What is Sargam

What Is Sargam? Sargam : Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa Dha, Ni, and Sa' Sargam is a way of assigning syllables to names of the notes in a raga or a musical scale. The sargam syllables are: Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa Dha, Ni, and Sa' in the octave. It is also called a singing exercise with notes. while pressing note of Sa, we sing Sa then Re and we say Re and so on. Sargam is also a vocal exercise in which the notes are used. It has the dual purpose of vocalization and finger practice.

Natural notes (pure or major) are called Shudh notes which are shown as S, R, G, m, P, D, N. The notes, or swars, are Khraj/Shadj, Rekhab, Gandhar, Madhyam, Pancham, Dhaivat and Nikhad. When singing these become Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, Ni, and sargam stands for "Sa-Re-Ga-Ma". Only these syllables are sung, and further designations are never vocalized. When writing these become, S, R, G, m, P, D, N. A sign of apostrophe on the right side of a letter (S') indicates the octave higher, a sign of apostrophe on the left side of a letter ('S) indicates the octave lower. Re, Ga, Dha, and Ni may be either shudh or komal; Ma may be either shudh or tivar and is then called tiver Ma. Sa and Pa are immovable (once Sa is selected), Don't think there is anything that you can practice that will have as much an impact on your playing as sargam. Take the sargam challenge. Play sargam every night for one month and then re-assess your playing skills afterward. In other words Sargam is the collection of music notes or the swar of the scale. It has been mentioned earlier how notes of the sargam relate to the western scale. Practicing to play sargam in  music is bit like weight training. Basic rules of weight training are to start with simple exercises with  lightweights. As you get comfortable with lightweights, you increase repetitions or increase the weight you  are lifting. You also focus on muscle group you work on. You go to heavier and more complex exercises  after you feel comfortable with the basic exercises. When we say sargam, we don't just mean a scale of notes but it means the act of playing the sargam. Playing the sargam is the single most important thing you can do when you are learning harmonium or keyboard. When beginning to learn harmonium, the teachers should not stress the playing of the sargam too much or enforce it. After all, there is nothing joyous about playing one note after the other in succession, over and over again. Students tend to hate sargam for this very reason. Getting students into sargam is a challenge. Sargam fixes everything. If your right hand is not strong enough, sargam fixes that. If you are not confident in class, sargam fixes that. If you don't know where the notes are at the beginning, or how to sit properly for long periods of time or need discipline or you are trying to increase your speed or clarity or timing or rhythm or etc; sargam fixes all. Sargam needs great practice, but it doesn't have to be boring. Nothing is more boring than playing the same notes over and over again, so spice up your sargam with some of the variations. This will sound like you are actually playing something. There are various books written on harmonium or keyboard but no suitable book is available on basics. These books were for advance learning and lessons were difficult to follow. This lesson of sargam is the first effort to produce sargam lessons in easy and with simplified exercises. With these lessons you will be able to play and sing-along with your harmonium or keyboard. All the exercises are produced with simple diagrams and notations. Thanks to great music composer Nisar Bazmi Sahib and all those colleagues who cooperated with me in producing these fundamental lessons.

Sargam Practice We can learn how to play music with keyboard or harmonium but without practice of sargam we cannot sing-along while playing harmonium or keyboard. Practice of sargam is very important for a harmonium or keyboard singer.

Raga Kalyan Sargam Every thaat is also a Raga and Raga Kalyan is derived from thaat Kalyan. The derivative ragas out of this structure are grouped under the broad head of Kalyan Thaat. Here its jaati is kept sapooran-sampooran for sargam practice only.

Arohi: S-R-G-M-P-D-N-S’ Amrohi: S’-N-D-P-M-G-R-S

Exercise 1 (Raga Kalyan) In this exercise we will practice Raga Kalyan notes in madh saptak. Raga kalyan is derived from thaat kalyan. In our notation system tiver notes are shown in capital letters and with red dot. Achal (fixed) notes are also shown with capital letters but with blue dot. S Achal

R Tiver

G Tiver

M Tiver

P Achal

D Tiver

N Tiver

Sit beside harmonium/keyboard properly as explained earlier. First you have to practice Arohi of raga kalyan sargam, which is ascending order as (S, R, G, M, P, D, N, S'). The arohi of sargam will be taught in ten stages. After completing ten stages of arohi you will practice amrohi, which is descending order of a sargam as ('S, N, D, P, M, G, R, S). You have to spend five to ten minutes on each stage for practice. Our practice of arohi and amrohi will be in madh or middle saptak. Below given diagram is showing raga kalyan notes in all three saptak. Raga kalyan is the best raga to start with. Raga kalyan notes are shown in all three saptak with finger numbers.

Thaat Kalyan notes shown in all three octaves

FINGER & ITS NUMBERS

Thumb 1, Index finger 2, middle finger 3, ring finger 4, little finger 5 First Stage – Sa (index finger 2) We will begin our practice in middle saptak that is best for beginners. Press note of Khraj, which is ‘Sa’ with right hand index finger number 2. With the voice of harmonium note try to synchronize your voice with it by saying ‘Sa’ for at least five seconds. Keep pressure on the note while pressing bellow of harmonium with your left hand. You have to practice at least 5-10 minutes on this first note of Sargam. In the beginning you may feel difficulty in synchronizing your voice with harmonium but gradually you will overcome this difficulty. Khraj note that is ‘Sa’ is shown in the diagram with a blue dot. All our basic lessons in raga will begin from middle or madh saptak.

