The Charm of Raga Desh
March 15, 2009
Classical Music from India is broadly divided into Hindustani Music and Carnatic. What I heard at home was almost entirely Hindustani Classical with a limited exposure to a few composers of Western Classical. The radio was our chief source of music.
There was of course an old turntable and a large collection of vinyl records that we all heard through the weekend. My father was a classical music buff and if he was home, the radio was on. He would occasionally pull out an old diary and scribble some notes after he heard a piece of music. I maintain when I have heard what Raga and the name of the artiste, he used to say. The same raga sung by a different artiste will evoke a different feeling. He had once explained the mystery of Ragas to me. The ragas sound best when they are sung at the time of the day they are designed for. The day is divided into twelve clusters (prahar) of approximately two hours each and the ragas assigned to these. There is a certain magic that you can experience when you listen to a Raga Bhatiyar or Raga Lalit if you hear it between 4am and 6am. Just try it out.
Over one summer vacation I heard many of the ragas at the designated hour and must say I was not disappointed. Each one seemed to resonate a little more when I heard it at the designated hour… or maybe I just imagined it. That summer I fell in love with Hindustani Classical music. I always marveled at how Baba always seemed to know which raga was being played just by listening to some snatches of notes. I wanted to do the same. When asked how, he would always smile mysteriously and ruffle my hair. One day he said, “Learning about Ragas can take a lifetime. Enjoy the different notes of a raga and notice how the dominant notes define the mood. Notice the patterns. Let me introduce you to Raga Desh. The song Vande Mataram is based on Raga Desh. If you remember this song you will always be able to identify the Raga when you hear it. This song is played every morning on the radio. You know the song, don’t you? Now try to look for a song that sounds like Vande Mataram. If they sound like long lost twins then chances are that song is based on raga Desh.” Here is what it sounded like…
Armed with that knowledge made it a mission in life to look for an audio twin of the national song. I kept trying to play the song in my mind over and over again so I would remember all the features I would need to identify the sibling. But none of the songs that I heard sounded the same. The year was 1971. My parents had gone to see the Hindi film Anubhav (Experience) and had gushed about its music director Kanu Roy, the brother of the singer Geeta Dutt. I did not understand anything of the movie. It was all about a husband and wife who were fighting with each other. And then it happened. The song Phir KahiN Koi Phool Khila (translation: Somewhere… once again a flower has bloomed) started to play. I sat up and listened. Something was happening to my mind. The sound of Vande Mataram played in my head as if tugging my sleeve and pointing towards a face in the crowd. I screamed in delight much to the disgust of others around me. My parents were embarrassed. I whispered to my father, “Daddy! I found the twin of Vande Mataram. This song is the one.”
On the way back, he said, “You have made your first friend among the many Ragas. It is Desh. It sounds the best between 8pm and 10pm at night. That is what the great musicians will tell you. But you can also enjoy Desh just as much during the monsoons.” I waited patiently for the monsoons so that I could enjoy this new mood of Desh. Eventually that happened too. That evening in July the sky was dark with monsoon clouds. I ran to rummage through the vinyl records to look for Raga Desh. The streaks of lightning were writing mysterious messages in the sky. I stood in my courtyard waiting to feel the first drops of rain on my face before I would go and switch on the turntable. The drops fell and I ran back to turn on the music and shut off the lights to enjoy the new flavor of Desh. It was an evening I will never forget.
Vande Mataram also underwent a new interpretation with AR Rahman when India celebrated its 50th year of independence. It appealed to the youth and made it cool to feel patriotic. Watching the youth icon raise the Indian flag brought a lump to many a throat of even die hard cynics. I loved the video but missed the pristine version of Desh.
Another example of Desh being used in a modern idiom is RD Burman’s composition Pyar Hua Chupke Se from the film 1942 A Love Story again a beautiful example of the romantic flavor of Desh. This film was also the last that RD Burman composed music for.
You can learn more about Raga Desh from this amazing site of Rajan Parrikar
Listen to Ustad Rashid Khan sing Raga Desh
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This was a fascinating read. Loved it
Abihijit – thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I remember hearing it during my childhood that each Raaga has its designated time, but I guess I need to experience it, since I am going crazy for Hindustani raagas now-a-days. Thank you for sharing. I felt proud to be part of this beautiful thought by being a reader.
VJ
The word “scale”, I believe, is etymologically born out of the Latin word for a ladder: scala. In other words, a scale, say pentatonic, which is one of western popular music’s most used scales (in most rock compositions, for instance), is merely a ladder for the music to climb, from one note to the same note one octave higher. And the signature sound – and feel – of each scale lies in the way you dance up and down the scale.
Most western scales like pentatonic are simple, relatively speaking. That has its merits – inasmuch that it allows perhaps the player more easily to experiment and innovate – as well as limitations – the simplicity often restricts the depth and finesse of emotions that can be captured/associated with a particular scale.
Indian scales, or Raagas, are however wonderfully complex. The way you go up most Indian musical ladders is not the same as how you come down it. The intonations, and phrasing, of how you dance from one note to the next is often also finely nuanced. And with this stunning complexity comes the magical depth of emotional portent of each such Raaga. In the hands and voices of maestros, the soundscapes can literally transport the immersed audience into a different reality: Basant can bloom flowers on a dead tree, Megh Malhar can rain down on a desert, and the artiste and the audience, the Tansen and the Akbar, can together be uplifted to a musical reality beyond the everyday grasp of normal realities.
