Understanding Raga, Swara, Sthayee, Bhava, Prastara, Sancharam, Sanchari, Prayoga, Mela, Janaka & Janya and Moorchana [ Indian Classical Music ]

Understanding Raga, Swara, Sthayee, Bhava, Prastara, Sancharam, Sanchari, Prayoga, Mela, Janaka & Janya and Moorchana [ Indian Classical Music ]. In short, this is the lesson of understanding Murchana and Swaras. It is probably the most important technical lesson of Indian classical music. Please read the article more than once and try to understand each element and the relationship between those elements.

Understanding Raga, Swara, Sthayee, Bhava, Prastara, Sancharam, Sanchari, Prayoga, Mela, Janaka & Janya and Moorchana

Raga

Indian classical music, whether Carnatic or Hindustani, is fundamentally Raga music. A Raga is a melodic movement within a grammatical periphery. It consists of a group of swaras or notes which are rendered colorfully to create a certain mood, which appeals to and pleases the mind of the listeners.

A Raga is fundamentally made of a Moorchana or a scale and every Moorchana is a group of Swaras or notes. We shall first study the notes and then the scales.

Listen to : T. Rukmini – Violin – Raga Mayamalava Gowla

Swara [ Note ]

A Swara is a frequency. Among the numerous frequency universally 7 frequencies were selected as musical notes. It is the same as western classical music. In Indian music, we call it “Sapta Swara”.

Sapta Swara [ Seven Notes ]

There are seven basic notes called Sapta Swaras. They are:

Shadjam – Sa
Rishabham Ri
Gandharam – Ga
Madhyamam – Ma
Panchamam – Pa
Dhaivatam – Dha
Nishadam – Ni

Lesson to : Jayanthi R. Krishnan Veena – The seven notes or you may see the video below:

The ancient texts traced the origin of these seven notes to the sounds of Nature. The Sanskrit verse runs:

षड्जं वदति मयूर ऋषभं गाव एव च

अजा वदति गान्धारं क्रौञ्चो वदति मध्यमम् ॥

वसन्तकाले सम्प्राप्ते पिकः कूजति पञ्चमम्

धैवतं हेषते वाजी निषादं कुञ्जरः स्वरम् ॥

It means that “Sa is derived from the cry of the peacock, Ri from that of the bull, Ga from the bleating of the goat, Ma from the call of the heron, Pa from the sweet call of the cuckoo, Dha from the neighing of the horse and Ni from the trumpeting of the elephant.”

Prakriti Swara :

Among the seven notes, Sa and Pa do not allow any variation. These are known as the Prakriti swaras. They are also called Avikrita swaras. They are not shaken for ornamentation. Hence they are called Achala swaras too, as Achala means ‘immobile’.

Lesson to: Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – Sa and Pa

Vikrita Swara :

The remaining five notes Ri, Ga, Ma, Dha and Ni are Vikrata Swaras which allow one variation each, that is, the flatter or sharper forms. Vikrita Swaras are further classified into Komala and Tivra types.

Komala Swara:

Komala means ‘soft’. The flat variety or the notes with lower frequency are called Komala Swaras.

Lesson to:  Jayanthi R. Krishnan Veena – Komala Swaras

Tivra Swara:

Tivra means ‘sharp’. The notes with the higher pitch in the Vikrita category are called the Tivra Swaras.

Lesson to: Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Tivra Swaras

In Carnatic music the terms Komala and Tivra indicate the flat and sharp varieties in a relative sense. All the Vikrita Swaras, Komala or Tivra, have specific names.

Dvadasa Swarasthana:

Dvadasa means ‘twelve’. The two Prakriti and the ten Vikrita together constitute 12 Swarasthanas or note positions. Each position has got a name:

1. Shadja

2. Komala Ri is called Shuddha Ri

3. Tivra Ri is Chatusrutika Ri

4. Komala Ga is Sadharana

5. Tivra Ga is Antara Ga

6. Komala Ma is Shuddha Ma

7. Tivra Ma is Prati Ma

8. Panchama

9. Komala Dha is Shuddha Dha

10. Tivra Dha is Chatusrutika Dha 11. Komala Ni is Kaisiki Ni

12. Tivra Ni is Kakali Ni

Listen to : Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – the 12 notes

Shuddha Swara:

Shuddha means ‘pure’. The word Shuddha is used differently in Carnatic and Hindustani music. In Carnatic music it denotes the lowest variety of a particular note. In Hindustani music, Shuddha is the basic note which can have its Komala or Tivra variations.