Second Stage - Re (middle finger 3) Press note of Rekhab, which is ‘Re’ with right hand middle finger and do not displace your finger from Khraj note and only decrease its pressure from the note. By pressing note of Rekhab say ‘Re’ and try to synchronize your voice with the voice of harmonium as explained in the first stage. Say ‘Re’ again and again until your voice is fully synchronizes with harmonium. Your index finger and middle fingers must remain over the notes. In the picture below Rekhab note is mentioned with red circle. You should keep in mind that all above stages are linked and only one note is added in each stage.

Third Stage - Ga (thumb 1) Raising your finger from Rekhab note press note of Gandhar (G), with your thumb by twisting your thumb beneath your hand. Do not raise your second finger much higher over Rekhab note and only decrease its pressure while approaching Gandhar. Now again try to synchronize your voice with Gandhar note and repeat this practice again and again at least 10 minutes. In the picture below Gandhar note is mentioned with red circle.

Fourth Stage – (Kalyan Arohi) Sa, Re, Ga (fingers 2,3,1)

In this stage we will practice all three notes together, which we have already practiced. Press Khraj note ‘Sa’ with index finger and say this note for about five seconds. Then by pressing note of Rekhab say ‘Re’ for about five seconds and try to synchronize your voice with the voice of harmonium. Raising your finger from Rekhab note press note of Gandhar, with your thumb and say ‘Ga’ for five seconds.

Fifth Stage - Sa, Re, Ga, Ma (fingers 2,3,1,2) Now we have to learn four swars together and fourth swar is ‘Ma’. Saying note ‘Ga’ from previous stage bring your index finger on Madhym note and say ‘Ma’ for about five seconds. Now again bring your index finger back on Khraj note ‘Sa’ and after five seconds of vocal synchronizing press note ‘Re’ and keep practicing these four notes again and again with your particular fingers. This repeated exercise from Sa to Ma should not be less than ten minutes of duration. It should be remembered that we would stay on each note for about five seconds.

Sixth Stage – Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa (fingers 2,3,1,2,3)

Keeping in view fifth stage add Pancham note ‘Pa’ in your exercise. By raising your finger from Madhyam note press Pancham note ‘Pa’ with your middle finger and say ‘Pa’ for about five seconds. Keep on practicing Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa again and again for about 10 minutes. Do not forget to stay for five seconds on each note in each exercise while synchronizing your voice with swars.

Seventh Stage – Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha (fingers 2,3,1,2,3,4)

Connecting your link from sixth stage add note ‘Dha’ in your exercise. By pressing ‘Dha’ say this note by synchronizing your voice with it. Now you have to practice Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha for about ten minutes.

Eighth Stage – Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, Ni (fingers 2,3,1,2,3,4,1) Press Note ‘Ni’ with your thumb by turning your thumb under your hand and say this note for about five seconds. Soon after that position place your index finger No.2 again on the Khraj note ‘Sa’ and practice Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, Ni for about ten minutes like previous exercises of Sargam.

Ninth Stage - Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, Ni, Sa' (fingers 2,3,1,2,3,4,1,2) Continuing your lessons from previous stage bring your index finger on Khraj note ‘Sa’ in the third octave and try to synchronize your voice with the Khraj note while note is pressed. Duration of pressing each note in all above stages is not less five seconds. You should keep in mind that all above stages are linked and only one note is added in each stage.

Tenth Stage - Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, Ni, Sa' (fingers 2,3,1,2,3,4,1,2) Now you have to practice all these eight swars, which are given below:

Arohi: S, R, G, M, P, D, N, S'

Play left to right

Arohi of Sargam is ascending order of Sargam notes. The above sargam initiates from ‘Sa’ note of middle saptak and ends to ‘Sa’ note of third saptak. You should practice arohi of sargam until your fingers are not used to play notes without hesitation and confidence. One should try to practice Arohi without time limitation until perfection arises. Proper synchronizing of voice with swar is very important.

Sargam Exercise 2 (Raga Kalyan Amrohi) S', N, D, P, M, G, R, S (fingers 2,1,4,3,2,1,3,2)

After getting proficiency in Arohi you have to practice Amrohi, which is descending notes of a Sargam. You also have to practice Amrohi in stages as you already did in Arohi of Sargam but now in descending order from Taar (upper) Saptak towards Madh (middle) Saptak. Amrohi: S', N, D, P, M, G, R, S

Play right to left

Do not forget to stay for five seconds on each note in each exercise while synchronizing your voice with swars. There is also no time limitation for Amrohi practice but it should be continued until you get acquainted with the voice of notes. Fingering will be same as selected in Arohi practice but in reverse order. There must be a gap of one and half second between swars to breath.

First Stage – S', N, D, ⇐ (fingers 2,1,4)

In all these six stages you will have to practice as explained in earlier exercises of Sargam. You have to remain for five seconds on each note while saying relevant swars and by synchronizing your voice. The gap between each note must be one and half second in this initial stage. Total time of practice must be between 5-10 minutes.

Second Stage – S', N, D, P (fingers 2,1,4,3)

By adding note ‘Pa’ practice all four notes all over again and again for ten minutes and synchronize your voice with swars.

Third Stage - S', N, D, P, M (fingers 2,1,4,3,2) By adding note ‘Ma’ practice all four notes all over again and again for five to ten minutes and synchronize your voice with swars.

Fourth Stage – S', N, D, P, M, G (fingers 2,1,4,3,2,1)

Fifth Stage: S', N, D, P, M, G, R (fingers 2,1,4,3,2,1,3,)

Sixth Stage – S', N, D, P, M, G, R, S (fingers 2,1,4,3,2,1,3,2)

Now it is the stage of Amrohi, add Khraj note ‘Sa’ in your practice. In the sixth stage there is no fixed time period for practice of swars. You may increase your time if you feel you are not perfect in fingering or vocal.

