INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC

Author(s): Priy Chatterji

Source: East and West, Vol. 8, No. 4 (JANUARY 1958), pp. 360-370
Published by: Istituto Italiano per l'Africa e l'Oriente (IsIAO)
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 INDIAN CLASSICAL MUSIC
Mythology.
The origin and inspiration of music in In?
dia, like all other classic arts, are attributed
to Divinity. Lord Siva is considered to have
created sound, rhythm (i.e. music) as well
as the dance. Of the six ancient r?g?s, five
came out of the mouth of Siva and one out
of his divine consort P?rvati. It is also inte?
resting to note that Sarasvati ? the daughter
of Siva ? is worshipped as the Goddess of
Music, Culture and Learning. Her instrument
is the Vina, the most classic instrument in
India, the creation of which is attributed to
Risi N?rada.
To Risi N?rada was ccrevealed)) by Divine
Grace the laws of music and he is regarded
as the most accomplished heavenly musician
and singer. There are many stories in my?
thology which illustrate N?rada 's vanity in
considering himself the perfect musician and
the greatest devotee of Visnu. All of them
however end with a moral through which the
great God makes N?rada realise that humility
before art and devotion, are the primary steps
towards attaining perfection. This, I may say,
stands eternally true for all artists and devo?
tees. Here is one of the stories regarding N??
rada the musician. (( Once upon a time the
great anchorite N?rada thought within himself
he had mastered the whole art and science of
music. To curb his pride the all-knowing
Visnu took him to visit the abode of the gods.
They entered a spacious building the inmates
of which were numerous men and women,
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who were all weeping over their broken limbs.
Visnu stopped short and inquired of them the
reason of their lamentation. They answered
that they were the R?gas and R?ginls of music
created by Mah?deva; but as one anchorite
of the name of N?rada, ignorant of the true
knowledge of music and unskilful in perfor?
mance, had sung them recklessly, their fea?
tures were distorted and their limbs broken,
and that unless Mah?deva or some other dis?
creet and skilful person would sing them pro?
perly, there was slender hope of their ever
being restored to their former state of body.
N?rada, ashamed, kneeled down before Visnu
and asked to be forgiven ?.
To N?rada is also attributed the authorship
of (( N?radasiks? ? (of uncertain date) which
is a great treatise on music and is referred to
by scholars still today. As already mentioned
above, N?rada is supposed to have created
the Vln? and is believed alive even today,
roaming the universe singing his worship and
adoration to Visnu, accompanying himself on
the Vina.
It is interesting to note here, that two mu?
sical instruments that have been deified in
India from time immemorial are the flute and
the drum ? Krsna's flute (Murali), and Siva's
damaru (small drum). The universe is said to
rotate and revolve around the woven music
and rhythm of these two instruments. Even
today of all musical instruments, the flute and
the drum are the ones most used amongst
the people. In the remote villages, in work,
play and feasts, these are the two instruments
 that predominate. In the classical field, the
flute has given place to the voice, hence the
saying cc her voice resembles that of a flute ?:
the drums have remained, as the chief accom?
panying instruments. Mention is also made
in the Vedas of the flute (venu), the vln?
(saptatantri) and the drum (dundubhi).
Also forming part of the Hindu musical
mythology are the heavenly musicians and
dancers of Indra's (King of the Gods) court,
the G?ndharvas, Apsar?s, Kimnaras and N?
ras. The G?ndharvas united in matrimony
with the Apsaras (heavenly dancers). The
Kimnaras and N?gas were also heavenly mu?
sicians. These supernatural dancers and sing?
ers had at their command a musical art of
the highest perfection. By the charm of their
art they could even distract the yogic trance
of a great muni. It was Aps?ra Men?ka who
distracted Visyamitra's meditation with her
dance and out of their love union was born
Sakuntal?.
From the supernatural we come to reality.
Great risis and m?nis were considered masters
of the musical art. Bh?rata-m?ni was the first
to draw up the laws of music, dance and
drama, elaborately and in great accuracy in
his N?tyas?stra (the date of this treatise is
sometimes given as 500 A.D.; but very likely
the actual composition is much older). Tum
buru (no date avialable) is considered to be
the first singer and many legends exist regard?
ing his great art in vocal music.
History.
Unbroken historical records of any kind
are rare in India. Records of the history of
the land, its arts, literature and religion are
all regularly interrupted and broken, so that
few definite dates are available to the modern
historian. The methodical and fact-loving
Westerner attributes this absence to the In?
dian's philosophical attitude to life and
living by regarding everything as transitory
and ever-changing, and therefore not worth
recording. In my opinion this is a wrong and
unimaginative judgement. The history of In?
dia is very ancient and the changes suffered
through natural disasters, invasions, and deli?
berate destructions have been so many that,
some of the most valued records, books and
scriptures have been lost or destroyed in the
path of history. It is a well known fact that
some of the most important and ancient
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Sanskrit scripts are today found in Tibet, hav?
ing been carried there for safety by Buddhist
priests in the face of religious and political
persecution. If historical records of the land
are scanty, it is still more so of the country's
musical history. Further, as the music from its
very concept to the present day has been un?
written (though nowadays a type of simple
notation is used) this has greatly added to the
difficulty of evaluating the origin, evolution
and development of Indian music.