Sthayee:

A Sthayee is also called a Saptaka ( don’t confuse it with “sthayee” part of kheyal music literature). The basic seven notes or the Dvadasa Swaras of a gamut constitute one Sthayee or octave.

Tristhayee and Panchasthayi:

Musical theory recognises Tristhayee or three octaves and Panchasthayee or five octaves. In Carnatic music, in actual practice, only three octaves are used. Carnatic music in general is Madhya Sthayee oriented.

Madhya Sthayee:

Madhya Sthayee is the middle octave.

Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – middle octave

Mandra Sthayee:

Parf Mandra Sthyaee is one octave below the middle octave. Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – lower octave

Tara Sthayee:

Tara Sthayee is the octave above the middle octave.

Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – upper octave

Anumandra and Atitara Sthayee:

Anumandra and Atitara are Sthayees below and above Mandra and Tara respectively.

As observed earlier only three Sthayees are used in Carnatic music. And these are actually two Sthayees spread over three octaves. There may be a slight extension beyond Mandra Pa to Mandra Ma but rarely the compositions go any lower. The next section is from Madhya Sa to Ni. The third portion commences at Tara Sa and ends at Tara Pa. Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – illustration

Important Notes:

Every Raga has its own set of important notes. These are the Graha, Jiva, Amsa and Niyasa Swaras. They are overlapping concepts in their function. Let us see them independently.

Jiva Swara:

A Jiva is a dominant note, which gives the Chaya of the note at once. It is also an often sounded note which invariably figures as a Hrasva Swara or a short note along with Gamaka. Jiva Swaras play an important role as Rakti Swaras in the Rakti or Ranjaka Prayogas, which lend typical colour and characteris tics to a Raga.

Hrasva Swara:

Hrasva means ‘short’. If a note is rendered as a short note, it is called a Hrasva Swara. The Hrasva Swara cannot be sustained. It plays a vital role when the Jiva Swara figures as an often sounding note, giving a jingling effect.

As for example Ma, Ri and Ni are Jiva Swaras of Raga Sankarabharanam. Similarly Ri is a Jiva Swara in Raga Gowla, Ga in Raga Mohanam, Ma in Nalinakanti, Pa in Varali, Dha in Vegavahini and Ni in Kalyani. They appear as often sounding notes.

Listen to : Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – Jiva Swaras in various Ragas

Rakti Swara:

Rakti means ‘pleasing’. Rakti Swaras are essentially Jiva Swaras. A Rakti Swara is a note which expresses the peculiar characteristics of a Raga in a pleasing manner. It is also called a Ranjaka Swara.

Now listen to the Gandhara of Todi wherein it figures as a Rakti Swara. It figures also as an often sounding Rakti Swara. It is a beautiful example of a Rakti Swara having different tonal colours, changing sequentially.

Listen to : Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – Raga Todi

Amsa Swara:

This is a pivotal note. It is like a guiding star. It functions both as a Graha, the starting note and a Niyasa, the ending note. It serves as a point of demarkation between sections of a Raga or a composition. In other words, when a section, say for example, the Pallavi of a composition ends, the actual conclu sion of that section is done on the Amsa Swara. Amsa Swara is sung as a Dirgha Swara or a sustained note. It is a Jiva Swara but all Jiva Swaras are not Amsa because the characteristic of Jiva is Hrasvatva (short note) while for Amsa it is Dirghatva (long note).

Dirgha Swara:

When a note is sung as a long sustained note, it is called a Dirgha Swara. It is the opposite of Hrasva. It plays an import ant role as Graha Swara and Niyasa Swara.

Graha Swara:

Now let us see the role of Amsa as Graha Swara. Graha Swara is a starting note. It could be the starting note of a Ragalapana or Swara Prastara or it could be the starting note of a composi tion or their different sections respectively. It is essentially an Amsa Swara.

The Gandhara of Sankarabharanam is an important Amsa Swara. Now let us see the application of Amsa as Graha Swara in these three different contexts:

a) The musician starts a Vidari, that is a section of the Ragalapana on the Gandhara, as a starting note. It is the Graha Swara for that Vidari or section of Ragalapana.

b) In the context of Swara Prastara, Amsa forms the Graha Swara for different sections of Swara Prastara.

Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – Amsa Swara as Graha Swara

c) The Amsa has also a role as a Graha Swara for com positions. As for example Shadja is a powerful Graha in Sankarabharanam.

