Amr̥tavarṣiṇi is a

rāga A ''raga'' or ''raag'' (; also ''raaga'' or ''ragam''; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a melodic mode. The ''rāga'' is a unique and central feature of the classical Indian music tradition, and as ...

m in

Carnatic music Carnatic music, known as or in the Dravidian languages, South Indian languages, is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, an ...

(musical scale of South Indian classical music), created in the early nineteenth century by

Muthuswami Dikshitar Muthuswami Dikshitar (Mudduswamy Dikshitar)(, 24 March 1776 – 21 October 1835), mononymously Dikshitar, was a South Indian poet, singer and veena player, and a legendary composer of Indian classical music, who is considered one of the musical ...

. It is an ''audava'' rāgam (meaning pentatonic scale) in which only five of the seven '' swaras'' (musical notes) are used. It is a '' janya'' rāgam (derived scale), fairly popular in Carnatic music. There is a belief that ''Amr̥tavarṣiṇi'' causes rain ( The name of the

m is derived from the

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

words Amrita: meaning Nectar and Varshini: meaning one who causes a shower or rain, and hence the association with rain ), and that the Carnatic composer Muthuswami Dikshitar brought rain at

Ettayapuram Ettayapuram is a panchayat town in Thoothukudi district of Tamil Nadu, India. It is the birthplace of Tamil poets Mahakavi Bharathiar and Umaru Pulavar. Muthuswami Dikshitar, one of the triads of Carnatic music, was patronized in his final years ...

, Tamil Nadu, India by singing his composition, ''Aanandaamrutakarshini amrutavarshini''.''Ragas in Carnatic music'' by Dr. S. Bhagyalekshmy, Pub. 1990, CBH Publications''Rāganidhi'' by P. Subba Rao, Pub. 1964, The Music Academy of Madras

Structure and Lakshana

''Amr̥tavarṣiṇi'' is a rāgam that does not contain ''rishabham'' and ''dhaivatam''. It is a symmetric pentatonic scale (''audava-audava'' ragam in Carnatic music classification). Its ' structure (ascending and descending scale) is as follows (see ''swaras'' in Carnatic music for details on below notation and terms): * : * : The notes used in this scale are ''shadjam, antara gandharam, prati madhyamam, panchamam'' and ''kakali nishādam'') ''Amr̥tavarṣiṇi '' is considered a ''janya'' rāgam of ''

Chitrambari Chitrambari (pronounced ''chitrāmbari'') is a ragam in Carnatic music (musical scale of South Indian classical music). It is the 66th ''Melakarta'' rāgam in the 72 ''melakarta'' rāgam system of Carnatic music. It is called Chaturangini''Sri M ...

'', the 66th ''

Melakarta Mēḷakartā is a collection of fundamental musical scales ( ragas) in Carnatic music (South Indian classical music). ''Mēḷakartā'' ragas are parent ragas (hence known as ''janaka'' ragas) from which other ragas may be generated. A ''melak ...

'' rāgam, although it can be derived from other melakarta rāgams, such as '' Kalyani'', ''

Gamanashrama Gamanashrama (pronounced gamanāshrama''Sri Muthuswami Dikshitar Keertanaigal'' by Vidwan A Sundaram Iyer, Pub. 1989, Music Book Publishers, Mylapore, Chennai) is a ragam in Carnatic music (musical scale of South Indian classical music). It is ...

'' or ''

Vishwambari Vishwambari is a rāgam in Carnatic music (musical scale of South Indian classical music). It is the 54th ''melakarta'' rāgam in the 72 ''melakarta'' rāgam system of Carnatic music. It is called Vamshavati in Muthuswami Dikshitar school of Carna ...

'', by dropping both ''rishabham'' and ''dhaivatam''. There is another scale that has the same name but is less practiced in current performances. This scale is associated with the 39th melakarta Jhalavarali.