In the S?ma-Veda where the Divinity is
worshipped through songs (chants) we find
the mention and trace of a scale of seven notes.
It is also found that Vaira and Kafi That
(explained later) are prevalent in most of the
S?ma Veda chants. Opinion is however di?
vided, among experts regarding the Suddha
(pure) Scale during this period. Some hold
that it was the Kafi That, while others believe
that Vaira That was the Suddha That at that
time.
After the Vedic period in music came the
Classic Period. During this period, the Sud?
dha That (Scale) was the K?fi That. It was
also during this period that the theories of
Gr?m? (scales), M?rechana (modes) and J?ti
(species) came into existence (explained in
detail in the paragraph on Scales). All Sanskrit
musical treatise Bh?rata's N?tyas?stra, Saran
ga Deva's Sanglta-Ratnakar, etc., were based
on these theories. The music of the period
itself, was based and developed on these
theories.
As already mentioned the origin of music
in India lay in the Vedic songs and chants.
From then on, it grew and developed without
suffering any degression or set back. Very
rapidly it became a highly specialised, com?
plicated and well appreciated art. Many are
the stories that have come down to us illus?
trating the musician's esteemed position in
ancient Indian society and the public's high
regard and admiration of the arts. In the
J?takas there is the story of how cca feeble mu?
sician, M?sila of Ujjain, whose music on the
vin? was 'like scratching on a mat', came to
learn of Guttila of Banaras (the Bodhisatva
in an earlier birth). Guttila's parents when
they heard him said, 'Shoo! Shoo! the rats are
gnawing the vin? to pieces'. Guttila who, as
Bodhisatva, was 'skilled in discerning from
the lineaments of the body' said, 'Go, my
son, this art is not for you'. But M?sila got
his way; and Guttila Bodhisatva, who 'did not
stint his knowledge', at last pronounced his
361
pupil perfect. M?sila pressed to be taken into
the king's service. This was done; but the
king awarded Guttila twice as much as his
pupil. M?sila protested and forced matters to
a contest, of which proclamation was rnade to
tuck of drum. The Bodhisatva reflected that
he was old, and that 'if he beats me, death
in the woods is better than the shame which
will be my portion'. So to the woods he went;
but 'kept returning through fear of death,
and going back to the wood for fear of shame',
so that, 'the grass died as he walked and his
feet wore away a path'. In his trouble Sakka,
the king of the Gods, appeared. Guttila was
to break, in the contest, one string after an?
other, beginning at the 'beestring', and the
music should be as good as before. 'Then
you shall go on playing with nothing but the
body; and from the ends of the broken strings
the sound shall go forth and fill the land of
Banaras for the space of twelve leagues'. All
happened as was foretold, and the scholar,
beaten out of the field, was stoned and torn
in pieces by the populace ?. (Fox-Strangways)
In Ganakya's Arthas?stra he recommends
(c song, instrumental music, recitation, danc?
ing, acting, writing, playing on the vin?, flute
(venu), and drum (mrdanga), knowing the
mind of others, making scents, and garlands,
shampooing, employing alluring words - those
who know all these and can teach them to
courtesans and actors should be provided with
a livelihood by the State?. One wishes that the
same wisdom prevailed in modern times and
artists were not left to brave the world on
their own.
From very early times, important treatise on
music by experts, explaining in detail the
science of this art in all its manifestations, the
ideals to be followed and adhered to, have
existed. In Rkpratis?khya (400 B.C.) we
find mentioned the three gramas, and the
seven notes of the scale. In P?nini's Grammar
(ca. 4th century B.C.), comments on dancing
and music are found. I have already men?
tioned above the story in the J?taka, thereby
demonstrating that the art of music had al?
ready then reached a complexity and perfec?
tion very high. The Vin? or Saptatantra (seven
stringed) then in use was decidely neither a
primitive nor a simple instrument and it fol?
lows logically, that the music which was com?
posed for it wasn't simple either. In the trea?
tise of Manu (200 A.D.) we also find signifi?
cant references to music and dancing. In
Brhaddesi of Matanga M?ni (between the
362
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fourth and seventh cent.), explanations of r?g?s
as understood by the later schools of music,
are found. Perhaps the most interesting an
nalysis of the musical art of the period can
be found in the Paiicatantra (5th century) in
the story of the Jackal and the Ass. The ass,
eager to sing and to prove his knowledge of
the art, says to the jackal ? There are seven
notes (sv?ras), three scales (grama), twentyone
modes (m?rcchanas), fortynine K?ta-t?nas,
three time units (matras), three voice-Regis?
ters (Mandra, Madhya and Tara), three layas
(Vilambita, Madhya, Druta), six ways of sing?
ing, nine emotions (Rasas), thirtysix R?g?s,
forty languages (Bhas?) ?. This is a further
proof of the already highly developed form
of musical art then in existence in India. One
of the most important ancient treatise on
music along with Narada's Naradasiks? is
Bharata Muni's N?tyas?stra (500 A.D.) ex?
pounding in minute detail and with great ac?
curacy the theories of music, dancing and
drama. Naradasiks?, whose system shows a
considerable advance on that of N?tyas?stra,
is attributed by foreign experts to a later date
but the Indian belief is that the treatise was
the compilation of the great sage himself.
As a result of the Moghul invasion of India,
after 1000 A.D., music in India divided into
North Indian or Hindustani Music and South
Indian or Karnatic Music.