P. Unnikrishnan – Vocal – Amsa Swara as Graha Swara

Again Graha Swaras figure in different sections of a compo sition. As for example a composition can start on Shadja which is the Graha Swara for the Pallavi or first section. The next sec tion the Anupallavi can start on Madhyama which forms the Graha Swara for that section.

Listen to : P. Unnikrishnan – Vocal – Graha Swaras

Niyasa swara:

Niyasa means ‘putting upon’ or ‘deposit’. Niyasa Swara is an Amsa Swara predominantly. It could also be a Jiva Swara. The Niyasa Swara is the note on which various note patterns end.

When Amsa figures as Niyasa, the Niyasa Swara is shown as a long starting note. As an ending note which is also long, it acts as the resting note to form the prelude to the next round of weaving of note patterns.

To compare, if the Jiva Swara is an ending note, which nor mally happens in an Alapana context, then the ending is abrupt. On the other hand if it is an Amsa Swara figuring as a Niyasa, then the ending is with a long note.

Listen to : Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – Raga Sankarabharanam

Since the Jiva Swaras depict the characteristics of a Raga, they essentially carry Gamakas. The Ri, Ma and Ni are typi cal characters of Sankarabharanam. So Jiva Swaras go to pro mote Rakti Swaras also.

In the case of Amsa there is a leisurely start on the Amsa note which is a Dirgha Swara. Then various note patterns are woven around, ending once again on a long note.

Bhava or Relationship between Notes:

Bhava in Sanskrit means ‘rank’ or ‘position’ in one sense and ‘feeling’ or ’emotion’ in another. The relative position of two notes creates an interval which in turn gives rise to certain feelings or emotions.

Some intervals create particular relationships between notes, either concordant or discordant.

Vadi:

Vadi means the predominant note. It is also the basic note while assessing the relationship between two notes. Shadja is the common Vadi for all the Ragas. Vadi in Carnatic music has got two distinct roles:

The first and most important role is to act as the Graha Swara. We have already seen the Graha Swara in detail. In this case the Vadi is an Amsa Swara.

Secondly, Vadi acts as a Jiva Swara in the form of an often-sounding note.

Thus the function of Graha Swara marks a line of demarcation between Hindustani and Carnatic music on the concept of Vadi. In Hindustani Music, Vadi Swara refers to the pre dominant note of the Raga which is ever constant. In other words there is only one Vadi for a particular Raga. But in Carnatic music, the abundant creativity of the Saint-com posers has given rise to as many Vadis as the number of Graha Swaras. Therefore in Carnatic music, Vadi as the Graha Swara takes the maximum predominance.

As for example in Raga Sankarabharanam, there are several Graha Swaras and Vadis but the most powerful Vadi is Sa.

Listen to : Lokanatha Sharma – Vocal – Raga Sankarabharanam

Samvadi :

If Vadi is taken as the first note, then the 4th or 5th note in relation to the Vadi are Samvadis. If the intervals created between two notes are equal to the interval between Shadja and Madhyama or Shadja and Panchama, they are said to be in Samvada Bhava. They are consonants having concordant relationship. Sounded together, the Vadi and the Samvadi are pleasing. The popular Ragas invariably have many sets of Samvadis in their scale.

Thus Sa and Ma or Sa and Pa when played together create a pleasing effect. The Alankaras make use of Samvada Bhava extensively.

Listen to : Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – Samvadi

Anuvadi:

If Vadi is taken as the first note, then the third note is the Anuvadi. It is neither concordant nor discordant. It is called the assonant. If Sa is the Vadi, then Ga is the Anuvadi.

Thus if Sa and Ga are played together we find it neither pleasing nor repulsive. That is the effect of Anuvadi.

Listen to : Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – Anuvadi

Sthayee:

We have seen Sthayee as a Saptaka. As Sthayee Bhava it indi cates the relationship between two notes which are separated by an octave. Sounded together, the Vadi and its Sthayee are in unison, that is in complete agreement. The two notes absolute ly merge with each other when sounded together.

Listen to : Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – Sthayee Bhava

Vivadi:

Vivadi is the immediate next note to the Vadi. Used in succession, these two notes create a discordant effect. They are dis sonants. The use of Vivadi is considered to be a Dosa or fault which is to be avoided. As for example the Chatusruti Ri is the Vivadi of Shuddha Ri.

If we listen to these two Ris together the effect is not at all harmonious or pleasing.