Sargam Exercise 3 - Arohi Amrohi It is the time when we will practice complete sargam in ascending and descending order. This exercise is very important for harmonium students for basic music learning. Proper synchronizing of voice with swar is very important in this lesson. It is better to stay on each swar for five seconds and gradually decrease your time to four seconds and in the end half second. At least half an hour continuous practice is important but you can increase your practice time according to your capability. Now you got familiar with sargam notes in ascending and descending order so, we are going to write arohi and amrohi of sargam in normal style. Now notations of raga Kalyan sargam will be written from left to right but will be played according to direction of arrow. Try to remain on each note for half a second, which is the perfect speed for practice of Sargam. If you get bored then take rest and divide your practice time in parts or play in front of friends or family members. Note:- Sargam of raga bilawal, bhairav, bhairavi and other ragas will be provided with the sargam paper book and e.book. Order now for these books from the most comprehensive website of music teaching.

Ragas & Time: According to Indo Pak ancient theory, the musician's task in exploring mood is made easier if the performance takes place at the time and in the atmosphere appropriate to the raga. So if a raga that embodies the atmosphere of spring is played in spring it will be more effective than if it were played in winter. Play some classical sounding music and try to see if any particular Raga thrills you. Anything that turns you off completely? Play instrumental or light classical music at first before embarking on a heavy-duty vocal piece. Is there a piece that moves you? Puts you in a sublime or inspiring mood. Another aspect of the raga is the appropriate distribution in time during the 24 hours of the day for its performance, i.e. the time of the day denotes the raga sung at a particular time. Ragas are also allotted a particular time space in the cycle of the day.

Time based ragas are divided into four types: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Twilight raga when the notes re and da are used such as Raga Marwa and Poorvi. Mid-day and Mid-night ragas that include the notes ga and ni (komal). Ragas for the first quarter of the morning and night that include the notes re, ga, da and ni (komal) For the last quarter of the day and night, the raga includes the notes Sa, ma and Pa.

The entire ragas are divided into two groups: 1.

2.

Poorvi Ragas Uttar Ragas

The Poorvi Raga is sung between 12 noon and 12 midnight. The Uttar Raga is sung between 12 midnights and 12 noons. The variations on the dominant or “King” note helps a person to find out why certain raga are being sung at certain times. This raga classification is about 500 years old and it takes us to Mughals era. The beauty of the raga will not be spoiled by the time of the day it is sung. It is the psychological association with the time that goes with the mood of the raga. The object of a raga is to express a certain emotional mood and sentiment without any reference to

time and season. For a student of classical music, this classification may give an idea as to how to base his reasons for the traditional usage of raga.

Classification of Ragas under five principals: • Hindol, (There are also five ragnis for each class) • Deepak, • Megh, • Shri, • Maulkauns, From these five ragas, other ragas are derived. The first derivatives of the ragas are called raganis, and each of the five ragas has five raganis under them. There are 25 raganis for the above five ragas. Raganis are female and raga is male. You can guess raganis and raga from the name of the ragas. Further derivatives from these raga and raginis resulted in attaching to each principal raga 16 secondary derivatives known as upa-raga and upa-raganis. Every raga has a fixed number of komal (soft) or tiver (sharp) notes, from which the thaat can be recognized. In other words, a certain arrangement of the 7 notes with the change of komal and tiver is called a thaat.

Facts About Ragas: It took a long time for music to come to the form found in present-day India. The most important advance in music was made between the 14th and 18th centuries. During this period, the music sung in the north came in contact with Persian music and absorbed it, through the Pathans and the Mughals. It is then that two schools of music resulted, the Hindustani and the Carnatic. Hindustani music adopted a scale of natural notes and Carnatic music retained the traditional octave. During this period, different styles of classical compositions such as Dhrupad, Dhamar, Khayal, etc. were contributed to Hindustani music. Detailed melodic modes are used in Ragas. Traditionally, ragas are based on a complex Vedic philosophy of sound. A raga is also basically a set of Vedic-rooted rules for how to build a melody. It specifies rules for movements up (arohi) and down (amrohi) the scale, which notes should figure more and which notes should be used more cautiously. Which phrases to be used and which phrases to be avoided, and so on. The result is a framework that can be used to compose or improvise melodies, allowing for endless variation within the set of notes. There is no absolute pitch; instead, each performance simply picks a ground note, and the other scale degrees follow relative to the ground note. As ragas were never codified but transmitted orally from teacher to student, some ragas can vary greatly across regions, traditions and styles. Indian classical music is always set in raga, but all raga music is not necessarily classical. Many popular Indian film songs are themselves based on ragas. In today's Indian classical music raga is the backbone. The outstanding feature of Indian classical music is the “raga” concept. Raga is the essential concept of Indian classical music. Each raga is a distinct musical entity or unit by itself and possesses well-defined characteristics. The concept of raga is proud contribution to the world music. It is defined as melody mould or melody style. The goal of absolute music is reached in the concept of raga. Ragas are the artistic facts that can be recognized by a trained ear. Ragas are acoustic facts and every musician is aware of them. They are the creative talents of a musician. The ragas form the basis of all melodies in India. Raga is the soul of Indian classical music. If two songs sound strikingly similar the chances are based on the same set of notes and thus in the same raga. Raga is also identified typically by pattern recognition, if you are not willing to do detailed decomposition into the basic keys of their scale. Thus, a raga is described as the unmeasured music and it has a rich variety of classifications.