In North India, the R?ga-R?ginI theory de?
veloped and held sway till the 19th century,
when the That theory of Bhatkhande was intro?
duced. In the R?ga-R?ginI theory, the entire
R?ga world derived from six ragas and thirty
six r?gims. These original six ragas are con?
sidered to be of divine origin. They each have
six cc wives ? or feminine r?gas-(r?gims) and
these in turn have cc putras ? or sons.
Poet Jayadeva, native of Kunduli in Bengal
(circa 1100 A.D.), is amongst the first of the
Indian musicians about whom definite facts
are available and whose life and activities are
not shrouded in legends. Jayadeva, author
of cc Gltagovinda ?, assigned to each of his
poems a r?g? and a t?la (rhythm). Though
no musical notation was then in use and his
melodies have come down to us by tradition,
it is to be believed that his original melodies,
as those of today, were exquisitely sensitive as
were the subjects of his songs.
Music at that time was not the prerogative
or passion of poets and musicians only. King
Nanyadeva (1096-1137 A.D.) in his Sar?sva
 tahrday?lankar included many new Desi ragas
such as, DaksinI, Saurastrl, Gurzari etc.
In the 13th century , was produced the most
monumental work on R?ga-R?ginI-Saranga
deva's (1210-1247 A.D.) Sangltratii?kara. It
is considered as one of the greatest landmarks
in the musical history of the country. Sangl
taratn?kara is accepted as an authority by
musicians of both North and South India.
Many other important treatise on music were
written during this period. To quote a few,
Sangitasamayas?ra of Parsvadeva (13th cen?
tury), R?g?rnava (1300 A.D.), the last was
accepted as the leading authority in North
India during the 14th century, Subhankara's
Sahglta Sagar (1308 A.D.), Locana's R?ga
t?ranginl, Ahobal's Sangitaparijata, etc. These
were all considered authoritative sources of
reference.
The Moghul emperor Akbar (late 16th cen?
tury) was a great patron of the arts as well as a
musician himself. He was an able player on
the Naqqarah (a drum used in pairs) and had
composed about two hundred melodies. Per?
haps his name in relation to the musical history
of the land would not have been remembered
if he had not played such a vital role in the
life of India's greatest musician of the time
? Tansen, ? a Hindu Brahmin whose real
name was Ram Tanu Panre.
Akbar invited Tansen, ? pupil of the great
Haridas Goswami ?, from the court of Raja
Ram of Baghelkhand, to be his own court mu?
sician. In Akbar's court, Tansen soon became
the idol of the emperor and a musician without
equal. In Ain-i-Akbar one reads cc a singer
like him has not been in India for the last
thousand years ?. Tansen's contribution to
North Indian music is immeasurable. He creat?
ed many new r?g?s: Darbadri Todi, Mian-ki
Mallar, Mian-ki-Sarang etc. His art was a
perfect fusion between the ancient art and
music of India, which he received from his
gurus, R?md?s and Haridas, and the arts of
Arabia and Persia with which he came in con?
tact later. The result of this fusion has left
a style, an art, and an imprint on North Indian
music, which is living still today and is at once
recognisable and identifiable. Tansen was
the greatest master of the North Indian mu?
sical art and the perfection reached by him in
his performances has now become almost un?
believable and legendary. He also created the
instrument Rabab. Both the children of Tan?
sen, son Bilash Khan and daughter Saraswati
were excellent musicians. Bilash Khan and
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his descendants adopted the Rabab and became
founders of the cc Rababi School ? while Sa
raswati and her husband, Misri Singhji ? an
excellent vlna player ? took up as their fa?
mily instrument ? the vina, and their descen?
dants became known as the cc Vinkars ?. Both
branches of the Tansen family carried on his
traditions and founded the two most impor?
tant North Indian schools of music. Some of
India's greatest musicians of later times are
found amongst their descendants and disciples.
The Moghul court at Delhi, was at this
period of North India's musical history, a
focal point of art and artists. Music of North
India reached its zenith at the court of the em?
perors. The disruption of the Moghul empire
led to the dispersal of the descendants and
followers of the Tansen School of Music. They
flocked to the courts of Ayodhya, Bettia,
Rewa, Banaras and other princely states. Ram
pur was their last stronghold. Unfortunately
their number dwindled as many of them
died without leaving any children to follow
their tradition. The late Nawab of Rampur
was a devoted patron of music and both the
schools ? ((Rababb) and ((Vinkars)) ? flou?
rished in his court. Muhammad Ali Khan
was the last of the great rababiya of Mian
Tansen School and Muhammad Wazir Kan,
the last of the great Vinikars. Now this tra?
dition survives in Ustad Dabir Khan and his
Uncle, Ustad Sagir Khan in Bengal.
As already explained with the Moghul
invasion and establishment of an empire, the
arts of North India, including music, were
influenced by the new comers. With the al?
ready existing Indian ragas and raginis, me?
lodies of Arabia, Persia and even Egypt inter?
mixed and thus new ragas were created, e.g.
Turuska (Turkish), Todi, Hijaj, Harakh, Ya
man etc. Amir Khusru, poet, musician and
statesman (1295-1316 A.D.) of the court of
Allauddin, created many important innova?
tions in Indian music. He invented several
new ragas ? H?fi, Iman etc. He also invented
the sitar ? a modification of the vlna, and
introduced the Kawali style of singing.