Listen to : Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – Vivadi

Though Vivadi is a Dosa, the advent and the popularity of the Mela Ragas has elevated the status of the Vivadi, so that they are also accepted as part of the Ragas with good scope. But unless handled with skill and diligence the result may not be pleasing to the listeners.

During the course of Raga elaboration or while composing a song, these relationships are used by the musician to create an impressive performance.

Prastara:

Prastara is the process of ‘permutation’. Prastara yields, Taanas and Varnas for a Raga and creates rhythmic variations in a Tala.

Taana:

Taana is a ‘solfa phrase’ formed of permutations of notes.

Varna:

Varna means ‘colour’. Varnas are the artistic Taanas embell ished with graces.

Alankara:

Alankara means ‘ornament’ or ‘decoration’. The Alankaras in this context are the Varnas going in a sequence. The sequences are mainly based on the Samvada Bhava. The Taanas, Varnas and Alankaras are overlapping concepts.

Taana is a combination of plain notes, Varna with embellishments, and Alankaras are Varnas taking a particular sequence.

P. Unnikrishnan – Vocal – Taana, Varna, Alankara

Sancharam:

Sancharam means ‘movement’. Sancharam is the movement of a Swara or a Raga. It could be in the lower, middle or higher octaves.

P. Unnikrishnan – Vocal – Raga Mayamalava Gowla

Sanchari:

The word Sanchari is used differently in Carnatic and Hindustani music. In Carnatic music, it means the notes and phrases and their basic movements, which form the essential features and traits of a Raga. It is like a formula for a Raga. It can be related to the Chalan of Hindustani music.

In olden days these Sancharis were given in the form of Geetams and Varnas because the oral tradition was popular. These days Ragalakshnams are used for this purpose.

Prayoga:

Prayoga means application or use of notes.

Alpatva:

Alpa means insignificant’. Alpatva has got two prayogas or applications. When applied to a note, it means that either the note is used sparingly or the note is played feebly.

For example the Panchama in Natakurinji is a note sparingly used. In fact even without Panchama the Raga can shine well and could be complete. On the other hand in Raga Arabhi, Ga and Ni have a soft or feeble sound.

P. Unnikrishnan – Vocal – Ragas Natakurinji and Arabhi

Bahutva:

Bahutva means ‘plentiful’. It is the inverse of Alpatva. In this case, a note or a phrase is used frequently.

The Jiva Swara figuring as an often sounding note is an excellent example of Bahutva Prayoga. All Rakti Prayogas get Bahutva Prayoga.

Rakti Prayoga:

This is the application of Rakti Swara or phrase. The Rakti Prayogas can be equated to the Pakads of Hindustani music. These are the pleasing, typical or characteristic notes or phra ses, which help to identify a Raga instantly.

Lisson to : Jayanthi R. Krishnan – Veena – Ragas Varali, Kanada, Sahana, Begada, Natakurinji

Moorchana:

A Moorchana or a scale is the basic grouping of notes for a Raga. It indicates the notes taken by a Raga, from the 12 Swarasthanas. Each Raga has its own scale formed of either 4, 5, 6 or 7 notes.

Arohana and Avarohana:

The assignment of Arohana and Avarohana is the first step in transforming a scale into a Raga. They give the basic identity to a Raga.

Arohana:

Arohana means ‘ascent’. For every Raga there is a prescribed order in which the notes must move while ascending. This is called the Arohana.

Avarohana:

Avarohana means ‘descent’. The prescribed descending order of notes of a Raga is called the Avarohana. Lesson to : P. Unnikrishnan – Vocal – Raga Todi

Mela:

Melas as a system and as it is followed today was streamlined by the 17th-century musicologist, Venkatamakhi. The entire Carnatic music today is based on this system. We have already seen that the 12 notes, both Prakriti and Vikrita constitute an octave. By assigning dual names to four out of these 12 positions or Swarasthanas, we get a 16 Swara nomenclature for an octave. These 16 Swaras are:

1) 1. Shadja

2) 2. Shuddha Ri

3) 3. Chatusrutika Ri

4. Satsrutika RD

5. Shuddha Ga

4) 6. Sadharana Ga

5) 7. Antara Ga

6) 8. Shuddha Ma

7) 9. Prati Ma

8) 10. Panchama

9) 11. Shuddha Dha

10) 12. Chatusrutika Dha

11) 15. Kaisiki Ni

12) 16. Kakali Ni

14. Shuddha Ni

13. Satsrutika Dha

We observe that Gandhara descends to occupy the Rishabhasthana or position of Ri and gets renamed as Shuddha Ga. When Ri rises up to occupy the Gandhara Sthana it is called Satsrutika Ri. The same phenomenon can be observed in the case of Dhaivata-Nishada also.

