya bina is severely enchanting, and there is perhaps no better elaboration of the chestnut on tape.

When queried about the shuddha madhyam in Kalyan’s midst, Kishori Amonkar is known to unload a great deal of hocus-pocus on the unsuspecting.  In this tarana the first instance of M is around 1:41.  Then at 2:02 comes an ungainly m-M slide.

Kesarbai, Mogubai and Dhondutai

Mogubai‘s tarana is set in Gatala (15.5 beats), a tala designed by “Layabhaskar” Khaprumama Parvatkar.  The story is told that Mogubai went through numerous takes without success and had to finally request Khaprumama’s presence in the studio to get through to her satisfaction.

Another Atrauli-Jaipur lady, Laxmibai Jadhav: eri eka najara.

Laxmibai Jadhav

The crowning Atrauli-Jaipur offering - Mallikarjun Mansur. Like a hen on a hot girdle, he gets down to business in less than no time: beeta gaye.

Mallikarjun spins an old cheez for a round of hijinks: mukuta para vara ja’oon.

Mallikarjun Mansur did not mix his Yaman and Yaman Kalyan.  The latter now, through the traditional bandish, pata tore kavana.

Any account of Yaman would remain incomplete if we didn’t acknowledge Vilayat Hussain Khan‘s popular and busy cheez, main vari vari ja’oongi.  His colophon, ‘Pranpiya,’ is heard in the antara in this rendition by K.G. Ginde.

Pannalal Ghosh

We conclude the our Yaman adventure with the empyrean artistry of Pannalal Ghosh, the greatest Hindustani flautist of our times.

Acknowledgements

I cannot adequately discharge my debt to Romesh Aeri whose kindness in sharing his vast treasure of unpublished recordings has enriched this series immeasurably.  My good friend, Sir Vish Krishnan, compiled much of the ‘light’ material.  Ajay Nerurkar and Ashok Ambardar have always been at hand, ready to help.

The driving force behind this enterprise is Anita Thakur of SAWF without whom none of this would have come to pass.

Part 1 | Part 2

by Rajan P. Parrikar
First published on SAWF on January 14, 2002

Part 1 | Part 2

Rajan P. Parrikar
Photo: Sanjeev Trivedi

Namashkar.

In this conspectus we look at one of the foundational melodic blocks of the Hindustani edifice – Raganga Raga Kalyan.  It is denominated variously as Yaman, Iman, Eman and Aiman. Although the raga is as old as the hills, its historical antecedents are not easy to pin down.  The fog of uncertainty concerning its origins has engendered many mythologies, such as the ipse dixit that awards credit for its conception to Amir Khusro.  In recent times several writers have reflected an awful lot of moonshine off Mr. Khusro; a recent ‘study’ at a ‘leading’ American university revealed that he was the first man in the world to perform surgery on the testicles of the axolotl. We, on the other hand, will train our scalpel on the Kalyan raganga, its contemporary musical structure and performance practice.

Raganga Kalyan and Raga Kalyan

Raga Kalyan – we shall use the name interchangeably with Yaman – shares its scale with Kalyani, the 65th melakarta raga of Carnatic music.  The reader is referred to the companion feature Kalyani by Dr. V.N. Muthukumar and Dr. M.V. Ramana for a considered Carnatic perspective.  In the Hindustani system, Kalyan can mean a that, raganga, or raga.

Throughout this discussion, M = shuddha madhyam and m = teevra madhyam.

What do we mean by the term raganga?  The word is a sandhi of raga+anga and signifies a collection of tonal phrases and the supporting uccharana that have been abstracted from a ‘parent’ raga.  The parent is usually drawn from the pool of the big, basic ragas.  The raganga has a life of its own and is seen in full flower under the auspices of its parent raga.  It contributes seed material to the derivates (prakars) of the parent raga.  The raganga is akin to a DNA blueprint containing the key ‘instructions’ for the melodic conduct & gestures of the entire class of ragas under its jurisdiction.  Alternatively, it may also be viewed as a summary, a generalization of melodic ‘observations,’ analogous to a generalized theory or a law in science, which may then be brought to bear in specific situations.  The “raganga raga” is, as should be apparent by now, the supplier parent.  It furnishes the building blocks for the raganga and hence best embodies it.  For instance, Raga Bhairav is the raganga raga of the Bhairav anga.

Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande

The Kalyan that is among the ten recognized in the taxonomic scheme proposed by the great musician, vaggeyakara, shastrakara and scholar, Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande. It takes its basis the following swara set: S R G m P D N.  Raga Kalyan employs all of these seven swaras which makes it a sampoorna jati raga.  The raganga-vachaka swaras (the definitive tonal clusters) are:

1) S, N’ D’ N’ R G R S
In this poorvanga cluster the mere hint of N’ R G R S at once suggests the onset of Kalyan.  Notice the characteristic langhan (skipped) shadaj in the arohi movement.

2) G m P->(mG)R, S
A seminal tonal sentence; the uccharana (intonation) of the P–>R coupling, mediated by a grace of the teevra madhyam and gandhar, represents a key raganga gesture.  The P–>R coupling is also observed in Ragas Gaud Sarang and Chhaya but in each of these instances it is kept distinct by their respective uccharana.  Recall the dictum: uccharana bheda se raga bheda.  It is this manner of subtlety and sophistication of the idea of swara that elevates Indian music to a level unmatched and unattained by any other civilization.

Let us digest this assertion with a brilliant demonstration of the varied modes of P–>R coupling by Pandit Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang.”

3) m D N D P
This tonal strip furnishes a bridge to poorvanga and uttaranga tonal traffic.

4) S” N D N D P
This avarohatmaka phrase in the uttaranga completes the raganga abstract.

Raganga Kalyan is verily the mother lode of several ‘big’ ragas, its fecund terrain allowing for melodies to flow naturally from variations imposed on its kernel.  A sufficiently insightful musician should to be able to ‘see’ the resulting linkages.   For instance, the chalan of Ragas Bhoop and Shuddha Kalyan may be inferred from the raganga.  It is important to note that the historical development may not have followed this sequence and that a raga may predate its raganga.  Nevertheless the raganga viewpoint provides a powerful unifying framework attending the thought processes that have counseled the Indian musical mind through the ages.

Ramashreya Jha "Ramrang" at
the author's home in Goa

Some additional details of the flagship of the Kalyan raganga – Raga Yaman - bear scrutiny.  The existence of several nyasa sthanas – S, R, G, P, N – is indicative of its expansive melodic space.  The teevra madhyam is often elongated during the elaboration portion of the performance.  The odd one out is dhaivat – we make short shrift of it since a nyasa there is damaging to the raga dharma.  Some of the launch phrases for the antara are now outlined:

G m D S”
m D N S”
P P S”
P (m)G P P N D S”

The skipping of shadaj and pancham in arohi movements – N’ R G and m D N – lends Yaman a distinct locus.  Some musicians (typically non-Indians) tend to view these two tonal molecules as symmetric on account of their prima facie intervallic likeness.  Viewing the raga structure in terms of intervals is a seriously flawed enterprise and completely misses its essence.  No Indian musician worth his salt thinks in terms of intervals, not as a matter of instinct anyway.  Apropos of the above two apparently symmetrical tonal molecules, the vital point is that R is a nyasa bahutva swara in both the arohi and avarohi directions whereas D enjoys no such treatment.

The langhan alpatva of S and P is sometimes observed in avarohi movements as well. To wit, R” N D m G R.  Although the skipping of S and P is part of Yaman’s normative behavior, the inclusion of arohi S and P is not verboten.  A deliberate construct such as S R G m or m P D N is observed in bandishes and tans (as some of the clips will later attest).  Other features seen in performance – leaps spanning G-N and N-G, m-N and N-m.

Putting back together the pieces, a sample chalan is formulated:

S, (N’)D’ N’ R G(nyasa), R S, G m D N(nyasa),
S” N D N D P(nyasa), m (G)R G(nyasa), G m P->(mG)R(nyasa), G R S

This completes the introduction to the lakshanas of Raga Yaman.  It is not possible to chronicle every auxiliary gesture or construct deployed.  A careful study of the clips is urged so that the key ideas are settled and assimilated.  Kalyan is so pervasive that there is little divergence in its behavior across gharana boundaries.  The differences, when they are observed, are more of proportion of particular melodic gestures rather than of design.

Ramashreya Jha "Ramrang"
© Rajan P. Parrikar

The inclusion of shuddha madhyam M in Raga Yaman gives rise to the unfortunately-named Raga Yaman Kalyan (sometimes also called Jaimini Kalyan).  This nomenclature is widespread but not universally accepted and one comes across the occasional musician partaking in the shuddha madhyam under the ‘Yaman’ brand itself.