Some important treatise on music were
written during the 19th century ? Muham?
mad Reza's Nagmat-e-Asarphi (1813), Krish
nanda Vyasa's Sangita-R?g?kalp?druma, S.
M. Tagore's Universal History of Music, Pan?
dit Batkhande's Treatise, etc. The latter
brought the entire raga world under ten Thats
or scales. These ten thats were established as
363
the ten permanent or standard Thats and all
ragas and raginis were derived from them.
As North India from 1000 A.D. onwards,
came under varying influences of different
cultures and arts of the middle Eastern coun?
tries, and developed a musical art which assi?
milated the foreign with the native, it gave
rise to a school known as the North Indian
or Hindustani School, which had its un?
mistakable characteristics and colour. The
South, on the other hand, owing to its geogra?
phical position, lived and developed more in
isolation. Moreover, it was never completely
conquered by the Moghuls. As a result, Hindu
art survived and retained its purity and ancient
traditions in the South. This was true of
music as well as of all the other arts. Even
today we find the best of Hindu architecture
in the South, the Northern works of art having
been destroyed by invasions and wars.
South India retained all the characteristics
of Sanskrit music and developed the art ac?
cording to its ancient traditions. During the
time of Bahrata, Natya or ? drama ? was the
meeting point of glta (song), vadya (instru?
mental music), and Nrtya (dancing). This tra?
dition has remained in the South. All South
Indian songs can be adapted as accompani?
ments to a dance. Temple dancers (Devada
sis), who had existed both in the North and
the South, continued their art in the South
while they ceased to exist in the North under
the Moghul rule and the introduction of pur?
dah (veil). As a direct result of this, in North
India women of respectable families were
debarred from dancing which came to be look?
ed down upon as a profane art. So vocal and
instrumental music in the North developed
independently of each other and of the dance.
Another important point distinguishes South
Indian music from that of the North. In South
India, the pure scale continued to be Kafi
while in the North, the Bilawal That became
the pure cc That ?. While in North India from
1000 A.D. onwards, the R?ga-R?ginl theory,
already existent, continued to develop, in the
South approximately about the 14th century,
the Mel theory developed. The entire raga
world of the South Indian or Karnatic music
was brought under seventy-two cc Mels y>
(groups).
Like Tansen in the North, Tyagar?ja was
a great musician of the South as was also Go
vinda M?r?r. There is a popular story illus?
trating the greatness and humility of these two
great artists, cc They met at Tyagar?ja's house
364
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at Tiruvaiyyar near Tanjore in 1843, where
the great man was sitting with his disciples.
M?r?r, after listening to the disciples, express?
ed a wish to hear Ty?gar?ja himself. 'Who is
the man, said Tyagaraja in Telugu', that can
ask me to sing? 'Apparently the audience were
to hear hirn only when he sang of his own
accord. He asked who was the man, pointing
to M?r?r, who sat with a flagged Tambura in
his hand; and was told that M?r?r could sing
a little. A Pallavi was then sung round, and
when it came to Govinda M?r?r's turn, the
other instruments had to be laid aside and his
Tambura only used, so high was the pitch of
the music. He sang it in Shatkala, and Tya?
garaja, after remonstrating with the under?
statement of M?r?r's powers, improvised on
the spot a song in the Sri R?gam, which is
the Ragam sung at the close of performances,
of which the burden was, 'There are many
great men in the world, and I respect them
all'.? ( Fox-Strangways).
There are many important treatise on
South Indian music. To mention a few, Pa
ripadal (100-200 A.D.), Manikkavachakar
(6th.-7th. century), Svaramela-Kalanidhi of
Ramamatya (1550 A.D.) etc.
After the schools of the North and the
South had enriched and developed the melo?
dic musical art of India to a point of unsur?
passable accuracy, intricacy, melodic beauty,
rhythm and virtuosity, music in India (as
true even today) ceased to create or grow
further. There was lack of inspiration, dar?
ing and venture necessary for the creation and
continuance of art. The later musicians of
the North and the South, great virtuosos in
their art, followed only in the foot steps of
the past masters. Music in India became static
and lost its dynamic quality. Gone were the
days of Tansen when so much was created and
which in turn had led to further creation.
Rabindran?th Tagore, great poet and mu?
sician, gave a certain impetus with his music,
which has come to be identified so completely
with him ? Rabindra Sangit, as it is known.
His melodies all have a definite imprint and
character of their own. One can at once
identify a song of Tagore. He wrote more
than two thousand songs, all delightfully mu?
sical and poetically superb. But Tagore's
music has not revolutionised music in India.
He only founded another school of music and
singing which has continued to live indepen?
dently but happily in the parental house.
The Indian scale.
The first indication of the Indian scale is
found in the S?m? Ved?. There is a clearly
defined seven note scale found in the chants.
The names of the notes then known were how?
ever different to those of the Sanskrit or later
period. I give below a table with the names
of the scale as known during the Vedic period
the Sanskrit period, and as they are known
today together with their corresponding equi?
valents of the European scale.
Vedic Period.
Ud?tta, Anud?tta, Svarita,Atisarga, Kru
sta, Pracaya, Atlsargiy?.
Sanskrit Period.