A Raga may also be characterized by a series of melodic notes pattern called challan, which means movement or by a key set of notes called pakad. These form the melodic outlines of a raga and include consecutive ascending and descending phrases. The challan discloses the basic grammar and the progression of a raga. Every raga has a note that is frequently used or held for a long duration and is called vadi or a sonant note. Similarly there is another note from vadi that is called samvadi or the consonant. This note is usually the fourth or the fifth note from the vadi.

Identify Raga From Raga Based Film songs: Pakaad or bandish are the most dominating notes of a given raga. Each raga has its own bandish. Whenever a music director composes a song based upon a given raga, he makes sure that he uses the bandish of that raga. This is the precise reason why two songs composed on the same raga sound similar. In a way, bandish is a common factor within all the tunes composed on a given raga. While rendering a raga, one should be vary careful of not using varjya swar. Varjya swars in a raga are the notes; those are strictly excluded in rendition. Varjya swar is the enemy of the raga. If a varjya swar is accidentally used during performance of a particular raga, it will spoil the atmosphere that a particular raga is supposed to create. So great artists do a lot of practice of a given raga so that they will never make the mistake of using varjya swar. Actually, to understand the bandish of any raga, it is better to listen and grasp the instrumental classical music played on a musical instrument or midi music. Since musical instruments do not utter words, the listener can concentrate and grasp the raga very accurately after repeatedly listening to the notes of the tune. Of course, if you are very well versed in classical music, then you can easily recognize a raga with ease even if you are listening to a vocal piece. Also, in order to grasp any given raga, one should listen to the same raga presented by different artists. If you listen to a vocal song based on a raga, say on radio or a in a computer, and you want to identify the raga of this song, then you should listen to it while you are farther away, say about 30 to 50 feet away from the player. It has been observed that you can recognize the raga of a song while listening to it from a farther distance rather than by listening to it closer. This is because as you go farther from the source of vocal sound, you do not listen to any words from the song, but you only hear the dominating notes or bandish of the song. Once you hear the bandish, you can easily recognize the raga of the song. Of course, one has to have prior knowledge of ragas before attempting to recognize it using this technique. Also note that within any raga or a melody there is a definite relationship among the notes. A song based on a given raga can be composed in any one of 3 octaves. This sometimes makes it difficult to identify the raga of the song, although the progression of notes follows the same rules of raga in any octave. The way some people have it easy, and can directly see the patterns and recognize a raga. Some others learn by going to a guru, but for a casual listener, it might take some practice and some intuitive thinking. If you listen too much film music, then there is a really good and easy way to try and learn ragas. Listen to a song and get someone to identify the raga initially for you. Learn this raga, by listening to the song and try humming along with it. Then turn off the song, and try humming along the same tune, but with variations. Let me name some songs for you. Let us take for instance, any song of Raga Kalyan e.g Ranjish hi sahi, composed by Nisar Bazmi Sahib. If you know the name of the raga, play this song in your cd player. Play it a couple of times, continuously, and then turn your cd player off. Sing the song, but use your imagination to sing it. And then slowly hum and let it loose. If you are finding trouble nailing the notes, get its lyrics. Once you've done this for a few songs, you will have some of it down. If you want to get theoretical however, and already have a decent ear, then learn the notes. It really and really helps if you can play an instrument, something visual. Harmonium is perfect, some persons learn on electronic keyboard, so the possibility is obviously endless. If you know theory and are just finding it hard identifying the ragas, then just stick with it and practice. You should try and improve your memory and memory association skills. Watch patterns, solve pattern puzzles, they all help.

There are certain clues to look for; here is a short suggestion on how to identify raga notes: First listen to how the raga alaap starts off or the song, it must always begin with the raga identification. Its not like you can just sing without telling the audience what the raga of the song is. Listen closer to each note sang. Listen very carefully, and note down which notes are higher and lower, then slowly approximate the scale. Make it thorough first. For example if you are listening a song you just try to sing-along with the song. Slowly try to get what are the swars inside that song. Ok you just think that you got the swars.

2. Thaat Kafi

Arohi:

S R g m P D n S' Amrohi: S' n D P m g R S

Ragas of Thaat Kafi: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Raga Kafi Bheemplasi Piloo Shivranjani

Bandish of a given Raga Bandish are the most dominating notes of a given raga. Each raga has its own bandish. Whenever a music director composes a song based upon a given raga, he makes sure that he uses the bandish of that raga. This is the precise reason why two songs composed on the same raga sound similar. In a way, bandish is a common factor within all the tunes composed on a given raga. A song based on a given raga can be composed in any one of 3 octaves. This sometimes makes it difficult to identify the raga of the song, although the progression of notes follows the same rules of raga in any octave. Once you memorize the bandish of ragas, you will be able to identify the raga of another tune that is based on same raga. Actually, to understand the bandish of any raga, it is better to listen and grasp the instrumental classical music played on a musical instrument. Since musical instruments do not utter words, the listener can concentrate and grasp the raga very accurately after repeatedly listening to the notes of the tune. Of course, if you are very well versed in classical music, then you can easily recognize a raga with ease even if you are listening to a vocal piece.

1. Raga Kafi Raga Kafi is a midnight raga. Raga Kafi is derived from thaat Kafi (Parental scale). Its vaadi sur is P and samvaadi sur is S. Its pakad is S-R-R-g-m-P. Its Jati (class) is Sampoorn-Sampoorn. Its similar raga is gara.