The nature of M in Yaman is not unlike that of a vivadi swara; soft and judicious use occasions moments of great delight.  Latitude is allowed in the frequency of occurrence and swara-lagav for these are matters of stylistic taste.  Except for the shuddha madhyam-laden tonal construct in the poorvanga the rest of the structural contours of Yaman Kalyan are congruent with Yaman.  The distinguishing phrase assumes the following form (or a minor variation of it):

N’ R G, m G R G, M G R S

The shuddha madhyam does not have an independent existence.  It is either sandwiched between the gandhars – G, M G – or receives a kan of gandhar – (G)M G R S.  In particular, a direct approach from the pancham can be ungainly (P M G – not!). Occasionally, and especially in the lighter genres, the chromatic slide m M is heard.

These ideas are encapsulated superbly by Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang” in this discussion pinched off the telephone line.  Such is Jha-sahab’s sweep and precision that once he is done speaking on a raga virtually nothing more needs to be said on the subject.

As the preeminent night-time raga, Yaman embodies considerable gravitas.  No other raga has cut so wide a swathe across all genres of music and no other raga has purchased so viselike a hold on the Indian’s thoughts and feelings.  Every child embarking on a preliminary study of classical music brings with her a working familiarity of Kalyan obtained through folk and other sources. Yaman has come to be acknowledged as the touchstone among classical musicians in calibrating a peer’s quality and depth, its mastery deemed a sine qua non for any serious student.  This magnitude and extent of Yaman’s reach impel us to offer here a substantial listening experience both in the realm of the ‘light’ and the classical.

In the posse of clips that follows, the Yaman and Yaman Kalyan items are commingled.

Yaman – The ‘Lighter’ Side

That Yaman has seduced every creative mind of the post-recording era generation is evident from the enormous volume of documented work.  Here we must content ourselves with only a modest slice of that output.  Not every ‘light’ composition will align with Yaman according to Hoyle, but some important, and sometimes surprising, gesture will be manifested in each of the adduced clips.  This session should serve as a master class in the nexus between classical and ‘light’ music.

We open with an invocation to Ganesha, an arati in Marathi, written by the 17th century saint Swami Samarth Ramdas. Hridaynath Mangeshkar‘s tune and Lata‘s voice are joined in this hymn dearly loved in Goa and Maharashtra: sukha karta dukha harta.

Lata Mangeshkar

Lata again beseeches Ganapati: tujha magato mi aata.

Another prarthana to Ganesha.  Vasantrao Deshpande is joined by Anuradha Paudwal: prathama tula vandito.

M.S. Subbulakshmi‘s ethereal voice infuses the chant, vande padmakaram.

Asha Bhonsle‘s in the Marathi movie MAHANANDA (1985).  Composer Hridaynath Mangeshkar: maage ubha Mangesh.

Kalyan is Lata and Lata is Kalyan.  Not even the classical masters can hope to hold a candle to the magic she conjures in this terrain.

These verses from the Bhagavad Geeta are set to music by Hridaynath.

Another bhakti rasa assay, this time from the Gurbani.  The transcendent words of the 3rd Guru, Amardas, are set to music by the Singh brothers and rendered by Lata: mila mere preetama jiyo.

Tulsidas‘s feelings for Shri Rama are famously expressed in his Shri Ramanchandra krupalu bhajamana.

Meerabai‘s bhajan, Hridaynath‘s tune: kenu sanga.

From BHABHI KI CHOODIYAAN (1961), a luscious Yaman-based beauty set to music by Sudhir Phadke: lau lagati.

The next two corkers were conceived in the fertile mind of Madan Mohan.  From BAHAANA (1960), ja re badara bairi ja.

Film: ANPADH (1962), jiya le gayo.

Roshan

Ghalib‘s exceptional ability with verse more than meets its match in Lata in this memorable composition set to music by Faiyaaz Shauqat: har eka baat pe.

Vasant Desai finds an ally in Lata‘s gentle treatment of swara.  From ARDHAANGINI (1959), bade bhole ho.

Film: SHOKHIYAAN (1951), Music: Jamal Sen: supna bana sajana aaye.

Film: SUNHERE QADAM (1966), Music: Bulo C. Rani: maangne se.

Film: PAKEEZAH (1971), Music: Ghulam Mohammad: mausam hai.

Film: SATI SAVITRI (1964), Music: Laxmikant-Pyarelal: jeevana dor.

Ragas Yaman, Bhairavi and Pahadi have been mined extensively by the Hindi film composers. Roshan and Madan Mohan, in particular, had a very special relationship with Yaman.  In their shared penchant for conceiving melodies that blended intimately with the lyric, in their drawing on India’s classical music and traditional bandishes, and in their attention to the design of the interludes, they seemed to be cut from the same cloth.  Both remained in a state of creative ferment throughout their relatively short lives.  Roshan‘s genius came to full flower in Yaman as witness the extraordinary compositions that follow.

Film: RAGRANG (1952), a take on the very popular classical bandish, eri aali piya bina. The words of the mukhda are attributed to Meerabai. Lata delivers admirably.

Govindrao Tembe

A haunting composition from MAMTA (1966), distinguished by Lata‘s intensity of feeling.  Co-singer: Hemant Kumar.

In this immortal composition, with its celebrated sarod and flute interludes, Roshan draws inspiration from an old Yaman Kalyan composition, manaa tu kahe na dheera dharata aba, words of which are attributed to Tulsidas.  Lyricist Sahir Ludhianvi‘s knock-off reflects Tulsi’s sentiment in the movie CHITRALEKHA (1964).  Mohammad Rafi: mana re tu kahe na dheera dhare.

Roshan and Sahir combine again in the following three classics.

Mohammad Rafi in BARSAT KI RAAT (1960): zindagi bhar nahin.

Asha Bhonsle‘s tour de force in the qawwali from DIL HI TO HAI (1963): nigahen milane ko ji chahata hai.

Film: BABAR (1960), Voice: Sudha Malhotra: salam-e-hasrat.

We change tracks now.

Bhimsen Joshi is joined by Vasantrao Deshpande in this abhanga set to music by Ram Kadam: tala bole.

Bhimsen Joshi in yet another bout of bhakti, in this magnificent creation of the bel esprit Govindrao Tembe.  Look out for the first occurrence of atmaranga rangale for the piercing streak in Bhimsen’s voice: mana ho Ramarangi rangale.

Two of Goa’s finest creative minds collaborate in the next enterprise: the poet laureate B.B. Borkar and the musician-composer par excellence Jitendra Abhisheki: kashi tuzha.

Bhimsen Joshi

Bhaskarbuwa Bakhale‘s enduring tune by Kumar Gandharva in a natyageeta from SWAYAMVAR: natha ha mazha.

This natyageeta from SAUBHADRA brings sweet childhood memories as I recall my father’s superb renditions in his role as Narada.  Sharad Zambekar: Radhadhara madhu milinda.

Asha’s recital of Sant Dnyaneshwar‘s poetry, set to music by Hridaynath, is glorious enough to give one pause before conceding the Yaman dominion to Lata: kanada-o-Vitthalu.

K.L. Saigal‘s hit from ZINDAGI (1940), Music: Pankaj Mullick: main kya janu.

K.L. Saigal in TANSEN (1943), Music: Khemchand Prakash: diya jala’o.

The transparent sincerity in Mukesh‘s voice has deposited quite a few Yaman-based compositions permanently into the public memory bank.  This bhajan composed by Lacchiram, for instance: chhoda jhamela jhoothe jaga ka.

Madan Mohan‘s gem from SANJOG (1961): bhooli hui yadon.

Who hasn’t heard of this jeremiad from PARVARISH (1958), tuned by Dattaram? aansoo bhari hain yeh jeevan ki rahein.

Rafi, Lata, and Mukesh

Every college Romeo has at some stage allowed himself the fantasy of wooing a babe with this well-worn number from SARASWATICHANDRA (1968), under Kalyanji-Anandji‘s baton: chandan sa badan.

Mukesh finds some more romance in this Sardar Malik classic from SARANGA (1960): saranga teri yaad mein.

We now turn to the suzerain from Khandwa, Pandit Kishore Kumar.

Panditji’s first offering is a canonical Khandwa cheez from ANURODH (1977) composed by Laxmikant- Pyarelal: aapke anurodh pe.

Panditji deals dhrupad-anga treatment to this sadra in Jhaptala, composed by the Punjabi ruffian O.P. Nayyar in EK BAAR MUSKURA DO (1972): savere ka sooraj.

Panditji coos wistfully for composer Hemant Kumar in KHAMOSHI (1969): woh sham kuch ajeeba thhi.