Popular compositions

''Amr̥tavarṣiṇi'' rāgam lends itself for extensive elaboration and exploration due to the symmetric and pentatonic scale. It has many compositions in both classical music and film music. Here are some popular ''

kritis ''Kriti'' (Sanskrit: कृति, ''kṛti'') is a format of musical composition typical to Carnatic music. ''Kritis'' form the mental backbone of any typical Carnatic music concert and is the longer format of Carnatic song. "Kriti" also means C ...

'' and film music composed in ''Amr̥tavarṣiṇi''. *''Ennai Nee Maravate'' of

Dandapani Desikar M M Dandapani Desikar (August 27, 1908 – June 26, 1972) was a Carnatic vocalist, actor and composer. 'Isai Arasu' Dandapani Desikar was born in Tiruchengattangudi, near Nannilam in Madras Presidency. He got training from Manicka Desikar and Kum ...

*''Sarasiruhanayane'' of Thyagaraja (usually said misattributed) *''Sarasijaasani'' of Muthuswami Dikshitar *''Vani Parama Kalyani'' By Vadiraja Tirtha *''Eesabeku Iddu'' By

Purandara Dasa Purandara Dasa (IAST: Purandara dāsa) ( 1470 – 1565) was a Haridasa philosopher and a follower of Madhwacharya 's Dwaitha philosophy -saint from present-day Karnataka, India. He was a composer, singer and one of the chief founding-prop ...

*''Aanandaamrutakarshini amritavarshini'' of Muthuswami Dikshitar (The most popular song sung today in Amritavarshini) *''Aadi Varuvai Guhane'' of Punitasri *''Siddhi Nayakena'' of

M. Balamuralikrishna Mangalampalli Balamuralikrishna (6 July 1930 – 22 November 2016) was an Indian Carnatic vocalist, musician, multi-instrumentalist, playback singer, composer, and character actor. He was awarded the Madras Music Academy's Sangeetha Kalanidhi in ...

*''Sthirata Nahi Nahi Re'' of Sadashiva Brahmendra *''Aadinateppadiyo Nadanam'', anonymous *''Sudhamayee Sudhanidi'' by

Muthiah Bhagavatar Harikesanallur Muthiah Bhagavatar (15 November 1877 – 30 June 1945), commonly known as Muthiah Bhagavatar, is one of Carnatic classical music's famous twentieth-century composers. He also created about 20 '' ragas''. Early life Muthiah was bo ...

In addition to these, ''Anni Mantramuli Inde Avahinchenu'' of

Annamacharya Tallapaka Annamacharya (Telugu : తాళ్ళపాక అన్నమాచార్య) ( IAST: taḷḷapāka annamācārya; 22 May 1408 – 4 April 1503), also popularly known as Annamayya, was a 15th-century Hindu saint and the ea ...

has been set to music in the ''Amr̥tavarṣiṇi''.

Film Songs

Language:
Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nati ...

Language:
Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam was des ...

*''Oru dalam matram'' from Jalakam, composed by M G Radhakrishnan , sung by K.J. Yesudas *''Manam pon Manam'' from

Idavelakku Sesham ''Idavelakku Sesham'' is a 1984 Indian Malayalam film, directed by Joshiy and produced by Thiruppathi Chettiyar. The film stars Mammootty, Sumalatha, Madhu and Srividya in the lead roles. The film has musical score by Raveendran. Cast *Mammoot ...

, composed by Raveendran, sung by K.J. Yesudas *''Aashadham padumbol'' from

Mazha ''Mazha'' () is a 2000 Indian Malayalam-language drama film written and directed by Lenin Rajendran based on the short story ''Nashtappetta Neelambari'' by Madhavikkutty. It stars Biju Menon, Samyuktha Varma and Lal. The music was composed by ...

, composed by Raveendran, sung by K.J. Yesudas *''Neela lohita hitakarini'' from

Kaveri The Kaveri (also known as Cauvery, the anglicized name) is one of the major Indian rivers flowing through the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. The Kaveri river rises at Talakaveri in the Brahmagiri range in the Western Ghats, Kodagu dis ...

