The raga is an Indian scale which utilises varying ascending and descending patterns – certain notes on the way up and certain notes on the way down – but always in the set sequence. The raga never has less than five notes – the minimum required for a tune.
lit. colour; the melodic structure basic to Hindustani and Karnataka music
A word whose roots are derived from the Sanskrit term ranj which stands for "that which affects or colours the mind". A dynamic musical entity whose association with a particular mood, a season or a time of the day is as important as its melodic structure. The raga can be considered a melodic framework suitable for composition and improvisation. Made up of a fixed scale, each raga has a certain number of identifiable characteristics such as the order of appearance and the hierarchical ranking between its intervals, the magnitude and duration of each note and even the exact technique sometimes needed for its appearance.
Melodic pattern used in music of India; prescribes pitches, patterns, ornamentation and extramusical associations such as time of performance and emotional character.
Combination of notes which conveys a definite emotion
1. liking, attraction. 2. [in Indian classical music, a particular mode or order of sound or formula].
a certain combination of notes that create a certain effect on the listener
a combination of five, six, or seven notes played in a melodious pattern
a highly sophisticated system of melody form or melody structure with which a musician improvises
a melodic scale, consisting of notes from the basic seven known as sa, re, ga, ma pa, dha, and ni
a melodic sequence with a minimum of five notes patterned in a fixed ascending and descending order - the aroha and avaroha
a musical phrase that evokes an emotional response in the listener, and is associated with a particular time of day, season and mood
a noble concept in the musical legacy of India
a particular melodic framework or underlying potential structure somewhere between two modes and scales
a piece of music that colours the mind and that brings out certain emotions, certain sentiments and feelings
a powerful musical scale format that deepens the feeling and intention of the prayer)
a scale used in carnatic and is defined by a characteristic ascent ( aarohaNam ) and a descent ( avarOhaNam )
a scientific, precise, subtle, and aesthetic melodic form with its own specific ascending and descending movement consisting of either a full seven-note octave, or a series of six or five notes
a set pattern of ascending and descending notes or swaras which, when sung or played correctly, resonate exactly with the sound vibration of some aspect of God as manifest in material reality
See under explanation of terms used in South Indian music
Musical mode, any of a large number of traditional melody patterns with characteristic intervals, rhythms, and embellishments, used by Hindu musicians as source material for improvisation [9].
The basic arrangement of the traditionally accepted thirteen notes in the musical gamut. This basic framework is elaborated according to the established norms in Hindustani art music. Raga is a highly sophisticated concept which distinguishes Indian art music from other melodic systems such as Arabic and Persian.
Melodic type or mode, which is the basis of Indian classical music, of which there are hundreds in common use
A traditional form in Hindu music, consisting of a theme that expresses an aspect of religious feeling and sets forth a tonal system on which variations are improvised within a framework of progressions, melodic formulas and rhythmic patterns.
A melodic form in Indian classical music consisting of particular scale notes, having a identifiable melodic shape and with an associated mood.
literally colour/mood, more commonly one of seven Indian melodic forms on each of which there are numerous variations
A scalar-melody, that is "A continuum with scale and tune as its extremes." (Powers 98) It is characterized by scale and modal prescriptions such as pitch ranking, characteristic ascent and descent patterns, motives, use of ornaments, performance time, and emotional character. (Randel 680)
A melodic structure of fixed notes or swars but which has certain characteristics pertaining to rules governing their presentation. See the website question 'what is a raga?' for more in-depth detail about a raga's characteristics.
Mode system in Indian music with characteristic patterns, performance time, and mood.