Panditji sings Anu Malik‘s tune in AAPAS KI BAAT (1982): tera chehra mujhe gulab lage.

The final gem from the Khandwa trove from CHALA MURARI HERO BANNE (1977) nicely illuminates the raganga lakshanas: na jaane din kaise.

Kishore Kumar and Satyajit Ray

Ghalib‘s classic ghazal is tuned by Ghulam Mohammad for Suraiyya in MIRZA GHALIB (1954): nuktacheen ha gham-e-dil.

Another ghazal of Ahmad Faraz delivered by the gifted Mehdi Hasan: ranjish hi sahi.

The Pakistani songstress Farida Khanoum‘s stentorian voice takes charge: woh mujhse.

Only rarely did Laxmikant-Pyarelal surpass themselves, one such instance being the movie PARASMANI (1963): woh jaba yaad aaye.

Ravindra Jain‘s handsome tune in CHITCHOR (1976) was a rage following its release. K.J. Yesudas: jaba deep jale.

Rafi and Kishore Kumar

Feminine beauty and form are extolled in this luscious composition of Shambhu Sen rendered by Mohammad Rafi in MRIG TRISHNA: nava kalpana nava roopa se.

We wind down this Ya’mania’ with a couple of Shankar-Jaikishan compositions.  Their folksy number in TEESRI KASAM (1966) was in its day the national chant.  A rollicking Asha rises to the occasion: paan khaye saiyyan.

In LAL PATTHAR (1971) we watch in despair as Manna Dey comes a cropper vis-a-vis Asha.  It hurts to see an adult man whipped so badly by a girl but the pain is instantly diminished by the realization that the male in question is a Bong.  Those Manna Dey tans are indistinguishable from the bawling of a freshly baked baby as it tries to cope with life outside the amnion: re mana sur mein ga.

The Yaman story continues in Part 2.

Part 1 | Part 2

by Rajan P. Parrikar
First published on SAWF on March 4, 2002

Part 1 | Part 2

Rajan P. Parrikar
Photo: Sanjeev Trivedi

Namashkar.

We undertook a survey of Marwa and its purlieu in the monograph preceding this feature. Marwa and its neighbouring tract of Poorvi are major contributors of vespertine ragas to the Hindustani stream.  The principal ragas Marwa & Poorvi together with their derivates form a complex skein of interconnected melodic threads in the Hindustani ether.  I invite you to join us on this jaunt of the Poorvi Province.

Throughout the promenade, M = shuddha madhyam and m = teevra madhyam.

The Poorvi-Pooriya Dhanashree-Paraj-Basant Axis

Poorvi can represent all three entities: raganga, raga and that.  The Poorvi that is coincident with the 51st Carnatic melakarta Kamavardhini with the swara set: S r G m P d N.  It differs from the Marwa that by rendering its dhaivat komal.  This seemingly minor alteration generates a profoundly different governing dynamic.  Recall that the chief ragas of the Marwa group – Marwa, Pooriya and Sohani – all sidestep the pancham swara.  But with komal dhaivat present in Poorvi, the aesthetic imperative renders pancham indispensible.  And so it is that almost all major ragas aligned with this that contain that swara.  The pancham is often langhan alpatva (skipped) momentarily in key sangatis but it is never wholly absent (there are, as always, notable exceptions).

The ragas of the Poorvi that fall broadly under two sub-classes subject to their anga heritage, namely the Shree-anga ragas and the Poorvi-anga ragas.  The weighty raganga Raga Shree has been dealt with earlier.  In the ensuing discussion, we write out the lakshanas of the four chief ragas of the Poorvi ensemble and flesh out their gestural minutiae.

The lakshanas of Raga Poorvi are considered first.

S, N’ S r G and N’ r G
The shadaj may appear in the skipped mode.  The development gravitates towards gandhar in either direction, as we shall shortly see.

G r G m P, P m G, r S N’ S r G
With the right uccharana these poorvanga clusters are sufficient to establish Poorvi.

N’ S r G, r M G, Gm P, d, P m G M (r)G, r (G)M G
This tonal phrase packs a lot of ‘Poorvinformation.’  The peculiar behavior of shuddha madhyam comes into play here and dispels any incipient ideas of Pooriya Dhanashree.  Take stock of the two different modes of approach to shuddha madhyam (it will be seen later how uccharana and chala bheda keep Poorvi distinct from Paraj on this score).  The gandhar comes in for special treatment.  Note, for instance, the kan of r in the M-laden cluster.

m d S” and m d N, N S”
These tonal phrases are employed in the uttaranga launch.  Although pancham is an important nyasa swara it may be rendered langhan alpatva in either direction.

S”, N S”, r” N d, P
A crucial tonal sentence found in several ragas of the Poorvi that, notably Pooriya Dhanashree and Shree. The uccharana of r” N d P for the Shree-anga ragas assumes a distinct meend.

P, m P d m G r S r G
The bridge that ties together poorvanga and uttaranga tonal traffic.

Putting it all together we formulate a chalan:

S, N S r G, m G r G r (G)M G, r G m P, d m P m G M (r)G;
m d N S”, S”, N r” N d, P, d m G M (r)G, r S N’ S r G

Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande

We now move to Raga Pooriya Dhanashree which is all the go these days and has elbowed Poorvi out from the concert stage.  This raga retains most of the lakshanas of Poorvi sans the shuddha madhyam.  However, while Poorvi is gandhar-based, the breath of Pooriya Dhanashree’s life is pancham.  Accordingly, most of the tonal activity is centred around that swara. A couple of other additional lakshanas merit mention since they encase the raga signature, to wit:

P, m G m r G, P
The reiteration of G m r G is a sine qua non and the concluding hook-up with P from G as shown is recommended to establish the dominance of P.  The arohi prayogas in Pooriya Dhanashree are almost always via N’ r G m P whereas in Poorvi N’ S r G is also admitted.

Obiter dictum: On the subject of of nomenclature, Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande conjectures that when the erstwhile Kafi-that Raga Shree branched into a Poorvi-that Shree, a similar transformation in its janya Raga Dhanyasi may have given rise to a counterpart Dhanashree, which, on account of its Poorvi-that affiliation, took on the moniker “Poorvi Dhanashree,” finally settling into “Pooriya Dhanashree.”

Next in line, Raga Paraj.

This is an uttaranga-pradhana raga with tonal activity clustered around tar saptaka shadaj.  In the poorvanga there are two madhyams, like Poorvi; the distinction lies in uccharana and chalan bheda.  The uttaranga has a superficial resemblance to Basant that may confuse the casual ear.  The melodic trajectory in Paraj hews to the Kalingada line while retaining its Poorvi-that swaras. Sometimes the two are fused together and performed as “Paraj-Kalingada.”  Let us develop the raga heuristically:

P, Pd Pd mP, (m)G M G, m G r S
The intonation of the M-laden phrase is direct without intermediary kans (cf. Poorvi).  The Kalingada chalan can be retrieved from the above by replacing m with M.  Sometimes an explicit G M P M G is also taken.

md md N, N S” N d S” N
Again, a likeness of Kalingada surfaces (there we have only shuddha madhyam and Pd replacing md).  The elongation of N in S” N d S” N is a Paraj signpost.

S” N d P, G m d S” N, N S”r” S”r” N S” N d S” N
The dhaivat is rendered durbal throughout.

Paraj is a chanchal prakriti raga.  Additionally, the recommended arohi locus forgoes rishab, as in N’ S G m d N.

We come to the final constituent of the Poorvi quartet – Raga Basant.

Like Paraj, Basant is an uttaranga-pradhana raga.  The difference lies in its chalan and uccharana, and its drawing on portions of the Shree-anga.  There are also special sangatis that are uniquely Basant.  The following tonal sequence captures its essence:

m d r”, S”, r” N d P, [P] mG m->G, m G r S
The first half of this chalan derives its uccharana from Shree.  It is meend-laden and gambheer in prakriti.  Note the jump from d to the tar saptak r”.  The second half begins with the square-bracketed pancham which denotes a shaken (and stirred) swara.  The molecule [P] mG m, G where the first m is quick and the second elongated is sui generis to Basant.

d N r” N d P, G m d N m, G, m d G m G, m G r S
The r” N d P is Shree-inspired.  Note, however, that the critical lakshanas of Shree – the strong rishab and the r-P coupling – are absent in Basant.  The rishab, in fact, is skipped in arohi sancharis.  The G m d N m and m d G m G are redolent of Pooriya gestures albeit with komal dhaivat.

m G r S, S M, mMG, N d P
The shuddha madhyam is not required in Basant but is often included as an additional artifact for raga bheda.  It appears in a small Lalitanga cluster in the manner indicated above.

