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The Secret Math Behind India's Ragas
16 Aug
Summary
- Indian music's 72 possible scales derived from 12 notes.
- Two traditions: South's 72 scales, North's 32 parent scales.
- Raga's soul lies beyond scales, in phrasing and emotion.
Indian classical music, despite using only 12 notes within an octave, possesses a deep mathematical framework that generates numerous scales. The southern Carnatic tradition meticulously calculated 72 possible parent scales, known as melakartas, with Venkatamakhin publishing all of them in the 17th century.
Separately, in the northern Hindustani tradition, Mohammad Raza and later Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande refined classification. Bhatkhande's fieldwork led him to identify 32 possible parent scales, or thaats, from which he pragmatically chose 10 that reflected actual musical practice.
These 72 melakartas and 32 thaats represent the theoretical possibilities, forming the basis for countless derived ragas. However, the true identity of a raga extends far beyond its scale, encompassing characteristic melodic phrases, emotional depth, and unique note relationships.
Ultimately, the soul of a raga, its 'chalan' or characteristic movement, and the emphasis on specific notes, cannot be fully captured by mathematical grids alone. This nuanced understanding is passed down through oral tradition, emphasizing the human element over written notation.