, composed by Ilayaraja, sung by M. Balamuralikrishna *''Devi ni en pon veena nadam'' from

Oru Mutham Mani Mutham ''Oru Mutham Manimutham'' is a 1997 Indian Malayalam-language film, directed by Sajan and produced by George Karyathu and Mahima Ramachandran. The film stars Mukesh, Vaishnavi MacDonald, Srividya, KPAC Lalitha and Harishree Ashokan in the lead ...

, composed by Raveendran, sung by K.J. Yesudas *Anupallavi of ''Vilikkatirunnalum virunninettum'' from Ishtamanu Pakshe, composed by

G. Devarajan Paravoor Govindan Devarajan (1927–2006), popularly known as G. Devarajan or Devarajan master, was an Indian music composer and Carnatic singer. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers in the history of Indian film music. He sco ...

, sung by K.J. Yesudas *Pallavi of ''Sharatkala megham'' from

Dhruvasangamam ''Dhruvasangamam'' () is a 1981 Indian Malayalam-language drama film directed by J. Sasikumar and written by S. L. Puram Sadanandan from a story by Jessie Rasquinha who also produced the film. It stars Sukumaran, Shubha, Mohanlal, K. P. Ummer, ...

, composed by Raveendran, sung by K.J. Yesudas *Parts of charanam in ''Kasturi Gandhikal'' from

Sethubandhanam Adam's Bridge, '; ta, ஆதாம் பாலம் ' also known as Rama's Bridge or ''Rama Setu'', '; ta, ராமர் பாலம் '; sa, रामसेतु ' is a chain of natural limestone shoals, between Pamban Island, ...

, composed by G. Devarajan, sung by

Ayiroor Sadasivan Ayiroor Sadasivan (1939 - 9 April 2015) was an Indian playback singer who worked mainly in Malayalam cinema. Early life Ayiroor Sadasivan was born in Kerala and learned music from an early age. Career Sadasivan sang for many Malayalam films a ...

*Pallavi of ''Aadi parashakti'' from Ponnapuram Kotta, composed by G. Devarajan, sung by

P.B. Sreenivas Prathivadhi Bhayankara Sreenivas (22 September 1930 – 14 April 2013) widely known as P. B. Sreenivas was an Indian playback singer, composer, harmonium player, lyricist, littérateur, and poet known for his works in Cinema of South India, So ...

and

P. Leela Porayathu Leela (19 May 1934 – 31 October 2005) was an Indian playback singer, Carnatic vocalist and a music director. She has recorded more than 5,000 songs in various Indian languages including Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Hindi, ...

Language:
Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...

*''Cheluveya andada mogake'' from

Devara Gudi ''Devara Gudi'' is a 1975 Indian Kannada-language drama film starring Vishnuvardhan and Bharathi along with Leelavathi, Manjula and Rajesh. The film was directed and edited by R. Ramamurthy and written by A. S. Prakasham The film was a rema ...

, composed by

Rajan–Nagendra Rajan–Nagendra were an Indian musical duo who were prominent composers of film music in Kannada and Telugu cinema from the late 1950s to the early 1990s. Rajan, along with his brother Nagendra, created a niche for themselves for nearly four de ...

, sung by S. P. Balasubrahmanyam *''Naguve snehada haadu'' from Mugdha Manava, composed by

Vijaya Bhaskar Vijaya Bhaskar ( kan, ವಿಜಯಭಾಸ್ಕರ್; 1924–2002) was an Indian music director and composer who composed music for several mainstream and experimental feature films in the Kannada film industry. Scoring music for over 600 fe ...

, sung by S.P. Balasubrahmanyam *''Chaitrada kusumanjali'' from Anandabhairavi, composed by

Ramesh Naidu Pasupuleti Ramesh Naidu (1933–1988) was an Indian music composer, multi instrumentalist, and singer, known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He garnered the National Film Award for Best Music Direction for the film Megha Sandesam ...