That completes our prolegomenon of Poorvi based melodies.  These ragas are so pregnant with nuance that they can scarcely be described adequately through the written word.  Nevertheless, it is hoped that some flavour of the melodic depth, ingenuity and the power of raga has been conveyed.  In practice the lakshanas of ragas are burnt into a musician’s mind through taleem and, in the case of the ‘higher’ musician, through ceaseless reflection (manan-chintan).

In the opening clip, Pandit Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang” discursively ranges over the Poorvi terrain for 18 masterful minutes.  This is by a long chalk the finest exposition on the topic there is.  He addresses both shastra and its praxis, adducing traditional compositions to fortify the development.  At one particularly poignant moment around 9:30, he briefly recites a lakshangeet of Raga Basant composed by Pandit Bhatkhande and extols the Chaturpandit’s drishti.

Poorvi-based Ragas

by

Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang”

Ramashreya Jha "Ramrang"
(© Rajan P. Parrikar)

The audio selections to follow are the pick of the basket, many of them unpublished.  It is left to the reader to discern the fidelity to or the extent of departure from generally accepted lakshanas.

Raga Poorvi

‘Light’ items adhering strictly to Poorvi are not common.  From MEERA (1979), Ravi Shankar‘s music and Vani Jairam‘s voice: karuna suno Shyam mori.

A traditional vilambit khayal by Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang”: tonama he ma’i.

This druta jod-bandish is Jha-sahab‘s own: kavana mantra tantra.

Faiyyaz Khan

Aftab-e-Mousiqui Faiyyaz Khan‘s alap makes a masterful statement.

Faiyyaz Khan‘s 78 rpm rendition: Mathura na ja re.

The Gwalior platoon is in full strength.

Sharatchandra Arolkar gives us the traditional piyarva more in Tilwada tala.  Notice the exquisite meend from m to M at around 1:49.

Yashwantbuwa Joshi: piharva ki base tu mohe.

Ghulam Hasan Shaggan‘s rendition contains an explicit chromatic use of the two madhyams: sukha sampata.

A traditional bandish in vilambit Jhoomra by Shaila Datar: Dilliya nagarwa.

Mogubai Kurdikar dwells on a Sadarang cheez: aavana kahi.

Thirakhwa and Azmat Hussain Khan (r)

The same bandish is developed by Azmat Hussain Khan who had his feet in both the Atrauli and Agra schools.

Another Atrauli-Jaipur confrere, Padmavati Shaligram, plies a well-known traditional composition: kagava bole.

Radhika Mohan Moitra is considered one of the most influential musicians to come out of Bengal. He developed a style of sarod that is complementary to that of the Maihar turkey Allauddin Khan. We join him at the beginning of his jhala.

Poorvi is sometimes rendered with a shuddha dhaivat particularly in Bengal as witness this Tagore composition by Suchitra Mitra.

This concludes our Poorvi excursion.

It is a pity that such a profoundly beautiful melody has been cast off by most performers of the day.  En passant, Bhatkhande observes that some tantrakars, especially from Rampur, regard the dhaivat in Poorvi as ‘chadhi‘ (raised).  This is, of course, a matter of individual or stylistic choice.

M.S. Subbulakshmi, Alladiya Khan

Raga Pooriya Dhanashree

There is no better vehicle available to the bathos-stricken than Raga Pooriya Dhanashree.  The raga finds employment in all genres.

Jitendra Abhisheki recites from the Bhagavad Geeta.

M.S. Subbulakshmi‘s Dashavatara Stotram is set to music by K. Venkataraman.

Koyaliya uda ja, sings the perennially lorn Mukesh.

Amir Khan‘s rendition in BAIJU BAWRA (1952).  All composer Naushad probably did was arrange for the ustad’s breakfast: tori jai jai.

(L-R): Lata, Amir Khan, Vasant Desai

Asha Bhonsle‘s jeevalaga is held up by Marathi dingbats as the biggest pimple on the musical face of Maharashtra.  The composition by Hridaynath is C-grade but that is sufficient to send the ghats and their lapdogs, the Goans, into raptures.  The Shree-anga comes on so strong that I have reluctantly included the song here in this section. There’s a soupçon of Gouri, too.

Asha‘s next effort is a knock-off by composer Roshan on a famous cheez (readers will recall Lakshmi Shankar’s recording).  From SOORAT AUR SEERAT (1962): prema lagana.

Two non-film tunes by Khaiyyam in Mohammad Rafi‘s voice:

dardminnat.

muddat hu’i hai.

Gangubai Hangal

From SAMPOORNA RAMAYANA (1961), Lata sways gently to Vasant Desai‘s baton: ruka ja’o.

We repair to the classical lounge.

The lakshanas emerge beautifully in Gangubai Hangal: araja suno.

The same bandish is handled by Gangubai’s guru, Sawai Gandharva.  The discriminating listener will at once see how these voices carry in them the imprimatur of anubhava.

Kumar Gandharva sings his own compositon, bala gayee jyot.

Azmat Hussain Khan.

Sawai Gandharva

Ravi Shankar.

From the unpublished files of Bade Ghulam Ali Khan.

This section concludes with Kesarbai Kerkar.  The label on HMV mistakenly has it as Pooriya Dhanashree.  The key Pooriya Dhanashree lakshanas are nowhere to be seen.  And notice the two dhaivats.  This is a type of Gouri.  See On Raga Lalit-Gouri for a rendition of the same bandish by Abdul Karim Khan in the Marwa-that Gouri.  Be that as it may, a glorious display: ati prachandana.

Raga Paraj

Vasantrao Deshpande sets the Ganges on fire with this delightful live performance.  The vilambit is the traditional laal aaye ho followed by pavana chalata.  Zakir Hussain of San Anselmo is on the tabla.

Vasantrao’s druta cheez, pavana chalata, was composed by “Sanadpiya,” the colophon of Tabaqqul Hussain Khan of Bareilly who was employed at the Rampur court.  Pandit Bhatkhande collected and documented several compositions from him.  Thakur Jaideva Singh writes in his book, Indian Music: “…[Sanadpiya's] thumaris were based mostly on instrumental pieces (gatas) which he heard from the instrumentalists of Ramapura. So they strike the listener like instrumental pieces rendered in bolas (wordings). Such thumaris in madhya laya (medium tempo) are known as Bandhana or Bandisa-ki- thumari or Bola-banta-ki-thumari. Their beauty lies mostly in their dance-like rhythmic effect…”

Paraj’s uttaranga-pradhana mien is underscored in the Atrauli-Jaipur interpretation which dispenses altogether with the shuddha madhyam.

Mallikarjun Mansur: akhiyan mori laga rahi.

The same composition in Kesarbai‘s imperious gayaki.

Mushtaq Hussain Khan

Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, too, has no use for shuddha madhyam but he comes close to treading on Basant’s toes: lataka chalata.

The Rampur-Sahaswan view by its distinguished exponent Mushtaq Hussain Khan.

Agrawale Vilayat Hussain Khan sings the cheez we heard earlier from Vasantrao - pavana chalata.  It is curious that Vilayat Hussain’s antara attributes it to one “Alampiya” whereas Bhatkhande has credited it to “Sanadpiya.”

There is no doubt whatsoever of the authorship of the next bandish.  Faiyyaz Khan treats the celebrated composition of “Saraspiya” (Kale Khan of Mathura): Manmohan Brij ko rasiya.

Ravi Shankar

We wrap up with Ravi Shankar.

Raga Basant

The familiar song by Bhimsen Joshi from BASANT BAHAR (1956) composed by Shankar-Jaikishan: ketaki gulaba.

The tans of Dinanath Mangeshkar were the musical equivalent of a Disneyland joyride: precipitous and thrilling.  Here he is with a composition of Sadarang: aba rtu.

Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang” in an enchanting mehfil.

Dinanath Mangeshkar

This unpublished edition of Basavraj Rajguru finds him in fine feather.  The traditional khayal composition of “Manrang,” nabi ke darbar, is followed by the well-worn phagava braja dekhana ko.

A traditional composition, panaghatava thado ma’i, by Krishnarao Shankar Pandit.

A rare recorded instance of Abdul Karim Khan dealing a bada khayal.

The motivated reader may at this point reflect on the points of distinction between Paraj and Basant, armed that he is now with actual renditions.

Pannalal Ghosh was indisputably the greatest flautist of our times.

We bring the curtain down on this segment with Bade Ghulam Ali Khan who blends Hindol and Basant in this mehfil.

In Part 2 we range over several derivative ragas of the Poorvi that.

Part 1 | Part 2

by Rajan P. Parrikar
First published on SAWF on March 4, 2002

Part 1 | Part 2

Knowledge of the lakshanas and gestural conduct of the basic ragas is key to understanding the more complex constructions.  For the latter are essentially a combination or a subset of the fundamental behaviors, sometimes with a special sangati or two thrown in.  From this point on we will tread on the juice and keep the commentary terse.