Swaraj, Rishav, G?ndh?r, Madhyam, Pan
cama, Dhaibat, Nis?dha.
Modern Names.
Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, Ni.
European Scale.
Do, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La, Si.
As already explained, there is a diffe?
rence of opinion among experts regarding
the pure scale in use during the Vedic period.
Some believe that it was the Bhairo That,
whereas others believe that it was the Kafi
That. However during the Sanskrit period
(it is now definitely accepted) Kafi That was
the pure That. It was also during the Sanskrit
period that the theories of Gr?m? (Scale),
Murchana (Modes) and Jati (Species) develop?
ed. I shall now briefly explain these terms,
- Gr?m? literally means a ? village y> and there?
fore implies the orderly arrangements of the
notes of a scale.
Originally there were three gr?m?s - S?
gr?ma, M? gr?ma and G? gr?ma, but the
last one has been long obsolete. S? Gr?ma
r?g?s included r?g?s with sudhya or pure re
(re) while M? Gr?ma r?gas included effects
with Komol Re or (Refo). Now there are
seventy two scales in Indian music and each
scale has more than twenty r?g?s derived
from it. So there are really thousands of
r?g?s. || Murchana or mode, means the rise
and fall from and to a particular note of a
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specific scale. There are three types of M?r?
chanas, 1) Sampurna (complete) with all the
seven notes of the octave, 2) Kharab, with six
notes of the octave, and 3) Orab, with five
notes of the octave. Thus there are twenty
one Murchanas, as each of the seven notes of
the octave can have three types of M?rchanas
|| J?ti or Species. Each of the two gramas
have seven M?rchanas each, i.e. fourteen in
all. But only seven of these fourteen are in
practical use and are known as j?tis.
The Indian scale has twentytwo cc sr?tis ?
or microtonal intervals in the octave. Each
of them has a name, and specific attributions
of divine qualities are implied to each of
them. It is important to note that these di?
visions are not always equal.
There are also three pitches in Indian mu?
sic. The lower or Mandra, the middle or Ma
dhy?, and the higher or Tara.
R?ga.
According to Muni Bharata a R?ga is what
cc colours and pleases the hearts of all ?. The
Shastric definitions of raga disclose that the
Indian musical art aims more at achieving
an universal appeal rather than a limited ap?
peal for a knowledgeable few. And this is
further stressed by the fact that every r?g?
represents an universal emotion and not one
limited to any particular country or people.
There are for example r?gas with sentiments
of Santa (quiet), Karun? (Pity), Prema(love),
Bhakti (devotion) etc. sentiments which are
common to all humanity. Ragas are based
either on definite human sentiments or ma?
nifestations of nature. Popley, the well
known authority on Indian music, defines
r?g?s (c as different series of notes within the
octave which forms the basis of all Indian me?
lodies and are differentiated from each other
by the prominence of certain fixed notes and
by the sequence of particular notes. y> This
explains the technical and the special charac?
teristics of the r?ga system. 0*ne may define
a raga in many ways but it must be remem?
bered that, in Indian music, the mood or sen?
timent is of primary importance. The root
meaning of r?ga is cc passion ?.
R?gas are broadly divided into three clas?
ses ? Suddha, when there is one r?ga only,
Chayal?ga or Salanka when two r?gas are
mixed, and Sanklrna, when there are more
than two ragas in the composition.
The origin of r?gas is considered to have
365
 three sources: 1) M?rga R?ga or r?g?s having
supernatural and heavenly origin, 2) Des! r??
gas or r?gas composed by musical seers and
sung by expert musicians, and 3) Loka-San
glta or r?gas based on popular folk music.
The first two are known as Kal?barta R?gas
and derive their origin from the Vedas. The
Atharva-Veda gave rise to the M?rga R?gas,
whereas the main structure of the DesI R??
gas has its origin in the S?m? Veda. Rishi
N?rada, the divine musician, who has al?
ready been mentioned here before, is said to
have given (( form ? to music and created
words and rhythm. The original six R?gas
and thirty six R?ginis (feminine) are of M?r?
ga origin. These are:
1) Bhairab R?ga.
R?ginis - Ramkeli, Gumkeli, ?sh?, Pra
bhati, Lolita, Todl.
2) Malkosh R?ga.
R?ginis - Bhairabi, Baghesri, Bhimp?lasri,
Ahiri, Khambati, Lankeshwari.
3) Hindol R?ga.
R?ginis - Kalyani, P?ri?, Marw?, VasantI,
PancamI, Bibh?s?.
4) Megh R?ga.
R?ginis - Suh?, Mallari, Saindhabi, Mada
mati, SauratI, Ad?n?.
5) Sri R?ga.
R?ginis - JayetsrI, MalasrI, Dhanesri, Ba
r?ri, Purb?, Gouri.
6) Dlpak R?ga.
R?ginis - Bilavall, Bihangar?, Shankar?,
Kedar?, Kakubh?, Natika.
There are many different tabulations of
the six r?g?s and the thirty six r?ginis. The
above is adopted by the Tansen School.
In a R?ga there are three important notes,
Graha ? the note on which the raga begins;
Nyasa ? the note on which it ends, and Amsa
the predominant note or Badi of a raga. The
Amsa is the soul of the raga. It is the note
on which the life of the composition rests.
