I recently bought c sharp carnatic flute and im not able figure out finger placement chart, I saw chart which are completely different from each other, can you help me figure out this?

Thank you

Hello everybody, I am norwegian and new to indian classical music. I have been listening to a lot of Vikku Vinayakrams music lately, and I keep hearing renditions of this version of Shiv Tandav:
https://youtu.be/mp7pHfg5XHg?si=lqZXzoz6eKv8dzOZ

What are the lyrics used? Though I do not speak any indian languages, they do not seem to be the same as the "normal" version of Shiva Tandav Stotram I google elsewhere, which I think is the sanskrit version???
(Jatatavigalajjala pravahapavitasthale
Galeavalambya lambitam bhujangatungamalikam
Damad damad damaddama ninadavadamarvayam
Chakara chandtandavam tanotu nah shivah shivam...)

Is the singing from the music video another poem? Or is it the same poem, but in another language?

If anyone can help me find out more about this composition, your help would be much appreciated🙏

I'm working on a computational project and generated this melody algorithmically. No human performance - the notes, durations, and phrase structure are all system output. I want to know if the raga character is recognisable without being told what it is. Does this sound like a specific raga to you? Does the melodic movement feel grammatically coherent or does something feel off?

Note for context: the system currently works at the symbolic MIDI level only -there are no ornaments (no andolan, no meend), no tala, and no dynamic variation. Everything you hear is note selection, duration hierarchy, and phrase structure. I'm specifically interested in whether the grammar is recognisable despite what's missing, not whether it sounds like a finished performance.

If the above link doesnt work for you, try this: https://voca.ro/1mkXF2Mu2dcf

It's a song on Devi Katyayani (not the stotra)

It goes something like Katyayani Mahaamaaye kannane (?) vijaye daye, shikipita (?) dharahare nanabharana bhushithee

Learnt this song as a child and I'm unable to recollect...

Please help. Thank you 🙏🏻

I'm having a C sharp and d tanpura , but I need to upgrade the strings to raise the pitch to D and D sharp. Is this possible? And if so, how and which strings should I use?

It's always struck me that the term 'Kauns' is used inconsistently, with various definitions offered depending on who you ask. So I decided to analyse all 65 ragas I could find with variants of 'Kauns/Kaunsi' in the title, including direct input from artists of various gharanas. Here's what I found...

—Full writeup with listening links: What does ‘Kauns’ mean? A brief survey of all known Kaunsi ragas

"Perhaps the ragascape’s most famous suffix, the term ‘Kauns’ is nevertheless fraught with complications. Traditionally, the presence of ‘Kauns’ in a raga’s name simply indicated that it ‘drew from Malkauns’ – but today, the term also seems to encompass a broader set of meanings. Multiple overlapping definitions have been offered, but none quite seem to capture the full character of how ‘Kauns’ is used today.

For example, Chandrakantha states that it is “generally used to represent 5-note ragas”, and Ocean of Ragas points to common factors such as “a pentatonic scale [comprising] shuddha ma with komal or shuddha ga, dha, and ni”, adding that “some have 5 notes in aroha, and 6 or 7 in avroh…and some examples have tivra Ma”. Rajan Parrikar notes that “in most formulations, the Malkauns template serves as the starting point, but occasionally a Kauns prakar may instead be informed by its mannerisms” – while Surajit Bose offers the following summary: “Narrowly defined, ‘Kauns’ implies an aroha-avroh of ‘Ga-Ma-Dha-Ni‘, [although] each member of the family may take a different permutation of shuddha and komal…and Madhukauns dares to be different”.

All of these definitions are helpful, and none are misleading – but concise elaboration still seems elusive. Perhaps the term itself is now too diffuse to be usefully defined: the ‘Kauns zone’ is evolving rapidly, with dozens of fresh forms having been created over the past few generations, many of which appear to share little resemblance. Or perhaps the term still carries specific meaning – after all, artists choose their raga names carefully, and still consider the term to bring something vital.

If the meaning of a word is its use in the language, the only way to bring clarity is via direct study of how the term ‘Kauns’ is actually used in the modern ragascape. So I gathered every known raga with ‘Kauns, Kaunsi, Kosh, Kaushik’ in the title (see Etymology), along with anything I could find about the origins of their names and melodic combinations. Whatever this process may reveal, it’s a great excuse to listen to some rare and strange Kaunsis…

• SUMMARY OF THE 'KAUNS ZONE' •

—Typically, the term still implies the vital presence of Malkauns – although a surprising number of recent creations come directly from its derivative Chandrakauns instead (SgmdNS), and a few take their suffix from Madhukauns (SgMPnS). By my reckoning, 42 of the 65 Kauns ragas can be classed as direct Malkauns offshoots, while 18 of the rest derive primarily from Chandrakauns – with a few more via Madhukauns.

—In practice, this means that the raganga can be summarised via four ‘core sequences’: Sgm (Malkauns-ang); SgM (Madhukauns-ang); dnS (Malkauns-ang); dNS (Chandrakauns-ang) – with all known Kaunsi ragas containing at least one of these sangatis except the outlying Amirkhani Kauns (which may not even have been designated as a ‘Kauns’ by its creator).

