Hindustani Classical Music - My little understanding - Part 6 (Raag)

In the previous article and ones before that on this topic, I have defined some basic  knowledge of terms and definitions used in Indian Classical Music. In this post and subsequent posts I will try to define what we understand by "Raag" and explain a few concepts around it.

What is a Raag?
It is difficult to define in one or two sentences. In an interview with Pandit Nikhil Banerjee and some westerner, when Ustad Amir Khan was asked this question he replied, "It is a combination of notes...". He gave  this definition because I think this the most simple definition that can be given to anyone not associated or familiar with our kind of music. (As was the case during the interview)
Raag is definitely a combination of notes. But there is much much more that should be said before the definition is complete.

Combination of notes
Each Raag has a defined set of notes that are 'allowed' and 'prohibited' to be used in the Raag. The quotes in the sentence above indicates that no one stops you from going out of the way and break this rule but most probably your composition or rendering will get altered to another Raag than what you set out to present at first or worst sound jarring to the listeners including yourselves.

The Raag notes structure is defined as ascending and descending structures.
The ascending (rising pitch) structure is called 'Aarohi' and the descending (descending pitch) structure is known as 'Avrohi'.

(Symbols: Re, Ga, Dha, Ni are shudh swars. Ma is Teevra. A dot (.) after a note indicates higher octave and a dot (.) before a note indicates the lower octave. Refer to earlier posts explaining the saptak)

If we take Raag Yaman as an example then:
Aarohi: Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni Sa.
Avrohi: Sa. Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa

Few things to point out here. This Aarohi starts with Sa and ends with the Sa in the next octave. All the notes are 'Shudh' except the 'Madhyam' which is Teevra. It employs all the 7 notes.

Some questions arise immediately:

Q1.Does the descending structure always have to be the reverse of the ascending structure?
Answer: No.

Q2. Do the "number of notes" have to same in ascending and descending structures?
Answer: No. They can be  different.

Q3. Can two Raags have same Aarohi and Avrohi structures?
Answer: Yes there are Raags that have the same Aarohi & Avrohi structures. Example Raag Bhoopali and Deshkar have the same Aarohi and Avrohi. But both sound totally different. Why? Read on.

'Vaadi', 'Samvaadi' and 'Vivaadi' notes of a Raag

After defining the Aarohi and Avrohi of a Raag, we define the 'Vaadi' and 'Samvaadi' swars.
Vaadi swar is the most emphasized note in the Raag and Samvaadi is the next most emphasized note. For example in Raag Yaman the Vaadi note is Ga (Shudh Gandhaar) and the Samvaadi note is Ni (Shudh Nishaad). When we say that a particular note is 'most emphasized' it means that the performer will make it a point to stress on that note the maximum and it will be the 'most heard' note. It does not mean that you need to take a stopwatch and calculate the timings of the notes during the entire Raag performance!! I have read books, (mainly by non-Indians) who did such a methodical analysis and came out with contrary conclusions on the 'most heard note' part of it. Indian music does not work that way!

Vivaadi notes are prohibited notes of a Raag. Experts say, that when such notes are added to a Raag they spoil the structure, construct and mood of the Raag. On the other hand, great musicians and vocalists have used such notes in their performances and produced real classics. But remember these are great artists of the field I am talking about. Generally, beginners should avoid using the Vivaadi notes.

Effect of Vaadi & Samvaadi notes

Why are the Vaadi and Samvaadi notes important? They are important because they form a crucial part in establishing a Raag. Remember that two Raags can have the same Aaroh and Avroh? But then they will invariably have different Vaadi and Samvaadi notes. This difference will in turn have an effect on the entire movement of the notes in the Raag, and the way the notes are grouped, making them sound totally different. For example Raag Bhoopali has Ga (Gandhar) as the Vaadi swar whereas Raag Deshkar has Dha (Dhaivat) as the Vaadi swar.
I will come up with many examples in audio and annotated audio gradually. But we need to understand some more theory before we appreciate these aspects in real time audio.

Let us keep this much for today. We are far from over with this and I will write on this in subsequent posts.