Raga Din-ki-Pooriya

This raga and Lalit are perhaps the only two major ragas of the Poorvi that to dispense with the pancham.  In Lalit the shuddha madhyam provides a peg to hang the melodic hat on whereas in Din-ki-Pooriya there is no such convenience.  The swara contour is congruent with Pooriya but with the dhaivat attenuated to the komal shade.  The effect is striking and casts a haunting shadow.

Jitendra Abhisheki

The first clip features an impromptu demonstration by Jitendra Abhisheki recorded at the Kala Academy in Goa.  He punctuates the proceedings with pertinent remarks in Konkani and Marathi, in turn expanding on the text of the bandish and the various devices employed in alapchari.  The audio quality is sub-optimal but it ought not to detract (unless you are a Dolby weenie).

Mr. Jasraj‘s pedestrian effort fails to realize the latent potential in this melody.

Raga Reva

The pentatonic Reva – S r G P d – is the evening’s ‘jawab‘ to Raga Bibhas of the Bhairav that.

Pandit Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang” explains the relevant bheda and sings a traditional sadra: guna ke grahak Akbar Shah.

Raga Bibhas (Poorvi that)

Recall the lakshanas of Bibhas of the Marwa that.  In this Poorvi-that variant the accent is on komal dhaivat and rishab.  The affiliation to Poorvi is asserted through clusters such as P m d, P.

This composition chosen by Roshanara Begum is identical to Kesarbai’s in the Marwa-that Bibhas: mora re.

Raga Poorba (Poorvi that)

This uncommon raga preferred by the Atrauli-Jaipur musicians is essentially Raga Poorvi adorned with bells and whistles.  A couple of artifacts are grafted on the Poorvi chassis, to wit:

S M, M G P and m, m P, P d, d N d P

The regulation Atrauli-Jaipur bandish, mana ghero, does the rounds.

Shruti Sadolikar.

Mallikarjun Mansur.

Gajananrao Joshi.

C.R. Vyas

This excerpt of C.R. Vyas is from a tête-à-tête with Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang” held in the mid 1990s in Bombay.  In the latter half of the clip, Vyas sings another composition credited to his guru Jagannathbuwa Purohit (‘Gunidas’).  The recording of the entire session is deposited in the Appendix at the end of this article.

Raga Triveni

With madhyam dropped the swara-set reduces to S r G P d N.  Triveni is known variously as Tirvan and Tirban.  It is a Shree-anga raga with attendant emphasis on rishab and special coupling of r and P.

The Shree-like character is evident in this traditional sadra by K.G. Ginde: Kalindi Saraswati.

The same composition is now ambushed by Banditji and his hordes.

Raga Tankeshree (ShreeTanki)

This Shree-anga raga is closely allied to Triveni.  Tankeshree is pancham-oriented and takes in the teevra madhyam in alpa pramana (small measure).

Omkarnath Thakur‘s classic: malana la’i.

Raga Malavi (Poorvi that)

No consensus prevails on the swaroopa of this raga.

Omkarnath Thakur and Kumar Gandharva

In K.G. Ginde‘s presentation, nishad is rendered alpa in arohatmaka and dhaivat in avarohatmaka movements.  Watch out for the G-P, P-G and N-P type of sangatis.  This is a composition of S.N. Ratanjankar: namo namo namo Narayana.

The version advanced by Nivruttibuwa Sarnaik takes Pooriya Dhanashree for its base. The shuddha madhyam is introduced strikingly in a special prayoga.

Raga Jaitashree

As the name suggests, the raga is an amalgam of Jait and Shree.  The Jait thread is made up of the clusters S G, G P and P-S”-P, and is knitted on the Shree fabric.

Kishori Amonkar illustrates.

Ratanjankar adopts a somewhat different posture in this composition of Bhatkhande (his mudra “Hararang” is stamped in the antara): mhane akeli dara gayo.

The Jait component is even more subtle in the rendition by Abdul Halim Jaffer Khan.  The gat is in madhya laya Ada Chautala.

Raga Dhavalshree

No consensus prevails on the raga swaroopa.

Kishori Amonkar‘s version extends Jaitashree by creatively introducing a shuddha dhaivat.  Be on the qui vive for the first instance of this D at 0:15: je more saiyyan re.

Mallikarjun Mansur‘s interpretation is another kettle of fish.  The S-G-P sangati, a Shree-like r N d P meend and chhayas of Pooriya Dhanashree are evident.

Raga Hamsanarayani

The raga drops the dhaivat.  The development is centred around pancham.  A sample chalan is suggested:

Bismillah Khan with his grandson

G m P, P G m G r S, S P, S S” r” S”, N P, m G, m G r S

Bismillah Khan.

Raga Baradi (Poorvi that)

We have encountered varieties of this raga – variously referred to as Barari, Varari and Varati – based in the Marwa that.  The Poorvi-that Baradi is aprachalita.

Mallikarjun Mansur‘s version runs a chalan bheda on Pooriya Dhanashree: kaise karun aa’oon re.

Raga Deepak (Poorvi that)

Much mythos is associated with this raga through its pairing with Tansen.  We have encountered the Khamaj-that Deepak earlier in In the Khamaj Orchard.

Mallikarjun Mansur

Bhatkhande writes: “…Most musicians will not sing this raga. Even if they venture to sing the purported lakshanas of this raga they will hesitate to associate it with the name ‘Deepak’ out of fear that they will not be believed…”  This aptly summarizes Deepak’s station, today all but dead.  It is, of course, very likely that many of its features have been absorbed and find expression in other ragas.

We have three clips of the Poorvi-that Deepak.  They could well have been branded with three different names.

Jha-sahab outlines the chalan and then an old sadra.

Bundu Khan deploys both madhyams in his dhrupad in Chautala.  There’s even a brief avirbhava of Bhairav.

Shujaat Khan‘s version shows influences of Shree.  There is a piquant use of the shuddha madhyam. His papa Vilayat perhaps got this “correct,” “authentic,” “true” and “original” Deepak thanks to his seven-generations pedigree that traces it temporal roots to well before the Big Bang.

This concludes our tour of the Poorvi Province.

Other ragas of this that such as Shree, Lalit and Gouri have been addressed in Raga Shree: Close Encounters and On Raga Lalita-Gouri.

Acknowledgements

Many thanks to Romesh Aeri, Ashok Ambardar, Ajay Nerurkar, Guri Singh and Sir Vish Krishnan. Chetan Vinchhi and Sanjay Havanur provided a couple of recordings for this feature. And as always, much credit and gratitude to the tireless Anita Thakur.

Appendix

This impromptu tête-à-tête between Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang” and C.R. Vyas took place in the mid-1990s at the house of Satyasheel Deshpande in Bombay.

Jha-sahab and C.R. Vyas formed a mutual admiration society.  Ramrang considered C.R. Vyas to be the “Khalifa of Mumbai.”  For his part, C.R. Vyas would think nothing of telephoning Jha-sahab in Allahabad to clarify a finer point or two of a bandish.  This is a marvelous document of a meeting of two gifted musical minds.

 

Ramashreya Jha at the author's home in Goa

 

C.R. Vyas had the utmost regard for Jha-sahab.  At one point in the clip, in an uncommon display of honesty for a Hindustani musician of any stature, Vyas confesses to Satyasheel Deshpande (in Marathi) that some aspects of his own training were a case of “the blind leading the blind.”  The allusion is to the attitudes of some old gurus who brooked no questions from disciples, treating the subject of music as revealed wisdom beyond the pale of analytical inquiry.

Part 1 | Part 2

by Rajan P. Parrikar
First published on SAWF on February 18, 2002

Part 1 | Part 2

Sankeerna and jod ragas usually have a limited compass.  Their lakshanas are inferred from a heritage composition.  The asthai-antara holds the key to these ragas (hence the phrase “asthai-antare ke raga“).  A quick sampler of prachalit and aprachalita ragas of the Marwa-that is presented on this page.  It is assumed that the reader has by now developed a fair degree of familiarity with the driving lakshanas.  The pace will be brisk and the commentary minimal.

Ragas with their Marwa that affiliation explicity cited have a counterpart in the Poorvi-that (sometimes merely a shared name with no structural commonality) and are addressed elsewhere.  When a raga contains both dhaivats, one has to draw on ad hoc considerations before assigning the that.  Bhatkhande often appealed to the raga’s internal structure in these instances.