, sung by S.P. Balasubrahmanyam (anupallavi and charanam include other ragas too). *Charanam of ''Devaru beseda premada hara'' from Muttina Hara, composed by

Hamsalekha Gangaraju (born June 23, 1951), professionally known as Hamsalekha, is an Indian film composer and a songwriter who works in South Indian cinema, predominantly in the Kannada film industry since the late 1980s. He is also a screenplay writer, di ...

, sung by M. Balamuralikrishna

Language: Telugu

*''Aanati neeyara hara'' from

Swati Kiranam ''Swathi Kiranam'' () is a 1992 Telugu-language musical drama film directed by K. Viswanath. Produced by V. Madhusudhana Rao, the film starred Mammootty in his Telugu debut, Master Manjunath and Raadhika, along with Achyuth, Jayanthi, Sakshi ...

, composed by

K.V. Mahadevan Krishnankoil Venkadachalam Mahadevan (14 March 1918 – 21 June 2001) was an Indian composer, singer-songwriter, music producer, and musician known for his works in Tamil cinema, Tamil, Telugu cinema, Telugu, Malayalam cinema, Malayalam, and Kann ...

, sung by Vani Jayaram *''Jeevana vahini'', a ragamalika from

Gangotri Gangotri is a town and a ''Nagar Panchayat'' (municipality) in Uttarkashi district in the state of Uttarakhand, India. It is 99 km from Uttarkashi, the main district headquarter. It is a Hindu pilgrim town on the banks of the river Bhagirathi � ...

, composed by M.M. Keeravani, sung by M.M. Keeravani, Ganga, Kalpana and Srivardhini *''Kurisenu Virijallule'', from Gharshana (Old), composed by

Ilaiyaraaja Ilaiyaraaja (born R. Gnanathesikan, 3 June 1943) is an Indian musician, composer, arranger, conductor, orchestrator, instrumentalist, lyricist and singer, popular for his works in Indian Cinema, prominently in Tamil films. Reputed to be one of ...

, sung by S.P. Balasunrahmanyam,

Vani Jairam Vani Jairam (born as Kalaivani on 30 November 1945), also credited as Vani Jayaram, is an Indian singer. She is best known as a playback singer in South Indian cinema. Vani's career started in 1971 and has spanned over five decades. She has do ...

Raga relationships

''Graha bhēdham''

''Amritavarshini's'' notes when shifted using ''

Graha bhedam ''Graha Bhedam'' in Carnatic music is the process (or result of the process) of shifting the Tonic note (''śruti'') to another note in the rāgam and arriving at a different rāgam. Its equivalent in Hindustani classical music is called a ''mur ...

'', yields 1 popular pentatonic rāgam,

Karnataka Shuddha Saveri Karnataka Shuddha Saveri is a rāgam in Carnatic music (musical scale of South Indian classical music). It is an ''audava'' rāgam (or ''owdava'' rāgam, meaning pentatonic scale). It is a ''janya'' rāgam (derived scale), as it does not have a ...

. ''Graha bhedam'' is the step taken in keeping the relative note frequencies same, while shifting the ''shadjam'' to the next note in the rāgam. For more details and illustration of this concept refer '' Graha bhedam on Amr̥tavarṣiṇi''.

Scale similarities

*''

Hamsadhvani Hamsadhvani (meaning "the cry of the swan"), is a rāga in Carnatic music (musical scale of Carnatic tradition of Indian classical music). It is an ''audava'' rāgam (or ''owdava'' rāga, meaning pentatonic scale). It is a ''janya'' rāga of the ...

'' is a rāgam which has ''chatushruti rishabham'' in place of the ''prati madhyamam''. See table below for more details *''

Gambhiranata Gambhiranata is a rāga in Carnatic music (musical scale of South Indian classical music) and Yakshagana where it is called Naati. It is an ''audava'' rāgam (or ''owdava'' rāga, meaning pentatonic scale). It is a ''janya'' rāga (derived scal ...

'' is a rāgam which has ''shuddha madhyamam'' in place of the ''prati madhyamam''. See table below for more details

Notes

References

{{Janya Janya ragas