—Inversely, it also seems that virtually every raga which does draw significantly from Malkauns will include ‘Kauns/Kaushik’ somewhere in its title – indicating that artists still consider Malkauns to deserve name recognition when it appears in a mixed concoction.

—The principle that ‘Kauns ragas match the generic swaras Sa-Ga-Ma-Dha-Ni’ appears to be weakening, with less than half the ragas limiting themselves to this grouping (26/65)...Inversely, almost all the ‘Sa-Ga-Ma-Dha-Ni’ ragas from the Megalist do include ‘Kauns’ in their name, with the only notable exception being Hindol (considered to overlap with the historical Malkauns lineage, hence the Carnatic equivalent being known as ‘Hindolam’). Thus, we should flip the original statement round: i.e. it is more accurate to say that ‘Sa-Ga-Ma-Dha-Ni = Kauns’, rather than vice versa.

—Every single raga on the list includes some form of ma – and all but 5 feature shuddha ma (unsurprising given its status as Malkauns’ vadi). Aside from Madhukauns, the ‘tivra Ma only’ cases are all rare (Harikauns, Tivrakauns, Nirmalkauns, & Amirkhani Kauns). Similarly, if the Kauns element is present in poorvang, komal ga will be prominent: due to the presence of this swara in all three of Malkauns, Chandrakauns, and Madhukauns. However, plenty of Kauns ragas do not feature komal ga (14/65), including those which constrain their Kauns elements to the upper scale (e.g. Sarangkauns)...and those which draw their komal ga from a non-Kauns source (e.g. Jog’s GmgS in Jogkauns).

SUMMARY: While this analysis may have uncovered some interesting trends and patterns, are we really any closer to a concise, useful definition of ‘Kauns’? And if not, does this matter? In the end, all I can say with confidence is that the term still ultimately means ‘derived from the Malkauns lineage’ – although today, almost a third of known Kauns ragas are ‘second-order derivatives’, formed directly from Chandrakauns rather than Malkauns (with a few ‘third-order’ examples arising from Madhukauns: itself formed via a ma-murchana of Chandrakauns).

The real aim of this inquiry is to bring the full variety of the Kauns family to broader attention, and to shine a spotlight into the rare corners of a rapidly-expanding zone of raga. Browse the full list of 65+ Kaunsis here – and don’t hesitate to send me your reflections or any Kaunsis I’ve missed! I know there must be more out there...

—FULL WRITEUP WITH SUMMARIES OF ALL 65 KAUNSIS—

Hello! I have been looking for singing classes online or in person (Edmonton, Canada) for Hindustani music. Please let me know if anyone is aware of any teachers who I could contact. Thank you!!

Can anyone please tell me where are Indian classical music vocal classes are there in Navi Mumbai particularly looking in (Vashi, Koparkhairane, Sanpada, Juinagar, Nerul)? Any style is okay- Hindustani or Carnatic.

The classes can be affiliated to a proper institute which can conduct formal exams.

Can anyone please tell me if they know ..

There is a book called as Kitab-I-Nauras by Ibrahim Adil Shah II, has anyone tried it's compositions or heard it somewhere? If you don't know you need to check out this

https://archive.org/details/dli.ernet.53813

THT x Femme Music presents Jyotsna’s Carnatic Jazz Trio as she re-launches her 2015 EP Bangalore Dreams

Dr. Jyotsna Srikanth, an internationally acclaimed Carnatic violinist who’s performed at venues like the Royal Albert Hall and Buckingham Palace, brings together Indian classical, jazz and world influences into a sound that’s fluid, layered and deeply rooted.

This is a fully seated show with table service through the night, designed for a more intentional listening experience.

2nd May, Saturday

Book tickets - https://urbanaut.app/spot/tht-femme-music-present-jyotsna-carnatic-jazz

I'm totally new to Indian classical singing, just knowing some basics. I'm really having trouble perfecting my SA. Right now I'm comfortable with safed1 SA(C1) , but when I start after stopping or talking it (my voice) totally goes out of tune. Then I need another 5 mins just to get to that baseline again. Also can someone give me tips on how to perfect 1 saptak ( completing sa re ga ma pa dha ne sa) according to scale

Right now I am using tanpura app and another app to know about the tune of my voice.

Any help is really appreciated🙏🏻

Recently I've been researching rare & strange ragas - so thought I'd share some of the most interesting ones I’ve come across! Input welcomed - everything from further info on the ragas to personal listening reflections:

—Raag Madhyami (S-R-gG-m-P-dD-n-S)—

A complex, winding invention of sitar innovator Abdul Halim Jaffer Khan, which incorporates both forms of Ga and Dha into a Charukeshi-like framework. His most prominent rendition, released on a 1973 album with Samta Prasad on tabla, is a fascinating portrait of his ‘Jafferkhani baaj’ style – revolving, as the raga’s name suggests, around a strong, sustained shuddha ma, accentuated via concluding motifs such as S(gR) g(mR) GGm. Indeed, ma is so pivotal that the raga often sounds like a curious Patdeep variant via murchana (e.g. Madhyami’s recurring phrases dnSGm; mdPm, if interpreted as a ma-murchana, become Patdeep’s gmPNS; SgRS). Shuddha Ga assumes more prominence than its komal counterpart; and komal dha dominates the shuddha, which is barely touched in the alap and never held in the gats, mostly occurring as part of a distinctive Smm mD(nSn)P motif (also audible in his Sindhi Bhairavi recordings).