A r?ga is introduced by Alap ? a slow
ever-unfolding exposition of the raga which
prepares the ground for further elaboration
of the melodies in the succeeding movements,
In Alap, the notes of the raga are sung in a
loose kind of rhythm, not to words but to
syllables ? A-NA-TA-RA-NlA-RI-RE-NUM.
In the North Indian Alap there are four Var
nas or cc colouring stages y> ? Asthai, Antara,
Sanchari, and Abhog. Of this more later.
366
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All the characteristics of a r?ga are found in
the M?rchanas (modes), Gamaks (graces)
and Tans. A single melody may he sung in
many different variations by introducing new
tans built up on the basic melody. In Indian
music it is here really that the virtuosity of
the musician is put to test. The richer and
more varied the t?ns and gamaks, the greater
the improvisational power of the musician.
For it must be remembered that Indian music
is all unwritten and the exposition and co?
louring of a r?ga depend entirely on the per?
former. It is on his creative powers alone
that the greatness of the performance lies. So
in reality, every Indian musician is really a
composer as well. He has as basic materials
the r?g? and its characteristics to work on, and
if he has had his training under an expert gu?
ru of a good school his technique would also
stand him in stead, but really it is in his crea?
tive powers as a musician that his greatness
or mediocrity lies.
Tansen has become almost a legendary fi?
gure in India on account of his bravura and
technique, just as Paganini in Europe. In
this connection there are two immortal stories
about Tansen recorded in the annals of the
time of Akbar.
Tansen had become the leading court mu?
sician in Akbar's Court and the favourite of
the Emperor. Rival musicians wanting to
destroy him requested Akbar to command
Tansen to sing the Dipak (fire) Raga one day.
As already previously explained, every r?g?
invokes either an emotional sentiment or an
element of nature. Dipak raga invokes fire
in the body and Tansen knew that if he sang
the Dipak raga, the heat thereby created in his
body would consume him. Yet an Emperor's
command could not be set aside. So Tansen
to forestall his inevitable destruction, request?
ed the Emperor for time and in the mean?
while began coaching the Megha Raga
(clouds) to his daughter Saraswati and anoth?
er great pupil of Swami Haridas ? Rupaba
ti. The arrangement was that by perfect tim?
ing and agreement the moment Tansen would
begin the Dipak raga at Akbar's court, Sa?
raswati and Rupabati would immediately
begin the Alap of the Megha Raga. The effect
wanted was to invoke rain to put out the
fire produced by Dipak Raga.
When news spread that Tansen would sing
Dipak Raga,, people from all parts of the
country rushed to Delhi to witness this great
phenomenon. And so it happened that as
Tansen began the Dipak R?ga, the other two
musicians began Megha R?ga to counteract it.
Tansen had had small earthen lamps put all
around the court, and the agreement with the
Emperor was that the moment these lamps
would take fire from the heat produced by
the r?ga he would stop singing. As he began
the alap, all present began to feel hot and
congested as on a full summer's day, and as
he proceeded, it became hotter and hotter,
till all of a sudden the room burst into fla?
mes, and emperor, courtiers, spectators, all
rushed out to save their own lives. Tansen
himself, scorched and burnt, rushed to his
home where his daughter Saraswati and Ru
pabati by continued singing of the Megh Ra?
ga brought down rain upon the city of Delhi
and soothing coolness to Tansen's body. This
is not a mere story. It is historically record?
ed. It is firmly believed in India that music
can move the elements. Dipak raga is al?
most forbidden to mortal singers. Tansen's
descendants are also forbidden to sing this
r?g? and it is very rarely heard in India.
The other story recorded about Tansen is
when the Emperor asked him to sing a night
raga at high noon. As Tansen began the
alap, evening shadows engulfed the area
where he was singing and soon night came
down.
In this connection, it must be mentioned
that all r?gas and r?ginis have definite fixed
hours for their performance and this rule is
never broken by the musicians.
There are two theories regarding ragas.
The earlier, the R?ga-R?gini-Putra theory and
the later theory of Bhatkhande, the That
theory.
The R?ga-R?ginl Theory.
According to this theory, there are six prin?
cipal r?gas, each of which has six or five
r?ginis (wives or Saktis) and their offsprings,
Putras.
There are many different lists of the six
principal ragas but the following two are
generally accepted.
A: 1. Bhairava, 2. Malkos, 3. Hindol,
4. Sri, 5. Megh, 6. Dipak.
B: 1. Bhairava, 2. Pancama, 3. Vasant,
4. Sri, 5. Megh, 6. Nat.
The Tansen school follows the first clas?
sification.
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From very ancient times each raga has
been associated with a particular emotion or
passion. Bhairaba is the raga of devotion,
peace, godliness, Malkosh is the raga of
spring, joy, love, Megh, that of rain, ecstatic
al joy, Sri, that of prayer, relaxation, aspi?
ration, Dlpak, that of fire, courage, enthu?
siasm, and Nat, is the raga of fighting.
As regards classifications of the raginis and
the Putras, there are even greater differences
of opinion. The Tansen School propagates
the following classification:
1. Bhairav's R?ginis - R?makeli, Gum
kell, Jogiy?, Lalit?, Probh?tl, B?ng?ll.
2. M?lkos's R?ginis - Bhairavi, Kousl,
B?gesri, G?ndh?rl, Pancaml, Kh?mbabatl.