(L-R): Prabhudev Sardar & Prasad Savkar give 'daad'
to Ramrang at the author's home in Goa

Raga Pooriya Kalyan

The main theme here is the mingling of the Kalyan-anga, typically in the uttaranga space, with elements of either Pooriya or Pooriya Dhanashree in the poorvanga.  The raga runs the full gamut of the Marwa that: S r G m P D N.

We have examined raganga Kalyan at length in another feature.  Pooriya Dhanashree is discussed in the companion feature dealing with Poorvi-that ragas.  Pooriya Kalyan is observed in several flavours, gotten by varying the proportion and balance of swaras, and through introduction of special sangatis.

Jitendra Abhisheki‘s composition in the Marathi drama, KATYAAR KALJAAT GHUSLI, is rendered by a fellow Goan, Prasad Savkar: Muralidhar Shyam.

Another Marathi song, tuned by Vasant Prabhu for Lata Mangeshkar: haravale te.

The opening moments of this vintage Bhimsen Joshi excerpt hew to the Kalyan line before elements of Pooriya Dhanashree kick in.

Amir Khan.

Special sangatis dot this version advertised as “Poorva Kalyan” by K.G. Ginde.  Take stock of m D m G and the elongation of D for an abhas of Marwa.  This is a composition of S.N. Ratanjankar: hovana lagi.

Laxmanprasad Jaipurwale

Laxmanprasad Jaipurwale‘s own composition: aali mora mana har leeno.

The cheej pijja lover, Mr. Alubhai Khan of San Rafael.

An unpublished recording of Bade Ghulam Ali Khan rounds off the Pooriya Kalyan montage.

En passant, Pannalal Ghosh has composed a new melody called Raga Deepawali that is a clever play on Pooriya Kalyan. He does a graha bheda (murchana) by which the shadaj of Pooriya Kalyan is translated to pancham; this gives him an opening for a nice Lalitanga effect.

Raga Shree Kalyan

This raga was conceieved by Kumar Gandharva.  It is scale-congruent with Pooriya Kalyan but the Kalyan-anga here cohabits with Shree-anga (see Raga Shree: Close Encounters).  The latter is expressed through appropriate uccharana and the S-P and P-r sangatis: dekho re rut.

Raga Maligoura

Ali Akbar Khan‘s version of this aprachalita raga employs only one dhaivat - shuddha dhaivat – and is scale-congruent with Pooriya Kalyan.  Personality-wise, however, it is a horse of a different colour.  The Kalyan-anga is de-emphasized and subtle sangatis are inserted (G-P; the meend-laden P-m-G, N-P etc).  The G-m-G, m-P-m, P-D-P combinations employed in Pooriya Kalyan are eschewed (cf. his Pooriya Kalyan clip above).

Both dhaivats grace this version advanced by S.N. Ratanjankar.  The komal dhaivat is seen in Shree-laced phrases such as S, r N’ d P.  The shuddha dhaivat is deployed in Pooriya-like gestures.  This performance of a traditional khayal (documented by Bhatkhande) begins with a brief introduction to the raga.

Both dhaivats in attendance here as well but a different flavour: Khadim Hussain Khan.

The odd one out (Why?  Figure it out yourself): Omkarnath Thakur.

And finally, a version by Kishori Amonkar.

S.N. Ratanjankar

Raga Sazgiri

Although there is scant evidence to support the case, folklore accuses Amir Khusro of fathering this raga.  Perhaps the name (not the raga as we know it) does go back to Khusro’s time.  Both dhaivats and both madhyams find employment here.  The tole of  komal dhaivat is limited to Poorvi phrases such as P, m d P and r” N d P.  The shuddha madhyam is manifested in a striking movement: G M, M N (D)m G.  Observe that the tail end of the preceding phrase derives from Pooriya.

Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang”: darbara ga’oon tore Khwaja Moiuddin Auliya.

K.G. Ginde‘s voice and S.N. Ratanjankar’s composition.

The ersatz two-bit Sazgiri peddled by Vilayat Khan (of the “Mommy-mommy-I-didn’t-get-the-Bharat-Ratna” fame) does not merit space here.

Raga Bhankari

A creation of Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang,” this tantalizing melody blends facets of Bhatiyar, Jait, Bibhas and Deshkar while retaining an aesthetic coherence in the end product.

Ramrang navigates the tight rope with ease: sanga na keejiye manuva.

Raga Malavi (Marwa that)

This uttaranga-pradhana raga draws on Deshkar (eg. P D P G, G P D, P D S” etc).  The teevra madhyam is introduced via m D S”.  A sample chalan is:

P D P G, P G r S, S G P, G P D, P, PDS”, S” r” S”, S” (D)m D S”

Mallikarjun Mansur: anga sugandha.

Raga Poorba (Marwa that)

The version of Poorba served by Mr. Jasraj uses both the madhyams and the shuddha dhaivat. Banditji‘s sargam reveals the melodic outline.

Ramamshreya Jha "Ramrang"
(© Rajan P. Parrikar)

Bhatkhande has described a different Poorba, also of the Marwa-that, that only takes the teevra madhyam.

Raga Vihang

This aprachalita item is a specialty of Atrauli-Jaipur.  The Kalyan anga is clearly expressed through tonal strips such as m D N D P.  The shuddha madhyam saunters in via G M G r G.

Mallikarjun Mansur.

Nivruttibuwa Sarnaik.

Raga Baradi (Marwa that)

This aprachalita raga goes by Barari, Varari and Varati and has accreted different facets (and sometimes names) in its journey across gharana boundaries.  Several melodic themes encountered earlier are easily discerned in the ragas under the Baradi umbrella.

Consider K.G. Ginde.  The pramukha swara sangatis here are:

S G P DG P; P D m G, m G r S; N r” N D N D P

The first cluster draws from Jait, the second from Bhankar, the third from Pooriya Kalyan.  The skill lies in bonding these swara molecules to synthesize a coherent swaroopa.  Ginde sings his guru’s (S.N. Ratanjankar) compositions.

Changing a syllable here and there, a swara here and there, and marketing it as a “rare raga” has been a longtime cottage industry in Hindustani music.  The underlying raga behaviour – if you have cultivated the acuity to recognize it – is of primary importance, not the label affixed.  Richard Feynman has expressed this idea succintly in another context: “…You can know the name of that bird in all the languages of the world, but when you are finished, you’ll know absolutely nothing whatsoever about that bird…”

The version of Anandrao Limaye (Limayebuwa) goes by the name “Virat” (probably an emendation of “Varati”).  This flavour is similar in spirit to Ginde’s although there are minor points of departure.  Limayebuwa’s consummate mastery of his material makes even the most vakra raga look like putty in his hands.  Notice the sparing, subtle komal dhaivat just after 0:09.

Mr. Jasraj‘s Baradi (prefixed with “Shuddha” to qualify the dhaivat) is a different kettle of fish. The stretched nishad (durbal in the Ginde and Limayebuwa versions) lends a different flavour. Banditji‘s explicit sargam gives the game away.

Nivruttibuwa Sarnaik offers yet another version (Note: I have also seen this filed under the label Phoolshree).

Ram Chatur Mallick

Raga Shuddha Basant

This older variety of Basant typically favoured by the dhrupadiyas employs shuddha dhaivat and drops pancham.  Recall that the Basant in vogue is komal dhaivat-based and falls to the Poorvi that.  The shuddha madhyam is introduced through a dash of Lalitanga.  The interested reader is urged to measure this raga against Raga Pancham.

Ram Chatur Mallick.

Several other important ragas of the Marwa that have been dealt with in the earlier features. For Ragas Bhatiyar, Bhankar, Pancham, Lalit and Gouri, see On Raga Bhatiyar and On Raga Lalita Gouri.

Acknowledgements

My deepest thanks to Romesh Aeri for his affection and enthusiasm; the rare gems from his music collection have lighted up every feature.  Additional help came from Ashok Ambardar, Ajay Nerurkar and Guri Singh; they share my passion for music though not necessarily my views.  Discussions with V.N. Muthukumar have been useful.  Sir Vish Krishnan has enhanced these musings by enabling me to bounce things off his keen intellect and outrageous power of recall, not to mention with his assistance in selection of ‘light’ material.  Anita Thakur is the prime mover behind SAWF and the instigator of this project.

Part 1 | Part 2

by Rajan P. Parrikar
First published on SAWF on February 18, 2002

Part 1 | Part 2

Rajan P. Parrikar
Photo: Sanjeev Trivedi

Namashkar.