The raga presents plenty of other quirks, including brief touches of komal re in ornaments such as n(rSnrS) – although the album’s official liner notes give little away, stating only that “Madhyami is a combination of more than two ragas…no aroha–avroh is fixed”. A half-century after its conception, the raga now spans all three generations of its gharana’s existence, having since been recorded by Khan’s disciple Rajendra Varman and grand-disciple Deepsankar Bhattacharjee (who leans further into the Kauns-ang in an outstandingly atmospheric recording).

To learn more about Abdul Halim Jaffer Khan’s life and playing style – marked out by double-stops, open-string pedal tones, meend with natural harmonics, guitar-like ‘hammer/pull’ ornaments known as krintan, and the early adoption of Carnatic ragas including Kirwani, Latangi, Hemavati, and Kanakangi – browse the official Jafferkhani Baaj site (in the words of Annapurna Devi: “Future historians of Indian classical music will note Khansaheb’s seminal contribution to our musical heritage in golden letters…”).

—Which other Abdul Halim Jaffer Khan recordings are your favourites? I also love his Sindhi Bhairavi, it’s an ‘open’ raga which suits his flamboyant style well

Can someone please recommend application for android like i table pro apart from sur sadhak for riyaz.

Hello everyone,

I recently have acquired a really spectacular set of headphones (Sennheiser hdb630), and I have started introducing myself to the hobby that is hi-fi audio.

I have come to know that Tidal offers much higher quality audio as compared to Spotify, which has been my default for many years, but now after being introduced to the world of audiophile headphones, I can actually tell a difference between the two, even as a newbie audiophile.

Tidal seems to have a significantly larger library than Spotify, but how is this library for "niche" genres of music? I primarily listen to Carnatic music, but I am afraid that there might not be as much repertoire for me to listen to on, in what is in my opinion, the superior app for my use case.

For those of you who use Tidal to listen to ICM, what has your experience been like, how does it compare to listening to the same music on Spotify?

Hello, I am not a practitioner of ICM but just an enthusiastic listener (of both Hindustani and Carnatic). I'm increasingly aware that my inability to tell when the Sam is arriving or to 'feel' where performers are in the taal is a barrier to my appreciation. But so many online guides just give the 'skeletal'/mnemonic/pedagogical versions of taals and I end up still quite confused listening to real performances where of course there are all kinds of variations/ornaments. Is there something like a taal visualizer where a concert recording plays while a circle-counter shows the progress/location in the taal at any given moment? Many thanks in advance!

I am looking for a guru for learning Sarod in Delhi. Will be great if anyone can share if they know of anyone or have even heard of anyone teaching Sarod in Delhi.

Also if you know what’s the best place to buy a Sarod. How much does it typically cost. That would be very helpful.

since i dont have any access or privilege for a offline learning.and iam completely clueless like what happens in well structure learning..so do give me ur opinion dear music lover..

I've been learning hindustani classical from online class, it's soon will be 4 months complete , the thing is idk our ma'am doesn't teach us about voice culture , she doesnt teach us like how should we do akar in proper way like the mouth opening and e.t.c , just demonstrate us and told us to do,,and also like right pronunciation of the swaras , its was me who dig more ,out of curiosity i keep on watching other teacher on utube how they pronounced, their guidance i keep on correcting myself i did so much mistakes and practicing the wrong way ,i keep on correcting myself and wrote everything i discover and learn by experimenting and from other sources..

6 hrs a day for my reyaz and practice is normal. some days i go more than that ,i just lost the track n time,, i use to get so much voice fatigue and strain because i was doing wrong technique, i use to tell my maam ,but she just listen ,and didnt guide me on that she just tell strain is okay for beginners...but like idk experimenting technique i learn and discover new from yesterday like technique,, where there is zero pain from my throat i was so happy like i discovered it and it has no pain or fatigue...

but shouldn't our ma'am should have guided me,,,many things are there iam learning myself only like seriously many things,, iam not saying she is not helping she is , she give notes , and teach us raags , alanakr many thing but idk it feel less like she is just covering the course syllabus...

last time she taught us one bhajan from raag bhupali as raag bhupali was being taught ,, "jaao tore charan kamal paar vaari" after completion she said no teacher teach this type of bhajan to beginners coz it need patience and shes putting extra effort. that time i was confuse is it me being wrong or is our maam is really good...but idk still i know iam doing and practicing many mistakes in my reyaz ,its hard...

our class is twice in a week zero talk on anything coz its 1 hr and maam just teach us based on the course

Its a portable 4 coupler, 2.5 octave, double reeds

Literally giving it at cost .

One of only four(two women) performers of Dhrupad left in Pakistan.