3. HindoFs R?ginis - Kaly?nl, P?ri?,
Hindoll, Bibhas?, BasantI, Malabi.
4. Megh's R?ginis - Mailar!, Saindhabl,
Mad?matI, Pal?sl, SouratI, K?fi.
5. Srl's, R?ginis - Dh?n?srI, JayetsrI,
M?lasrI, P?rabl, Gourl, Bar?rl.
The Th?t Theory.
Professor BJiatkhande in the 19th cent, di?
vided the raga world in Th?ts, and thus gave
rise to the Th?t theory. He brought all exist?
ing ragas and raginis as deriving from ten
principal Th?ts or scales.
These were:
1. Kaly?n That. - (Fourth augmented).
2. Bil?val Th?t. - (ordinary major
scale).
3. K?fi Th?t. - (Third minor and Se?
venth minor).
4. Kh?mb?j Th?t. - (Seventh minor).
5. M?rav? Th?t. - (Second minor,
Fourth augmented).
6. P?rabl Th?t. - (Second minor,
Fourth augmented, Sixth minor).
7. Todl Th?t. - (Second minor, Third
minor, Fourth augmented, Sixth minor).
8. Bhairavi Th?t. - (Second minor,
Third minor, Sixth minor, Seventh minor).
9. Asavarl Th?t. - (Third minor, Sixth
minor, Seventh minor).
10. Bhairav That. - (Second minor. Sixth
minor).
367
 All remaining ragas, raginis and putras de?
rived their origin from one of these Th?ts ac?
cording to the notes found in their make up.
Ideals and characteristics of Indian Music.
The singer or player in Indian music is
ruled and guided by certain aesthetic prin?
ciples regarding his performance. These have
been classified as:
1) R?garanga - To expound a raga in a
way that will not only be technically perfect
but which will also give aesthetic pleasure to
listeners.
1) B?k-anga - The words of the song
should be poetically suited to the melody and
the mood of the music. There must be har?
mony of spirit and sentiment between the
melody and the words.
3) Kriy?-anga - The words, the melody
and the tala or chhanda should be in unison
and harmony. A happy union should be
fused between words, music and rhythm.
4) Ay?nga - (Hindusthani term). The
music should be ornamented with Midr (slur)
Gamak (graces) Chunt (jumping from one
note to another without slur) and Lahak (slow
vibration between two notes).
5) Dhy?n?nga - The r?ga should be me?
ditated and concentrated upon in both its
aspects of form and mood.
6) T?l-anga - Perfection of the tempi
and the rhythm. Words, tans and ornamen?
tations in the music should all be in rhythm.
7) R?j-anga - Technical virtuosity. The
performer should give full scope to his skill
and virtuosity.
? lap.
Alap may be said to be the introduction to
r?ga. It is expounded slowly and gradual?
ly with or without a fixed rhythm. Originally
the term Ananta-Hari-Narayan ? was sung
in the vocal alap but ? during the Moghul
period, for its obvious reference to the Hindu
deity Vishnu, the term was substituted for
A-Na-Ta-Ra-Na-Ri-Re-Num in North Indian
vocal alap. There are no fixed rules or for?
mulas as to how these syllables should be
sung. They are used by the singer in the way
best suited to the notes and the rhythm of
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the raga and to the individual musical taste
of the performer.
There are four varieties of ?l?p. But there
are two different classifications of these.
A) 1. R?g? ?l?p - This kind of ?l?p pre?
sents the main characteristics of the raga in a
simple and straightforward way. It shows
the V?di (sonant) Samav?di (consonant),
Graha (the note on which a r?g? begins),
Nyas (the note on which a r?g? ends), and the
main phrases of the r?g? in a direct way and
at once. Mid, Chunt and plain ornamenta?
tions are used. This is also known as ?oc?r
?l?p.
2. R?p-?l?p. In this, each phrase of a
raga is improvised and many varieties of com?
plicated ornamentations are used, including
gamaks.
3. Sama ?l?p. This variety uses lots of
Chunts and ?ms (slide) but no gamak.
4. Sthal-?l?p. This form of Alap ex?
pounds in great detail and at length, the chief
features of the raga.
The second classification is as follows:
B) 1. ?oc?r-?l?p. This corresponds to Ra?
ga Alap and shows the main characteristics
of a r?g?.
2. Kayed-?l?p. This corresponds with
Rup-Alap. In this variety, two, three and
gradually other notes of the raga are intro?
duced. All kinds of ornamentations are used.
3. Bandhan-?l?p. This kind of Alap
uses fixed tans composed by master musi?
cians.
4. Bist?r-?l?p. This kind of Alap is full
of improvisations, based on the main phra?
ses of the raga or the main notes of the raga.
?l?p has three broad divisions regarding
tempi. 1) Bilambit or slow, 2) Madh or mid?
dle tempo and 3) Dr?t or fast tempo. This
applies generally to vocal alap for instru?
mental alap has further sub-divisions which
are explained later.
The Bilambit or slow movement itself has
four divisions.
a) Asthai. This is considered the ?face?
of the r?ga-?l?p. This implies that every r?ga
has a form and Asthai is its (( face ?. This
part of the alap is played in the mandra
(lower) and madhya (middle) octaves.
b) Antar?. This is considered the
(( heart ? of the r?ga-?l?p. The range of its
 execution lies between the middle octave (Mu
dara) and a few notes of the higher octave
(tara).
c) Sancarl or the <c navel ? of the r?ga.