Raga Kafi Notes (same as thaat kafi)

Play Raga Kafi Singer Iqbal Yousuf Ramzi

Raga Kafi Sargam Arohi: S – R – g – m – P – D – n - S’ Amrohi: S’ – n – D – P – m – g – R – S

Songs of Raga Kafi: Keep diagram of raga kafi in front while playing songs 1. Tumhaaraa pyaar chaahiye mujhe, Bappi Lahri - Film Toote Khilone

2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Pyar bhare do sharmeele nain, Mehdi Hassan - Film Chaahat Rim jhim rim jhim pere phawar, Noor Jehan, Film Koyal Jalte hain arman mera dil roota hai, Noor Jehan - Film Koyal Sun wanjli di mithri taan way, Noor Jehan - Film Heer Ranjha

Tu hai phool mere gulshan ka, Film Phool Mere Gulshan Ka 7. Lat uljhi suljha ja re baalam, Noor Jehan - Film Sawal 8. Yeh raat yeh chaandni phir kahaan, Hemant Kumar - Fim Jaal 9. Hamari sanson mein aaj tak woh hina ki kshboo, Noor Jehan 10. Tere bheege badan ki kshboo se, Mehdi Hassan - Film Shabab 11. Ae dunya kia tujh se kehoon - Mehdi Hassan 12. Sab kuch luta ke hosh me, Talat Mehmood - Film Ik Saal 13. Ik sitam aur meri jaan abhi jaan baqi hai, Mehdi Hassan - Film Saiqa 14. Dil mein ho tum, aankhon mein tum, Bappi Lahri, Film, Satyamev Jayate 15. Qarar lootne wale qarar ko terse, Munir Hussain - Film Saat Lakh

2. Raga Bheemplasi Raga Bheemplasi is a afternoon raga. Raga Bheemplasi is derived from thaat Kafi (Parental scale). Its Vaadi sur is m and Samvaadi sur is S. Its behave is Shadj-Madhym. Pakad is ’n-S-gm-P-g, m-g-R-’n-S. Its Jati (class) is Audav-Sampoorn. Its first sur will start in Mandr saptk and will reach Madh in middle octave. Its similar raga is patdeep.

Arohi: ’n – S – g – m – P – n - S’ Diagram 4

Amrohi:

Diagram 5 S ’- n – D – P – m – g – R – S

Diagram 5 Arohi: ’n – S – g – m – P – n - S’ Amrohi: S ’- n – D – P – m – g – R – S Play with windows media player ragatracks

Alaap Bheemplasi & Film Song By Iqbal Yousuf Ramzi

Songs of Raga Bheemplasi: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16.

Zindagi mein to sabhi pyaar kiya karte hain, Taal Dadra, Mehdi Hassan Ae Ajnabi Tu Bhi Kabhi - Film Dil Se Khilte Hain Gul Yaha - Film Sharmilee Dil mein tujhe bithake puja - Film Fakira Nainon mein badara chhaye, bijali si chamke haaye, Taal Kehrva - Film: Mera SaayaAi ri main to prem diwani, Taal Kehrva - Film Naubahar Maine chand aur sitaronki - Film Chandrakanta Ye na thi hamari kismat, Film - Mirza Ghalib Jhanakar payalaki tose binati - Film Naga Devata Kismat Se Tum Ham Ko Mile Hon - Film Pukar Nainon mein badra chhaye - Film Mera Saaya Main gareebon ka dil hoon, Taal Kehrva, Film - Ab-e-hayat Dilmen tujhe bithake puja karungi teri, Film - Fakira Om nao Bhagavate Vasudevay - A bhajan by Pandit Jasra O beqarar dil, Film Khamoshi Kuch dil ne kaha, Film - Anupama

17. Tum mile dil khile, Film - Criminal 18. Naghma-o-sher ki saughaat – Ghazal 19. Aaa neele gagan tele pyar, Mahendra Kapoor, Film - Badshah

3. Raga Piloo Raga Piloo is afternoon raga. Raga Piloo is derived from thaat Kafi (Parental scale). Its vaadi sur is g and samvaadi sur is N. Its behaav is Shadj-Madham. Pakad is g-m-d-P-g-S-'N-S. Its Jati (class) is Audav-Audav. Its first sur will start in mandr – madh saptak and will reach madh in middle octave.

Diagram 6 Arohi : 'N – S – g – m – P – N - S'

Amrohi:

Diagram 7 S' – n – D – P – d – P – g – S

Diagram 7 Arohi : 'N – S – g – m – P – N - S' Amrohi: S' – n – D – P – d – P – g – S

Note: The notes with cross sign are present in thaat kafi but will not be played in raga piloo Amrohi. The green button (d) is not actually present in the thaat kafi but used as an extra note in raga piloo Amrohi.

Songs of Raga Piloo: 1. Ajahun na aye balma, Film - Sanjh Aur Savera

2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26.