The thought of Raga Marwa stirs memories of many youthful evenings spent walking on the Miramar beach in Panjim, bouncing Amir Khan’s stupendous opus in the corridors of my mind. Lost in the intoxicating reverie wrought by music and colourful sunsets, I occasionally allowed myself the fantasy of imagining what it might be like to feel and see raga from the Himalayan heights of an Amir Khan.  I wondered if that great man, too, had likened himself to “a boy playing on the sea-shore, diverting myself in now and then finding a smoother pebble or a prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of raga lay all undiscovered before me.”  After sundown I would walk home to a hearty meal and then hit the sack.  For those were the days when we took pride in leisure.  How times have changed.  Today people take pains to disclose just how “busy” they are, as if it is a badge of achievement.  You’d think they have been charged with re-designing God’s floor plan for the universe. [Update: I am delighted to hear that this "pompous" introduction has given some folks piles. As always, I aim to annoy and offend.]

In this installment devoted to the Marwa group, we will examine its familiar members and unveil some of the lesser known affiliates. A companion feature to follow soon will be devoted to the citizens of the Poorvi Province.

Throughout this discussion, M = shuddha madhyam and m = teevra madhyam.

The Marwa-Pooriya-Sohani axis

Marwa is among the ten thats enumerated by Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande and is characterized by the swara set S r G m P D N corresponding to the Carnatic melakarta Gamanasrama.  The flagship raga of this that – Raga Marwa - drops the pancham altogether.  The same is true for two other principals of this group – Pooriya and Sohani.  These three ragas maintain a collegial but distinct melodic dynamic.  It is therefore instructive to view them together under the same lens.  This is a marvelous example of the magic of raga music – the evolution of differences originating from the same scale-set through the agency of chalan bheda (differences in melodic formulation), uccharana bheda (differences in intonation of swara) and vadi bheda (differences in relative emphasis of swara).  Facility in this kind of sport demands cultivation of appropriate habits of mind and manana-chintan (reflection). But the game is well worth the candle for the ananda it brings.

The main idea in Raga Marwa is the overwhelming dominance of r and D.  This is an apavada since no consonance exists between r and D; it took some genius sense this germ of an idea and fructify.  The definitive tonal sentences are:

D’ N’ r G r, N’ D’, m’ D’ S N’ r, S
The points of note in this poorvanga construct are the nyasa on rishab and dhaivat, the langhan (skipping) of shadaj in both arohi and avarohi directions, and the alpatva (smallness/weakness) of N.

D, m G r G m D, D m G r
The madhya saptak movement.  Marwa typically employs ‘khada‘ swaras – i.e. the lagav is direct and unwavering, shorn of delicacies and meends (the situation is different in the scale-congruent Raga Pooriya).

D N r” N D, m D N D S”
The uttaranga marker where the nishad is often skipped en route to the shadaj (Pooriya shares this lakshana, but not Sohani).

That was Marwa in a nutshell.  It is an affective symbiotic relationship between r and D.  Both the swaras are full-blown nyasa locations, yet bound to one another by an invisible cord: the pull of one is strongly felt when you visit the other.

Ramashreya Jha "Ramrang"
(© Rajan P. Parrikar)

We now prise open Raga Pooriya, an old raga with a swara locus identical to Marwa.  Most generic accounts – childish, really, mostly by people who ought to have no business talking or writing on ragas – distinguish the two based on their vadi-samvadi pair: r-D in Marwa and G-N in Pooriya.  It takes much more than this simple swap to realize a raga.  Pooriya employs special sangatis to realize the G-N coupling.  The lakshanas are:

N’ r G, G r N’ D’ N’, N’ m’ D’ S
The gandhar is advanced, both r and D recede.

G m D N, N (N)m, G; m D-G m G
This tonal phrase represents Pooriya’s prana and packs several key lakshanas: the dominance of G, the N-m coupling, and the D-G sangati. There is a measure of delicacy to the intonation.

G m D N D S”, N r” N (N)m, G, m D-G m G, r S
Although N is strong in Pooriya, it is, like Marwa, often skipped en route to S”.  The swoop from N to m is delicious; sometimes it works in the obverse as well (N’-m).

Next in line, Raga Sohani.

The first-order difference here is that instead of the N’-r-G chalan employed in Marwa and Pooriya, the rishab is skipped and to yield a N’-S-G form.  And unlike the other two, Sohani’s strength is vested in D and G.  Then there are the special gestures.  Sohani is an uttaranga-pradhana raga, its essence apprehended in the following sentence:

G m D N S”, S”r” S”r” N S” N D, N D-G m G
The nishad is a required conduit to the tar saptaka S”.  As in Pooriya, the D-G sangati is also observed but the attack is markedly different.  In Sohani the D-G prayoga is initiated from N whereas in Pooriya it is typically lauched from m.  Attention to these minutiae is vital and cuts to the core of raga music.  Great musicians instinctively recognize such bheda-bhava even though they may not have the requisite expository skills or the vocabulary to verbalize them.

Everything I have written above is superfluous, for Jha-sahab has magnificently distilled the essence of these three ragas and packaged it into 6 masterful minutes.  We are privileged that someone of his background and calibre is still among the living, and fortunate that the technology now exists for bringing him to a worldwide audience.

Pandit Ramashreya Jha “Ramrang” on the Marwa-Pooriya-Sohani axis.

With that propaedeutic to build upon, it is time get our ears wet.

Lata Mangeshkar

Raga Marwa

Lata Mangeshkar‘s beauty from SAAZ AUR AAWAAZ (1966) composed by Naushad belongs to the ranks of the finest ‘light’ numbers based in this raga: payaliyan banwari baje.

This quasi-Marwa has been composed by K. Mahavir who comes from a long line of accomplished classical musicians.  His father, Mahadev Prasad Kathak, was associated with Swami Hari Vallabh (after whom the famous annual sammelan in Jullunder takes its name).  Lata Mangeshkar: sanjha bhayi ghara aaja.

Jha-sahab unveils his suite with a vilambit Roopak composition that at once reveals the cut of Marwa’s jib: joga le aaye tuma Udho.

Jha-sahab now explains the textual import, then sketches his elegantly designed cheez.

When Vasantrao Deshpande passed away, Bhimsen declared that Marwa had died in Maharashtra.  Vasantrao’s winsome phirat and spontaneous delivery make this a classic.

Bade Ghulam Ali Khan wields an old khayal (documented by Bhatkhande) that places the sam on the mandra teevra madhyam: nanadiya chavava.

“Aftab-e-Mousiqui” Faiyyaz Khan‘s certitude in intonation expresses well the khada swaras of Marwa as witness this unpublished excerpt.

Anant Manohar Joshi aka Antubuwa, a disciple of Balkrishnabuwa Ichalkaranjikar (the man responsible for bringing khayal to Maharashtra), trained several musicians, among them his son, Gajananrao Joshi.  This recording of archival value has an avartana or two of Antubuwa’s khayalnuma in Jhoomra tala followed by a traditional cheez attributed to ‘Rangile’, bolana bina kabahun (Note: Vasantrao sings this in druta Ektala, as documented by Bhatkhande).

The popular piya more anata des gai’lava is put through the paces by Atrauli-Jaipur’s Mallikarjun Mansur.

Kishori Amonkar.

Bhimsen Joshi blends a soupçon of Raga Shree (mP–>r) into Marwa to haunting effect.  There’s a cameo role for komal dhaivat (1:56 into the clip).

Ramkrishnabuwa Vaze

Jagannathbuwa Purohit “Gunidas” conceived this explosive cheez, delivered here by his pupil Jitendra Abhisheki: ho guniyana mela.

Abdul Karim Khan‘s tarana.

Ramkrishnabuwa Vaze‘s breezy manner is always a great pleasure.

What you just heard were very high quality renditions of Marwa.  Now please wipe your slate clean. Of Shakespeare, Ben Jonson remarked, “He was not of an age, but for all time.”  The same is true of Amir Khan‘s Marwa.  It is not merely a performance.  It is the ne plus ultra in meditation.  What Einstein’s General Theory is to scientific thought Amir Khan’s Marwa is to musical thought.  We must make do with but a snatch here.  The traditional piya more anata des gai’lava in vilambit Jhoomra, followed by guru bina gyana na pave.

Raga Pooriya

Also known as Raat-ki-Pooriya, Pooriya’s lakshanas emerge resplendent in Bhimsen Joshi (recall Jha-sahab’s discourse on the subject).  Right away in the opening movement we have the elongated N and the N-m sangati, eventually culminating on the sam via N’-r-N’-m’.  Both are traditional compositions: Sadarang’s vilambit pyare de gara lagi and the druta cheez, ghadiyan ginata jaat.

Amir Khan

Take stock of the D-G sangati embedded in GmD-Gm G within the first 30 seconds of this Amir Khan classic.  Bhatkhande has documented this khayal: yare maula yala yalala le.

We have come to expect coups de théâtre from Omkarnath Thakur and he doesn’t disappoint.  A traditional composition favoured by the Gwalior musicians, sughara bana.

