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Svara
Swara () or svara is an Indian classical music term that connotes simultaneously a breath, a vowel, a note, the sound of a musical note corresponding to its name, and the successive steps of the octave, or ''saptanka''. More comprehensively, it is the ancient Indian concept of the complete dimension of musical pitch. At its most basic comparison to western music, a ''swara'' is, essentially, a "note" of a given scale. However, that is but a loose interpretation of the word, as a ''swara'' is identified as both a musical note and tone; a "tone" is a precise substitute for sur, relating to "tunefulness". Traditionally, Indian musicians have just seven ''swara''s/notes with short names: sa, re, ga, ma, pa, dha, ni, which they collectively refer to as ''saptank'' or ''saptaka''. This is one of the reasons why ''swara'' is considered a symbolic expression for the number seven. In another loose comparison to western music, ''saptak'' (as an octave or scale) may be interpreted as s ...
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Madhyam (svara)
Madhyam is the fourth svara from the seven svaras of Hindustani music and Carnatic music. This article is written from the Hindustani perspective. Madhyam is the long form of the syllable म. For simplicity in pronouncing while singing the syllable, Madhyam is pronounced as Ma (notation - M). It is also called as मध्यम in the Devanagri script. Details The following is the information about Madhyam and its importance in Indian classical music : * Madhyam is the fourth svara in an octave or Saptak. * Ma is the immediate next svara of Gandhar (Ga). * The svara of Madhyam is and . In fact Madhyam is the only svara in the Saptak. * It is said that Shadja is the basic svara from which all the other six svaras are produced. Breaking the word Shadja yields Shad And Ja. It means that Shad is six and ja is 'giving birth' in Marathi. So basically the translation is : षड् - 6, ज -जन्म . Therefore, it collectively means giving birth to the other six notes of ...
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Nishad (svara)
Nishada ( ) is the seventh and last svara in Hindustani music and Carnatic music. Nishada is the long form of the syllable नी (Ni). Details The following is the information about Nishada and its importance in Indian classical music : * Nishada is the seventh svara in an octave or Saptak. * Nishada is the immediate next svara of Dhaivat (Dha). * The svara of Nishada is Komal and Shuddha. * It is said that Shadja is the basic svara from which all the other 6 svaras are produced. When we break the word Shadja then we get, Shad And Ja. It means that Shad is 6 and ja is 'giving birth' in Marathi. So basically the translation is : षड् - 6, ज -जन्म . Therefore, it collectively means giving birth to the other six notes of the music. So the svara Ni is formed from Shadja. * The frequency of Nishada is 450 Hz. The frequencies of the seven svaras are also given below: Sa 240 Hz, Re 270 Hz, Ga 300 Hz, Ma 320 Hz, Pa 360 Hz, Dha 400 H ...
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Shadja (svara)
Shadja ( ) is the first of the seven svaras in Hindustani and Carnatic music. Shadaj is the long form of the syllable सा (Sā). Details The following is the information about Shadaj and its importance in Indian classical music: * Shadaj is the first svara in an octave or Saptak. * Shadaj is usually the main svara in a raga. * The svara that is played on the Tanpura for the singer is Shadaj. It is played to know that one is singing on the right pitch and octave. * Shadaj is the base or basic svara. It is a very fundamental svara in Classical music. * Shadaj serves a critical role in maintaining the tonal framework during performances. Before transitioning from one raga to another, particularly when the ragas share the same set of svaras (notes) but differ in their chalan (movement or progression), the note "Sa" is often played. This practice ensures clarity and prevents confusion by re-establishing the tonal base, allowing the next raga to begin distinctly. * The svara of Sha ...