Jhoole mein pavanki ayi bahar, Taal kehrva, Film - Baiju Bawra More sainya ji utarenge paar nadiya dhire baho, Film - Uran Khatola Dheere se aaja ri akhiyan mein nindiya - Film Albela Jaiye aap kahan jayenge - Film Mere Sanam Dhoondho dhoondho re saajna, Film - Ganga Jamuna Allah megh de pani de, Film - Guide Kali ghata chhaye mora jiya ghabraye, Film – Sujata Tere bin soone nayan hamare, Film - Meri Soorat Teri Aankhein Kaise chhupaaoon raaz-e-gham (Ghazal), Taal dadra, Mehdi Hassan Maine rang lee aaj chunariya sajana tore rang mein, Film - Dulhan Ek Raat Ki Baharon ne mera chaman loot kar, Film - Devar Ai meri johara zabeen, tujhe maaloom nahin, Taal Dadra, Film - Waqt Din sara guzara tore angana, Film - Junglee Mainu ishq lag gaya rog - Dil Hai Ke Maanta Nahin Apni kaho kuch meri suno, Film - Parchhain Ai meri Zohara zabeen, tujhe maaloom nahi, Film - Waqt Sur na saje, Film - Basant Bahar Jhulemen pavanki ayi bahar, Film - Baiju Bawra More sainya ji utarenge paar nadiya dhire baho, Film - Uran Khatola Maine shayad tumhe pahle, Film - Barsaat Ki Raat (old) Apni kaho kuchh meri suno, Talat Mehmood, Film - Parchhai Chura liya hai tumne jo dil ko, Film - Yaadon Ki Baraat De de pyar de, Film - Sharabi Mera pyar bhi tu hai yeh bahar bhi tu hai, Film - Saathi Kabhi aar kabhi paar laaga teer-e-nazar, Taal Kehrva - Film Aar Paar

4. Raga Shivranjni Raga Shivranjani can be played any time. Raga Shivranjani is derived from thaat Kafi (Parental scale). Its Jati (class) is Audav-Audav. Its first sur will start in Madh saptk in middle octave.This raga is extremely popular among instrumentalists. This raga is known to evoke the moods of romance and sorrow. Arohi and Amrohi notes of the raga Shivranjani are very close to raga Bhoopali except that in raga Bhoopali, the GA note is shudh whereas in raga Shivranjani, the GA note is komal which is represented as lower case ga. Also vaadi and Samvaadi notes are different in raga Shivranjani compared to raga Bhoopali. These differences set apart raga Shivranjani from raga Bhoopali. Obviously, both ragas sound totally different. Sometimes liberty is taken with raga Shivranjani and shudh Gandhar (Ga) may be used by some musicians.

Arohi: S – R – g – P – D - S'

Amrohi:

S’ – D – P – g – R - S

Arohi: S – R – g – P – D - S' Amrohi: S’ – D – P – g – R - S Note: Arohi and Amrohi notes of raga Shivranjni are same in ascending and descending order.

Bandish of Raga Shivranjani If you are familiar with Hindi songs then you will notice That the words “anjaana” in the song “Tere mere beechame, kaisa hain ye bandhan anjaana” (Film - Ek duje ke liye), “gaye vo” in the song “Jane kahan gaye vo din” and “samay ki” in the song “Mere naina” stanza “beete samay ki rekha” have the same exact notes or have the same subset of notes from bandishi of raga Shivranjani.

Songs of Raga Shivranjani: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19.

20.

Ajahun na aye balma, Film - Sanjh Aur Savera Mere naina savan bhado, Film - Mehbooba Jaane kahaan gaye wo din, Film - Mera Naam Joker Sansar hai ek nadiya, Film - Raftaar Aawaz deke hamem tum bulao, Film - Professor Banake kyun bigada re, Film - Zanjeer Ai mere sanam ai mere sanam, Film - Sangam Dil ke jharokhe mein tujhko bithakar, Film - Bramhachari Tere mere beech mein, Film - Ek Duje ke liye Kahin deep jale kahin dil, Film - Bees Saal Baad Tumhe dekhti hun to lagta hai aise, Film - Tumhare Liye Bahaaro phool barsaao, mera mehboob aaya hai, Film - Suraj Yaad teri aayegi mujhko bara sataayegi, Film - Ek Jaan Hain Ham Rimjhimke geet savan gaye, Film - Anjaana Na kisiki ankhka nur hun, Mohd Rafi, Film - Lal Quila Tumse milkar na jane kyun, aur bhi kuchh, Film- Pyar Jhukta Nahin Mujhe Kuch Kahna Hai, Film - Mujhe Kuch Kahna Hai Jo bhi dukh yaad na tha, yaad aya - A Ghazal by Ghulam Ali Kahin deep jale kahin dil, Film - Bees Saal Baad Mere sanam, Film - Sangam

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Raga asavari bandish and raga asavari Lakshan geet. Play raga based film songs, in desi style. e.books available. Listen raga asavari bandish, raaga darbari songs, raga jaunpuri song jonpuri

2. Thaat Asavari

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Arohi: S R g m P d n S’ Amrohi: S’ n d P m g R S

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Thaat Asavari Songs • •

Chale jana nahin naina milake - Film Badi Bahen Radha ke to ne bansri churai, Taala Sitarkhani - Film Beti Bete

Ragas of Thaat Asavari

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1. 2. 3.

Asavari Darbari Jaunpuri

Bandish of a given Raga

Bandish are the most dominating notes of a given raga. Each raga has its own bandish. Whenever a music director compos based upon a given raga, he makes sure that he uses the bandish of that raga. This is the precise reason why two songs co on the same raga sound similar. In a way, bandish is a common factor within all the tunes composed on a given raga. A son on a given raga can be composed in any one of 3 octaves. This sometimes makes it difficult to identify the raga of the song the progression of notes follows the same rules of raga in any octave. Once you memorize the bandish of ragas, you will be identify the raga of another tune that is based on same raga.

Each raga has its own bandish. Whenever a music director composes a song based upon a given raga, he makes sure that the bandish of that raga. This is the precise reason why two songs composed on the same raga sound similar. In a way, ban common factor within all the tunes composed on a given raga.

Actually, to understand the bandish of any raga, it is better to listen and grasp the instrumental film music played on a music instrument. Since musical instruments do not utter words, the listener can concentrate and grasp the raga very accurately repeatedly listening to the notes of the tune. Of course, if you are very well versed in raga based music, then you can easil recognize a raga with ease even if you are listening to a vocal piece. Hence, by remembering songs based on a particular ra will be able to identify the raga of another tune, if it is based on the same raga.