Listen to : K. Vageesh Vocal – Melas, Veena Venu – Violin – Raga Karaharapriya

Janaka and Janya:

In Carnatic music, the primary classification of Ragas is done in terms of Janaka, the genus and Janya the species.

Sampoorna:

Sampoorna means ‘complete’ or ‘full’. When all the seven sampurna notes of a Sthayee are present in a Raga, it is called a Sampoorna Raga. As for example Kalyani and Todi are Sampoorna scales.

Listen to : K. Vageesh – Vocal – Ragas Kalyani and Todi

Janaka Raga:

A Mela is a mere scale. When a Mela is given a Krama Arohana and Avarohana along with the other embellishing ele ments, it gets transformed into a Janaka Raga. It is also called a Mela Raga or a Melakarta Raga.

K. Vageesh – Vocal – Ragas Kalyani and Todi

Krama:

Krama means ‘regular’ or ‘straight’. When the Arohana or Avarohana of a Raga is straight, that is, the notes occur in a regular succession, it is called Krama Arohana or Krama Avarohana. All the Janaka Ragas are Krama Sampoorna Ragas.

Janya Raga:

Janya means ‘born’. These are the derivatives from the Janaka Ragas. A Raga becomes a Janya due to its being a Varja or Vakra or Bhasanga. We’ll now see what these terms mean.

Varja Raga:

Varja means ‘omission’. Varja Ragas omit one or more num ber of notes either in their Arohana or in their Avarohana or in both.

Varja Sampoorna and Sampoorna Varja:

Both are Janyas having all seven notes. But when one or more notes are omitted in the Arohana, the Raga is Varja Sampoorna. It is Sampoorna Varja, if the omission is in the Avarohana. A Sampoorna Raga on account of being a partial Varja loses its status of being a Mela.

As for example, Raga Bilahari is Varja Sampoorna while Raga Garudadhvani is Sampoorna Varja.

Lesson to : K. Vageesh – Vocal – Ragas Bilahari and Garudadhvani

Shadava Raga :

These are the Ragas which omit one note in both the Arohana and the Avarohana. They are six note Ragas. Sriranjani is a Shadava Raga.

Lesson to : K. Vageesh – Vocal – Raga Sriranjani

Audava raga:

These are the five-note Ragas, which omit two notes complete ly. Hamsadhvani is an Audava Raga. K. Vageesh – Vocal – Raga Hamsadhvani

Swarantara Raga:

These are the four-note Ragas. They omit three notes completely. Raga Mahati is a Svarantara Raga.

Lesson to : K. Vageesh – Vocal – Raga Mahati

The Shadava, Audava and Swarantara Ragas are not mutu ally exclusive. Thus a Raga can be Shadava in Arohana and Audava in the Avarohana. Combined variously among them they create many more Ragas.

Vakra Raga:

Vakra means ‘irregular’ or ‘crooked’. When the Arohana or Avarohana or both are irregular, that is when the notes do not follow the natural sequence, but take a zigzag route, the Raga is called a Vakra Raga. A Sampoorna Raga might lose its status of being a Janaka due to a Vakra Arohana or Avarohana or both.

As for example Malavi and Kadanakutuhalam are Vakra Ragas.

Lesson to : K. Vageesh – Vocal – Ragas Malavi and Kadanakutuhalam

Bhasanga Raga:

When a Janya takes one or more number of notes not belong ing the parent Raga, it is called a Bhasanga Raga.

Anya Swara:

The alien notes taken by the Bhasanga Raga, which do not belong to the parent scale, are called Anya Swaras.

Svakiya Swara:

The notes belonging to the parent scale are called the Svakiya Swaras.

As for example in Raga Saranga the Prati Ma is the Svakiya Swara and the Shuddha Ma is the Anya Swara.

Lesson to : K. Vageesh – Vocal – Raga Saranga

Upanga Raga:

When the notes taken by a Janya strictly adhere to its parent scale, it is called an Upanga Raga. Raga Abhogi is an Upanga Raga.

Lesson to : K. Vageesh – Vocal – Raga Abhogi

Adhara Shadja:

Adhara Shadja is the basic pitch selected by a musician. This is the Shadja of the middle octave for the performer and the other notes get fixed accordingly. Thus the Adhara Shadja and therefore the scale varies from person to person, instrument to instrument.

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