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Dhaivat (svara)
Dhaivata ( ) is the sixth and penultimate svara of Hindustani music, Hindustani and Carnatic music. Dhaivata is the long form of the syllable ध (Dha). Details The following is the information about Dhaivata and its importance in Indian classical music: * Dhaivata is the sixth svara in an octave or Saptak. * Dhaivata is the immediate next svara of Pancham (svara), Pancham (Pa). * The svara of Dhaivata is and Shuddha. * It is said that Shadja is the basic svara from which all the other six svaras are produced. When we break the word Shadja then we get, Shad And Ja. It means that Shad is 6 and ja is 'giving birth' in marathi (language), Marathi. So basically the translation is : षड् - 6, ज -जन्म . Therefore, it collectively means giving birth to the other 6 notes of the music. So the svara Dha is formed from Shadja. * The frequency of Dhaivata is 400 Hz. The frequencies of the seven svaras are also given below: Sa 240 Hz, Re 270 Hz, Ga 300 H ...
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Pancham (svara)
Pancham ( ) is the fifth svara from the seven svaras of Hindustani and Carnatic music. Pancham is the long form of the syllable प (Pa). Details Regarding panchama and its importance in Indian classical music: * Pancham is the fifth svara in an octave or Saptak. * Pancham is the immediate next svara of Madhyam (Ma). * The svara of Pancham is never * It is said that Shadja is the basic svara from which all the other 6 svaras are produced. When we break the word Shadja then we get, Shad And Ja. It means that Shad is 6 and ja is 'giving birth' in Sanskrit. So basically the translation is : षड् - 6, ज -जन्म. Therefore it collectively means giving birth to the other six notes of the music. So the svara Pa is formed from Shadja. * The frequency of Pancham is 360 Hz. The frequencies of the seven svaras are also given below: Sa 240 Hz, Re 270 Hz, Ga 300 Hz, Ma 320 Hz, Pa 360 Hz, Dha 400 Hz, and Ni 450 Hz, Sa 480 Hz (Taar ...
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Gandhar (svara)
Gandhara ( ) is the third svara in Hindustani music, Hindustani and Carnatic music. Gandhara is the long form of the syllable ग (Ga). Details The following is the information about Gandhara and its importance in Indian classical music: * Gandhara is the third svara in an octave or Saptak. * Gandhara is the immediate next svara of Rishabh (svara), Rishabh (Re). * The svara of Gandhara is Komal and Shuddha. * It is said that Shadja is the basic svara from which all the other 6 svaras are produced. When we break the word Shadja then we get, Shad And Ja. It means that Shad is 6 and ja is 'giving birth' in marathi (language), Marathi. So basically the translation is : षड् - 6, ज -जन्म . Therefore, it collectively means giving birth to the other 6 notes of the music. So the svara Ga is formed from Shadja. * The frequency of Gandhara is 300 Hz. The frequencies of the 7 svaras are also given below: Sa 240 Hz, Re 270 Hz, Ga 300 Hz, Ma 320 Hz ...
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Rishabh (svara)
Rishabha ( ) is the second of the seven svaras in Hindustani and Carnatic music. Rishabha is the long form of the syllable रे (Re). Detail The following is the information about Rishabha and its importance in Indian classical music: * Rishabha is the second ''svara'' in an octave or '' Saptak'' and follows "Sa" (Shadja) as its immediate successor. * The svara of Rishabha is ''Komal'' and ''Shuddha''. * It is said that Shadja is the basic svara from which all the other 6 svaras are produced. When we break the word Shadja then we get, ''Shad'' and ''Ja''. It means that Shad is 6 and ja is 'giving birth' in Marathi. So basically the translation is : षड् - 6, ज -जन्म . Therefore, it collectively means giving birth to the other 6 notes of the music. So the svara Re is formed from Shadja. * The frequency of Rishabha is 270 Hz. The frequencies of the seven svaras are also given below: Sa 240 Hz, Re 270 Hz, Ga 300 Hz, Ma 320 Hz, Pa 36 ...