I am a novice in understanding Raagas. Or western music, for that matter. But music strikes a chord that resonates my very core. Over time, and with helpful nudges from articles such as the one you wrote here, I hope I will get to understand music more over time, and the journey of that discovery will no doubt be both my destination and destiny.
Thanks for sharing! I thought it was beautifully and simply written, and it definitely moves the reader.
Fantastic Abhijit. The articles is marvellous even i had an ear for indian ragas … so i loved it much more .. thx again for this article
Abhijit,
This is really great. It generated interest in a non listener of classical music like me. Really well written.
Thanks
Abhijit, thoroughly enjoyed reading the write up….very interesting
Thanks Abhijit – well written!!
Having been exposed largely to only carnatic music all my life, I am a bit more aware today than before about Raaga Desh.
———————
Popular Film Songs in Raag Desh are :
1. Dil ne kahaa, chupake se, pyaar hua chupake se
Film: 1942 A Love Story
Singers: Kavita Krishnamurthy
Music Director: R. D. Burman
Poet: Javed Akhtar
2. Door koi gaaye, dhun ye sunaaye
Film: Baiju Bawra
Singers: Shamshad Begum Lata Mangeshkar
Taala: Keharva
Music Director: Naushad
Poet: Shakeel Badayuni
3. Ham tere pyaar mein saara aalam kho baithe
Film: ?
Singers: ??
Taala: Dadra
4. Om jai jagadish hare
Film: Poorav Aur Pashchim
Singers: Mahendra Kapoor Mukesh
Taala: Keharva
Music Director: Laxmikant Pyarelal
5. Phir kahin koi phool khila, chaahat na kaho usko
Film: Anubhav
Singers: Manna Dey
Taala:?
Music Director: Kanu Roy
Poet: Kapil Kumar
Non-Film Songs in Raag Desh are :
1. Chadaria jhini re jhini (Bhajan)
Singers: Anup Jalota
Poet: Kabir
and of course the
2. Vande maataram
The above is from :
http://www.soundofindia.com/raaga_details.asp?raaga=28
Other useful sites are :
http://natnihc.blogspot.com/2007/02/desh-raag.html
http://www.esnips.com/doc/75013d94-6978-4738-9a51-6127480dee4d/Raag-Desh
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oz46DtJTEes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWyyKA-QEZc&feature=related
http://www.deezer.com/track/raag-desh-T1791323
http://www.last.fm/music/Anup+Jalota/_/Chadariya+Jhinee+Re+Jhinee?autostart
I was reminded of the time when we children used to lie awake on the open terrace under the heavens and listen in to the maestros in the late night All India Radio special national broadcasts.
Abhijit,
How lovely to read about your connection with the ragas.
I was a small little girl when I was exposed to the ragas. I remember I appeared for an exam for classical music and passed it too. Everybody had to write the theory. I was exempted as I did not know how to write at that time. I was six.
Music remained with me since then, specially ragas.
You know the Rabindra sangeet ‘Esho shyamala shundaro, ano tabo tapohara trishahara sanga sudha, birahini chahiya achhe akashe’.
If you sing this you will get the Bande mataram tune immediately.
Thanks once again.
Indrani
This article took me back to my childhood and my preferences in music – especially classical. I must say I have been able to appreciate Desh here much more than earlier in my life as it was not one of my favourites…(I prefer the Kanada/Darbari family of ragas).
Thank you for bring back memories and more importantly music for the soul.
Dear Abhijit,
It is almost as if you have taken me captive and lead me to another place. I was in a trance after reading your article and listening to the Raga Desh. The Raga Desh is good psychological medicine for the soul and is quite possibly interpreted by your culture as an ancient practice of India, whereas in the west, one might interpret this as a religion. There is great healing and renewing energy in the intonations of the drum, the sitar and the human voices. What is one person’s belief may be another person’s dance. To borrow a Shakespearean phrase, albeit modified, “If music be the food of love, play on Raga Desh.”
Best Regards,
Jody Allen
Nice article on one of my favorite raga.
Thanks for this wonderful article! I have just started learning the mellifluous raag Desh. Reading your artcile makes me feel nostalgic, especially the early morning radio playing – Vande Matram!
Hello, dear Abhijit Bh. !
just found your article here. Great… seems you are a real fan of Indian Classics
I was looking for some details about Desh as I will present the Jugalbandi “Manilal Nag & Ali Ahmad Hussain Khan” in my next annual radio show for Indian Classic… (Rec.: If you like to know, the topics here… http://imcradiodotnet.wordpress.com/category/raga-cds-of-the-months/eng-english/ )
A CD with Raga Desh by Manilal and AAHK was released in the 90th … http://www.amazon.com/Jugalbandi-A-Sitar-Shehnai-Duet/dp/B000QQXNMA
Wish you a happy weekend with “Independence Day” !
Warm regards from Europe/North Germany, Hamburg – ElJay.
(P.S.: 1st time I read about this specific status “MBA”… Funny…)
Abhijit Ji,
Just happened to google Raga Desh and came across your article. An excellent piece indeed ! Thanks a lot for a very well written explanation including links to some wonderful illustrations……
God Bless !!!
Iqbal
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hi,
a really enlightening piece there.. would love to read more from you about other raags in hindustani classical music.
Thank you so much for this enlightening share. Raga Desh is my favorite raga personally. The emotions it invokes and the mood it creates are beyond words. Please also try and find Pt. Mani Prasad of Kirana Gharana’s rendition of the same raga from his collection of bandishes under the name of Dhyan Rang Piya.
RT @abhijitbhaduri: The Charm of Raga Desh http://bit.ly/9ZBwFV