Variya Swar

Definition of Taal Rhythm is a concept that you encounter almost every day in our life. Due to your response to the rhythm in the music you instinctively tap your feet or click your fingers on hearing music There are many examples of rhythm in our life. By listening to these examples carefully, you can clearly identify repeating patterns of sound. These repeating patterns construct what is called 'rhythm'. Rhythm is a concept that we encounter almost every day in our life. Remember the time when you instinctively tap your feet or click your fingers on hearing music? Well, this reaction is nothing but your response to the rhythm in the music. There are many examples of rhythm in our life which are given below. You can clearly identify repeating patterns of sound by listening to music. Repeating patterns of sound is called rhythm. Any musical system is constructed with rhythm. Planets revolves around the sun according to set rhythm as well wave in stream flow in rhythm. Rhythm has existed several centuries before the ragas were invented. Rhythm is essential for Indian music or any music of the world. Indian system of rhythm is known as 'tala and tala means "clap". In north Indian music the tabla has replaced the clap in the performance of raga. Almost all the Indian compositions are built improvised with the help of tala. Tala is a repeating cycle of a number of beats per second which are grouped in a particular way which sounds pleasant. If we listen beats without proper cycles of rhythm then it will sound awaful.

North Indian Taals These are some of the famous Taals in Northern Indian music. Although most Tabla players know all the following Taals, but they don’t get to play them very often. Most commonly used Taals are ‘Teen Taal’ (16 beats), ‘Aik Taal’ (12 beats), ‘Roopak’ (7 beats), ‘Dadra’ (6 beats), ‘Kehrva’ (8 beats) and ‘Jhup Taal’ (10 beats). Note:- Click play button and let the music to fully download. After fully download you can listen complete music smoothly. To listen again press play button again.

Kehrva Taal signs Maatras Boles

(8 beats, two sections) X 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 Dha ge na ti Na ke

7 dhi

8 na

Dadra Taal signs Maatras Boles

X 1 Dha

(6 beats, 2 sections) 0 2 3 4 5 Dhin na ta tin

6 na

Jhaptaal Taal Taal signs Maatras Boles

X 1 Dhin

2 na

(10 beats, 4 sections) 2 0 3 4 5 6 Dhin Dhin na Tin

7 na

Roopak (7 beats, 3 sections)

3 8 Dhin

9 Dhin

10 na

Taal signs Maatras Boles

0 1 Tin

2 tin

3 na

2 4 Dhin

5 na

3 6 7 Dhin na

Tabla Sounds: Tabla has ten main sounds or boles. All other boles are combination of these sounds. These ten sounds are divided into three basic categories:

(I) Right side sounds: 1. na or ta 2. tin or ti 3. din or thun 4. tu 5. te 6. re

(II) Left side’s sounds: 7. Ge or Ghe (pronounced gay and ghay) 8. ke (pronounced kay)

(III) Sounds played with both hands at the same time: 9. dha ( ‘ge’ plus ‘na’ or #7+#1) 10. dhin (’ghe’ plus ‘tin’ or #7+#2) Please do not skip to the next sound until you learn one sound of one hand correctly.

How to Learn, Read and Play Taals To master a Taal, first memorize the boles, then learn to read (show) it on your palm. If you know a Taal’s flow by heart, then you can take any boles (sounds) and make them fit in that Taal. Most of the Indian film songs are composed in taal kehrva and other taal is dadra. Few film songs are composed in jhaptaal and rupak.

Showing a taal on your palm: Method: 1. Get your left palm out and count 1,2,3,4, 5,6,7,8 (beats in a Taal vary Taal to Taal) in any constant speed. Take a little breather before ‘5′ thus accenting 1st and 5th beat. 2. Now every time you say a number touch your left palm with one finger tip of your right hand.

3. Now clap on one (very quietly) with all four fingers on your left palm and count 2, 3, 4 with using your index, second and third finger. 4. On 5, do not clap, move your right hand away to the right instead, leaving this beat empty. 5. Count 6,7,8 the same as 2,3,4 by using your index, second and third finger. 6. You just counted the ‘Kehrva Taal’ on your palm. Please see below given table:

Taal Kehrva (8 beats, two sections)

Taal signs Beats Boles Hands

X 1 Dha Clap

2 Ge 1st

3 Na 2nd

4 Ti 3rd

0 5 Na Wave

6 Ke 1st

7 Dhi 2nd

8 na 3rd

The purpose to count: The purpose to count on hand is getting to know a Taal. You can sing anything while giving Taal with your hand. It is perfect way to find out if your piece ends on one (sum) or not. Or you can try to make a pick up or a fill. Once again, this is how the palm system goes: 1. we clap on every clap point (that is the Sum, and the other Taali points in a Taal) 2. We count all the other beats with our fingers just to keep rhythm. 3. We wave our right hand to the right to show Khali (empty point). Sometimes only the Sum (first beat) and the Khali (lighter point) are shown on the hand. It is called ‘giving Khali-Taali’. Please refer to definitions of rhythmic words to know more about these words.

A key to pronounce and memorize Tabla Boles (sounds) Tabla boles (sounds) can be really hard to remember if you see them individually. The key to memorize them is to see them as a group. Try to form a combination bole (sound). Some times combination boles are spread over two, three or four beats. See the broken ‘words’ and pronounce them together in whatever time they are written in. If there is no combination boles then try to read a section together. Memorize it then read the next section. In most Taals, you will find that you only have to memorize a portion of it. As the whole Taal forms a poetry of boles. For Dadra Taal please see below given tables.