D.V. Paluskar plies the selfsame sughara bana.

Digression: Bhatkhande’s documented notation for sughara bana shows the sam to be on rishab but the subsequent movement converges on mandra nishad.  Recall that Amir Khan’s druta cheez in Marwa places its sam on mandra nishad but the melodic arrow points to dhaivat.  Now, if ethnopimp A read Bhatkhande (remember that no ethnopimp has the ability and knowledge to understand much less critique Bhatkhande) he would conclude that the Chaturpandit didn’t know his Pooriya from Marwa and publish this ‘finding’ in an ethnoporn rag.  Then, ethnopimp B will refer to A’s ejaculate and in a display of tautological genius declare it to be “seminal.”  Both A and B will then be awarded tenure at their respective universities.

For the uninitiated, the ethnopimp calls himself “ethnomusicologist” and is found loitering in the music departments of universities in Western Europe, America and Canada.  The racist term “ethnomusicology” (when did you last hear the music of Beethoven studied under “ethnomusicology”?) refers to the field infested by these worthless parasites masquerading as academics.  There are PhD theses, careers and tenure to be had for the asking, for the benevolent Lord expressly created the “third-world” cultures to be a font of rich pastureland for the vultures inhabiting the humanities departments in the West.

Apropos of Indian music, the ethnopimp had once fancied himself as the intermediary between the ustad and the lay Indian masses, arrogating to himself the onerous task (the proverbial “white man’s burden”) of explaining to the Indians their own music.  Never mind that the titmouse wouldn’t recognize swara even if it bit off his (or her) buttcheeks.  Alas, things haven’t gone quite the way the ethnopimp had hoped.  The newer generation of Indians decided it wasn’t going to play possum while the ethnopimp peddled his balderdash.  Today, the ethnopimp lies in ruins, his family jewels shattered and his head combed at will by even Indian children.

En passant, as a pleasurable pastime, I propose that Indians fund a ‘research’ grant to study the ethnopimps and the twaddle they have excreted all these years.  A few ethnopimps could be rounded up to be our lab rats.  At the end of this study (which ought not to take long – the combined ‘knowledge’ of all ethnopimps put together can be had for a penny and you’ll get some change back) the poseurs can be officially certified for the sewer rats that they are.  End of digression.

Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande

Reverting to the topic at hand, Bhatkhande‘s discourse on Pooriya contains a rare and telling display of emotion.  Recall that his magnum opus Hindustani Sangeet Paddhati is in the form of a Socratic dialogue between pupil and master.  At one point, Panditji recounts (my translation cannot quite convey the same effect as that in Marathi): “…Many years ago I heard this raga from a very famous Musalman gayak.  Believe it or not, for a few moments I was lost to the world.  You will not be able to imagine the magnitude of the effect that his music wrought on my person.  Because you have not had that kind of anubhava yet and because you have yet to acquire the requisite depth in this field…”

Bhatkhande must be made compulsory reading for anyone setting out to write anything on Hindustani music.  His work is, to put it mildly, “a feast of reason and flow of soul.”  Finally, he was not a “musicologist” as is commonly cited by the uneducated.  Bhatkhande’s work encompassed Music.  He was a musician, a vaggeyakara, a shastrakara and a vidwan all rolled into one.  He was also a visionary (that much molested word of the dotcom era) with a deep social conscience.  ”Musicologist” is suggestive of a relatively low-level activity.  There is no need at all to seek recourse to inadequate foreign terminology, to describe a phenomenon the Western world is unfamiliar with, when several Indian terms serve the purpose admirably.

Vilayat Hussain Khan, accompanied by his son Younus Hussain Khan: pyara de gara lage.

A vigorous nom-tom inaugurates this rendition of “Aftab-e-Mausiqui” Faiyyaz Khan.  His colophon “Prempiya” is heard in the antara: main kara aayi piya sanga.

An unpublished cut of Mallikarjun Mansur completes our survey of Pooriya.

Raga Sohani

This sprightly raga is an instant pleaser much like that buxom leotard-wrapped babe at your local gym that you lust after while pretending to work out (by way of comparison, think of Marwa as your mother-in-law: solid, ponderous and unfunny).  The Carnatic equivalent of Sohani is Hamsananda.

The SUVARNA SUNDARI (1957) number set to music by Adi Narayana Rao is a perennial favourite.  Lata Mangeshkar and Mohammad Rafi: kuhu kuhu bole koyaliya.

Another old classic, from SANGEET SAMRAT TANSEN (1962), tuned by S.N. Tripathi for Mukesh: jhoomti chali hava.

Jitendra Abhisheki

From GRIHASTHI (1963), music by Ravi, Asha Bhonsle‘s voice: jeevana jyota jale.

Composer and singer of this beautiful Marathi bhajan: Jitendra Abhisheki.

That much of Sohani’s activity is uttaranga-based should be evident by now.

Moving along, Jha-sahab sketches a traditional cheez: bari bari ja’oon Murari.

The movie MUGHAL-E-AAZAM (1960) featured a rendition by Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, patterned after the well-known thumri, prema ki mari qatara: prema jogana bana.

BGAK’s unpublished Punjabi bandish.

Kumar Gandharva‘s fetching composition is delivered with his customary verve: ranga na daro Shyamji.

Bismillah Khan, the swarasmith par excellence, weaves his magic.

The final entry in the Sohani catalogue is the sankeerna Raga Sohani-Pancham.  As the name suggests, the raga blends elements of Raga Pancham (see On Raga Bhatiyar) with those of Sohani.  The motivated reader is invited to figure out the dynamic.

Vilayat Hussain Khan “Pranpiya”: sakhi mori.

Bade Ghulam Ali blesses Lata

Raga Bibhas (Marwa that)

Bibhas has cast in its lot not with one but with three thats – Bhairav, Poorvi and Marwa. Even within each that it has spun off subsidiary versions.  The audav-jati Bibhas of the Marwa that – S r G P D – is the most popular.  D and r dominate the proceedings although pancham is another important nyasa location.  Oftentimes, r is rendered durbal or even langhan alpatva (skipped) in arohatmaka prayogas.  An avirbhava of Deshkar obtains in this formulation.  The following sentence conveys the essence:

G P D, D, P G r, S (P)G P, D, P (S”)D S” r” S, D, P

The kans of m and N occasionally observed cause no injury to the raga-bhava.

Jitendra Abhisheki sings the popular composition, He Narahara Narayana, a creation of Pandit Bhatkhande.  The original dhrupad composition has been adapted by the khayaliyas.  Abhisheki stays textually true (almost) to Bhatkhande whose colophon ‘chatura‘ is cleverly wedged in the antara.

The lakshanas are clearly enunciated in this segment of Shruti Sadolikar.  Attention is drawn to the strong dhaivat and the langhan of rishab in arohi sancharis.

Kishori Amonkar‘s Bibhas is an exemplar of sensitivity and subtlety in intonation.  She singles out dhaivat for her shruti-play, toying with it, not explicitly advancing komal dhaivat but creating a deliberate abhas through delicate meends.  Watch out for the first instance at 0.05 into the clip.  Narahari Narayana, this time in Roopak tala.

A maverick version by Kesarbai Kerkar concludes this section.  Catch the distinct teevra madhyam in the mandra saptak in S (D’)m’ D’ S at 0:17.  Then comes a startling shuddha rishab in the tar saptak, viz., G”R”S” at around 0:53.  There are more deliberate occurrences of this shuddha rishab in the tans following.  The composition mora re is also heard in renditions of the Poorvi-that Bibhas.

Kesarbai and Dhondutai Kulkarni

Raga Jait

Jait has a degree of overlap with Bibhas but there are compelling differences.  Consider the following chalan:

S G P G P, P DG P, P D P S”, S” r” S”, S”->P, P D G P, P G r S

P has now advanced whereas D is in the back seat.  O the beauty of ragadari!  The clusters P DG P and P D P S”, and the S“-P swoop are Jait’s signposts.

Vasantrao Deshpande

Jha-sahab recites the chalan and then sketches a composition.

Vasantrao Deshpande: kalasha jyoti lagi.

The Atrauli-Jaipur version is bi-rishab, a variant documented by (who else?) Bhatkhande.  Observe the first instance of shuddha rishab at around 0:18 in Mallikarjun Mansur‘s hitherto unpublished excerpt.

The Rampur-Sahaswan vocalist Hafeez Ahmed Khan.

Ravi Shankar.

These five preceding ragas constitute a core from which most other Marwa-that melodies derive their genetic material.  A study of these fundamental forms is sufficient to understand the rest the members of the Marwa Matrix since they are simply variations of the foregoing melodic behaviors. The rest of the elements of the matrix are discussion in Part 2.

Part 1 | Part 2