Its range lies between the middle and the low?
er octave.
d) ?bhog or the foot of the raga. The
range of this section of the alap lies between
the middle of Mud?r?, high up into T?r? and
returning to the Mudara octave.
After the four parts of the Bilambat alap,
madh or middle tempo comes in and this part
of the alap has no restriction regarding the
three octaves. After Madh or Madh Jord as
it is also known, Drut or fast tempo follows.
Here too there is no restriction regarding the
octaves. great stress on the exact values of the syllables
in verses. In this lies the origin of t?l?. The
In Bilambit ?l?p, the syllables A-Na-Ta
Ra-Na-Ri-Re-Num are sung. In Madh and of the time or t?l? is given by the clapping
beat
of hands. Unlike the theories of raga which
Drut these are also used. At the end of the
vary greatly in the North and the South there
Drut, the ? Sargam )) or the notes of the scale
themselves may be sung as is the use in Southis more similarity in the theory of tala as
India.
Instrumental ?l?p.
The Vln? and the Rab?b are considered the
ideal instruments for playing instrumental
?l?p. As in the vocal alap the instrumental
alap is also divided in three broad divisions
slow, middle and quick tempi. But, as al?
ready mentioned, these three main divisions
are further sub-divided, e.g. instrumental bi?
lambat alap begins slow but increases speed
in the second stage or Antara. Further, the
middle tempo or Madh is sub-divided into four
parts according to the difference in tempi and
the strokes used. The Drut or fast tempo has
ten divisions according to the strokes and the
tempi. It is in the Drut movement that fixed
rhythm or Tala comes in.
Based on the classic instruments Vina and
Rab?b, many other instruments have been
created and these are Sursringar, Surbahar,
Sarod and Sit?r. In North India, in recent
times it is the Sarod and the Sit?r which are
in great vogue and so alap is played on these
two instruments also.
T?n.
The development and combination of notes
is known as t?n in Indian music. There are
two kinds of t?n-Suddh (simple) and K?t
(complex). Suddh Tan uses the notes in ascent
and descent in a straight and consecutive order
e.g. Sa Re Ga Ma Ma Ga Re Sa etc, K?t
T?n is formed hy combining the notes in an
irregular and wayward fashion, e.g. S G R -
R G S etc. There are ten varieties of Suddh
T?n and forty nine varieties of Kut Tan. But
in Sanglt-Ratn?kar, 5740 varieties are illus?
trated as a result of permutation and combi?
nation of notes.
T?la.
The Indian T?l? or time measure in music
is a direct development from the metres of
poetry. Poets and scholars have always laid
found in the two parts of the country. The
nomenclature however varies.
T?l? is based on m?tra?s or note lengths.
The normal duration of a m?tr? is a second.
Generally six main note lengths are cited,
based on their relative duration values to a
m?tr?. These are:
1) Anudruta - 1/4 m?tr? - 2) Druta - 1/2
m?tr? - 3) Laghu - 1 m?tr? - 4) Guru - 2 ma
tr?s - 5) Pl?ta - 3 m?tr?s - 6) K?kp?d - 4
m?tr?s. The Sem School (Tansen School)
however propounds an elaborate exposition of
note lengths.
The time-units or note-lengths in various
combinations make different t?l?s. Each sec?
tion of a t?l? is subdivided into several sub?
sections. That section of t?l? which forms the
principal beat is the most important and is
known as Som. The unaccented portion of
a section of a tala is known as Ph?hk and is
shown by an empty wave of the hand.
There are three main tempi of t?l?-Bilambit
(slow), Madh (medium), and Drut (fast). The
chief instruments used for tala are 1) Mridan
ga and 2) Tabla. The technique of execution
and the types of t?l?s used for these two instru?
ments are different from one another as also
the physical construction of these two types of
drums. The tablas are smaller and the two
drum-heads are on two separate instruments.
While played they are held almost vertic?
ally. The Mrdanga on the other hand has the
two drum-heads on the same instrument and

369

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is held in a horizontal position. The drums
are tuned to the Sa or the first note of the
scale of an instrument or a song.
Drummers have a curious system of ccboles?
or drum words which indicate to them not
only the particular kind of tala to be accom?
panied but also the strokes of the beats. These
boles are composed of syllables e.g. Dh? -
Dhin - Dhin - T?, T? - Dhin - Dhin - T? etc.
2) Adhik?rl ? One who can create and
compose music and tans out of his own inspi?
ration and imagination.
3) R?sik ? One whose music is full of
<c rasa ? or sentiment.
4) Bh?bak ? One who is a poet as well as
a singer or musician.
5) Rancak ? One who has a perfect tech?
nical command over melody or rhythm or both.

Eight Types of Musicians.
According to the Shastras and tradition,
there are eight cc types y> of musicians.
1) Sanc?ri ? One who cc reproduces ? the
music and the style of his teacher.
6) N?bak ? One who can <c create y> new
ragas.
7) S?bak ? One who can sing the same raga
in different styles.
8) Dh?bak ? One who can compose new
ragas as well as new styles of tans.

Priy? Chatterji

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370

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