Taal Dadra (6 beats, 2 sections) Taal signs Beats Boles Taal signs Beats Right Lleft

X 1 Dha X 1 Ta Ge

2 Dhin

2 Tin Ghe

3 na

3 Na

0 4 Dha 0 4 Ta Ge

5 tin

5 Tin

6 na

Let’s separate Left and rigt and see what is going on

6 Na

Here you see that in the both sections, the right hand is playing the same thing. To make the first beat and section heavier, two extra boles are added with the left hand. As described before, ‘ta+ge’ is ‘Dha’ and ‘tin+ghe’ is ‘Dhin’. It is just like any drum patterns. If you take them apart and write them in sections, you will see that how the bass drum separates the Taali (heavier) and Khali (lighter) sections.

Filmi Songs - Based On Thaat & Ragas Note:- Playing songs with thaat is easy due to seven notes ascending and seven notes descending. Please only experiment to play songs with thaat. It is recommended to play songs with ragas only. Below given list is actually belongs to raga-based songs and not thaat based songs. Identifying or appreciating a raga do not require any formal training. By identifying the similarities between songs of the same raga, one would be able to grasp the basic structure of the raga. Let us keep the list growing!!! Send in your suggestions and discoveries about raga based songs.

Thaat Bilawal

Thaat/Scale Bilawal Diagram 1

Sargam :

S R G m P D N S'

(ascending

notes) S' N D P m G R S (descending notes)

Try to play the sargam of bilawal given above for one hour for at least three days in the madh sabtak or middle octave. Your fingers should not jump or slip on wrong keys. After practice of sargam ascending and descending try to play the songs. I am sure that you will play the songs yourself without notation. This is the real way of learning keyboard. After practice of bilawal sargam repeatedly, your mind will be familiar with the voice of notes. If you will play one song perfectly then you will be able to play all the songs of thaat bilawal. While practice your fingers can reach other octaves or sabtak like taar sabtak but the arrangement of the keys will remain the same madh saptk given above in diagram 1. This is the secret which most of Ustad do not tell their students in such a short period. The songs based on thaat and ragas are tested in the keyboard. Your fingers shouldl only touch yellow keys and not white or black keys, while playing songs.Try to play one song at a time. Many more songs of bilawal will be provided with the e. book. Have a nice time and fun.

Songs of Thaat Bilawal (Raga Bilawal) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

11.

Ik piar ka nagma hai Ae dil kiski ki yaad mein Film Ik Tera Sahara Choo ker mere man ko Tum naa jane kis jehan me kho gae Bachpan ki mohabat ko Mushkil hai bahut mushkil, Film Mahal Tujhe jeevan ki dor se Film: Asli Naqli Lag ja gale ke phir ye hansi rat, Film Woh kaun thi Baharon mera jivan bhi sanvaro - Aakhiri Khat Pak Sarzameen Shaad Bad (trana) Tum ko dekha to yeh khyaal (Ghazal)

Thaat Kafi

Thaat/Scale Kafi

Songs of Thaat Kafi (Raga Kafi) 1. Dil men ho tum ankhon me tum , Bappi Lehri, 2. Tumhara pyar chahaee mujhe 3. Pyar bhere do sharmeele nain, 4. Rim jhim rim jhim pere phawar tera mera nit ka pyar 5. Jalte hain arman mera dil roota hai 6. Sun wanjli di mithri taan way, Film Heer Ranjha 7. Lat uljhi suljha ja re baalam 8. Yeh raat yea chandni 9. Tere bheege badan ki kshboo se 10. Ae dunya kia tujh se kehoon - Mehdi Hassan 11. Sab kuch luta ke hosh me 12. Ik situm aur meri jaan abhi jaan baqi hai - Mehdi Hassan

Thaat Asavari

Thaat/Scale Asavari

Songs of Thaat Asavari (Raga Asavari) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Be reham asmaa meri manzil bata hai kehan Chale jana nahin naina milake - Film Badi Bahen Meri yaad men tum na - Film Madhosh Tere pyar ki tamna ghame zindgi ke saee Tum zid to ker rehe ho, Mehdi Hassan Jadoon holi jae lenda mera naa, Noor Jehan

7. Sawan aya tum nehi aie 8. Oh dunya ke rakhwale, Film Beju Banwra 9. Jab bhi chahen ik nai soorat, Mehdi Hassan 10. Apno ne gham die to mujhe yaad, Mehdi Hassan 11. Tu jo nehi hai to kuch bhi nehi hai: S. B. John 12. O sun le oh Jane wafa Tu hai dunya meri: Film Sangdil (Pakistani)

Note: Please note that some songs may not adhere completely to a raga's format, i.e., they may not represent the raga in its pure form. While each song in in desi music is based primarily on a raga, but certain changes have been made while composing film songs. Some songs have their asthaay and antara based on different ragas. Such songs have been categorized based on the ragas of asthaayi or ragas of antra.

Thaat Bhairav or Bhero Songs of Thaat Bhero 1. Mohe bhool gae sanwarya 2. Saj rahi gali meri amma sunhere gote mein 3. Oh lagi re laage lagan yehi dil mein - Mehdi Hassan

4. Dard se mera daaman bher de - Jagjeet 5. Hame koi gham nahi thaa - Mehdi Hassan 6. Puchho naa kesee mein ne rain bitaee 7. Raam teri gan meli ho gai 8. Kehdo koi naa kere yahan pyaar 9. Mein to ik khawab hun - Mukesh 10. Hai isi mein pyaar ki aarzoo