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Raga
A raga ( ; , ; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a musical mode, melodic mode. It is central to classical Indian music. Each raga consists of an array of melodic structures with musical motifs; and, from the perspective of the Indian tradition, the resulting music has the ability to "colour the mind" as it engages the emotions of the audience. Each raga provides the musician with a musical framework within which to improvise. Improvisation by the musician involves creating sequences of notes allowed by the raga in keeping with rules specific to the raga. Ragas range from small ragas like Bahar (raga), Bahar and Sahana (raga), Sahana that are not much more than songs to big ragas like Malkauns, Darbari and Yaman (raga), Yaman, which have great scope for improvisation and for which performances can last over an hour. Ragas may change over time, with an example being Marwa (raga), Marwa, the primary development of which has been going down ...
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Carnatic Music
Carnatic music (known as or in the Dravidian languages) is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and southern Odisha. It is one of three main subgenres of Indian classical music that evolved from ancient Hindu texts and traditions, particularly the Samaveda. (The other two are Hindustani music and Odissi music.) The main emphasis in Carnatic music is on vocal music; most compositions are written to be sung, and even when played on instruments, they are meant to be performed in ''gāyaki'' (singing) style. Although there are stylistic differences, the basic elements of (the relative musical pitch), (the musical sound of a single note), (the mode or melodic formulae), and (the rhythmic cycles) form the foundation of improvisation and composition in both Carnatic and Hindustani music. Although improvisation plays an important role, Carnatic music is mainly sung ...
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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 derived. A ''melakarta'' raga is sometimes referred as ''mela'', ''karta'' or ''sampurna'' as well, though the latter usage is inaccurate, as a ''sampurna'' raga need not be a ''melakarta'' (take the raga ''Bhairavi,'' for example). In Hindustani music the '' thaat'' is the rough equivalent of ''Melakartā''. There are 10 ''thaats'' in Hindustani music, though the commonly accepted ''melakarta'' scheme has 72 ragas. Rules for ''Mēḷakarta'' ragas Ragas must contain the following characteristics to be considered ''Melakarta'': *They are '' sampurna ragas'' – they contain all seven '' swaras'' (notes) of the octave in both ascending and descending scale.''Ragas in Carnatic music'' by Dr. S. Bhagyalekshmy, Pub. 1990, CBH Publications''A practical course i ...
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Natya Shastra
The ''Nāṭya Shāstra'' (, ''Nāṭyaśāstra'') is a Sanskrit treatise on the performing arts. The text is attributed to sage Bharata, and its first complete compilation is dated to between 200 BCE and 200 CE, but estimates vary between 500 BCE and 500 CE. The text consists of 36 chapters with a cumulative total of 6,000 poetic verses describing performance arts. The subjects covered by the treatise include dramatic composition, structure of a play and the construction of a stage to host it, genres of acting, body movements, make up and costumes, role and goals of an art director, the musical scales, musical instruments and the integration of music with art performance. The ''Nāṭya Śāstra'' is notable as an ancient encyclopedic treatise on the arts, one which has influenced dance, music and literary traditions in India. It is also notable for its aesthetic "Rasa" theory, which asserts that entertainment is a desired effect of performance arts but not t ...
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Thaat
A ''thaat'' () is a "parent scale" in North Indian or Hindustani music. It is the Hindustani equivalent of the term '' Melakartha raga'' of Carnatic music. The concept of the ''thaat'' is not exactly equivalent to the western musical scale because the primary function of a ''thaat'' is not as a tool for music composition, but rather as a basis for classification of ragas. There is not necessarily strict compliance between a raga and its parent ''thaat''; a raga said to 'belong' to a certain ''thaat'' need not allow all the notes of the ''thaat'', and might allow other notes. ''Thaats'' are generally accepted to be heptatonic by definition. The term ''thaat'' is also used to refer to the frets of stringed instruments like the sitar and the veena. It is also used to denote the posture adopted by a Kathak dancer at the beginning of their performance. History The modern ''thaat'' system was created by Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande (1860–1936), an influential musicologist ...
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