Hamsadhvani (meaning "the cry of the swan"), is a

rāga A ''raga'' or ''raag'' (; also ''raaga'' or ''ragam''; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a melodic mode. The ''rāga'' is a unique and central feature of the classical Indian music tradition, and as a ...

Carnatic music Carnatic music, known as or in the South Indian languages, is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and Sri Lanka. It ...

(musical scale of Carnatic tradition of Indian classical music). It is an ''audava'' rāgam (or ''owdava'' rāga, meaning pentatonic scale). It is a ''

janya ''Janya'' is a term meaning "derive". In Carnatic (South Indian) music a ''janya raga'' is one derived from one of the 72 ''melakarta'' ragas (fundamental melodic structures). ''Janya'' ragas are classified into various types based on a varie ...

'' rāga of the

Melakartha Mēḷakartā is a collection of fundamental musical scales (ragas) in Carnatic music (South Indian classical music). ''Mēḷakartā'' ragas are parent ragas (hence known as ''janaka'' ragas) from which other ragas may be generated. A ''melaka ...

raga,

Sankarabharanam Sankarabharanam may refer to: * ''Sankarabharanam'' (1980 film), an Indian Telugu-language musical drama film * ''Sankarabharanam'' (2015 film), an Indian Telugu-language crime comedy film * Sankarabharanam (raga) Dhīraśankarābharaṇaṃ, c ...

(29th) but according to Hamsadhvani's prayoga or the way it is sung it is said to be the janya of Kalyani (65th). ''Hamsadhvani'' is also extensively used in

Hindustani music Hindustani classical music is the classical music of northern regions of the Indian subcontinent. It may also be called North Indian classical music or, in Hindustani, ''shastriya sangeet'' (). It is played in instruments like the violin, sita ...

and said to be borrowed into it from

.''Raganidhi'' by P. Subba Rao, Pub. 1964, The Music Academy of Madras It was created by the Carnatic composer Ramaswami Dikshitar (1735–1817), father of Muthuswami Dikshitar (one of the musical trinity of Carnatic music), and brought into

Aman Ali Khan Ustad Aman Ali Khan ‘Amar’ (1888–1953) was an Indian classical vocalist and composer from the Bhendibazaar Gharana. He brought many Carnatic ragas into Hindustani classical music. Aman Ali was the son of Chhajju Khan, one of the founders ...

of the

Bhendibazaar gharana The Bhendibazaar gharana is one of the vocal gharanas of Indian classical music, which originated in Bhendi Bazaar area of Mumbai in 1890. History and features The Bhendibazaar gharana was founded around 1890 by brothers Chhajju Khan, Nazir Kh ...

. It has become popular due to Amir Khan.

Structure and lakshana

''Hamsadhvani'' does not contain ''madhyamam'' or ''dhaivatham''. It is a pentatonic scale (''audava-audava'' ragam''Ragas in Carnatic music'' by Dr. S. Bhagyalekshmy, Pub. 1990, CBH Publications in Carnatic music classification – ''audava'' meaning 'of 5'). Its ' structure (ascending and descending scale) is as follows (see ''swaras'' in Carnatic music for details on below notation and terms): * : * : The notes used in this scale are ''shadjam, chatushruti rishabham, antara gandharam, panchamam'' and ''kakali nishadam''. In Hindustani music, it is associated with ''

Bilaval Bilaval or Bilawal () is a raga and the basis for the eponymous ''thaat'' (musical mode) in Hindustani classical music. Raga Bilaval is named after Veraval, Gujarat. Bilaval has been the standard for North Indian music since the early 19th cen ...

thaat A Thaat () is a "Parent scale" in North Indian or Hindustani music. It is the Hindustani equivalent of the term ''Melakartha raga'' of Carnatic Music. The concept of the ''thaat'' is not exactly equivalent to the western musical scale because t ...

'' (equivalent of ''Shankarabharanam'').

Compositions

''Hamsadhvani'' rāgam lends itself for elaboration and exploration and has many compositions in both classical music and film music. It is usually sung at the beginning of a performance. There are many '' kritis'' (compositions) in praise of

Lord Ganesha Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu ...

set in this musical scale. * ''Jalajaskhiro'' an

adi Talam Adi tala (Sanskrit: ''ādi tālà'' {{lang, sa, आदि ताळ, Kannada: ಆದಿ ತಾಳ, literally "primary rhythm" also spelled aadi taalam or adi talam) is the name of one of the most popular tala or rhythms used in Carnatic Music. I ...

Varnam Varṇam is a type of composition in the Carnatic music system consisting of short metric pieces which encapsulate the main features (patterns of notes) of a ''raga''. Varnams capture the ''raga bhavam'', ''ranjaka prayogas'' ''visesha sancha ...

* ''Gajamukhane Siddhidayakane'' by

Vyasatirtha Vyāsatīrtha (. 1460 – 1539), also called ''Vyasaraja'' or ''Chandrikacharya'', was a Hindu philosopher, scholar, polemicist, commentator and poet belonging to the Madhwacharya's Dvaita order of Vedanta. As the patron saint of the Vija ...

* ''Raghunāyaka'',''Śrī Raghukula'' and ''Abhi‌shta varada'' by

Tyagaraja Thyagaraja (Telugu: త్యాగరాజ) (4 May 1767 – 6 January 1847), also known as Thyāgayya and in full as Kakarla Thyagabrahmam, was a composer and vocalist of Carnatic music, a form of Indian classical music. Tyagaraja and his ...

in Telugu * '' Vātāpi Gaṇapatiṃ''and parvathypathim by Muthuswami Dikshitar in Sanskrit * ''Pāhi Śripatē'' by

Swathi Thirunal Rama Varma ( ml, സ്വാതി തിരുനാള്‍ രാമവർമ്മ) (16 April 1813 – 26 December 1846) was the Maharaja of the Kingdom of Travancore. He is also considered as a brilliant music composer and is credited with over 4 ...

* ''Varanamukha vā'' by Koteeswara Iyer * ''Mūlādhāra mūrti'',''Karunai seivai','ullam irangi and parasakthi janani by

Papanasam Sivan Paapanaasam Raamayya Sivan (26 September 1890 – 1 October 1973) was an Indian composer of Carnatic music and a singer. He was awarded the Madras Music Academy's Sangeetha Kalanidhi in 1971. He was also a film score composer in Kannada cinema ...

in Sanskrit and Tamil * ''Gajavadana beduve'' by

Purandaradasa Purandara Dasa (IAST: Purandara dāsa) ( 1470 – 1565) was a Haridasa philosopher and a follower of Madhwacharya 's Dwaitha philosophy -saint from present-day Karnataka, India. He was a composer, singer and one of the chief founding-prop ...

in Kannada *''Nammamma Sharade'' by

Kanakadasa Kanaka Dasa (1509–1609) was a Haridasa saint and philosopher, popularly called Daasashreshta Kanakadasa (ದಾಸಶ್ರೇಷ್ಠ ಕನಕದಾಸ). He was a renowned composer of Carnatic music, poet, reformer and musician. He is kn ...

in Kannada * ''Vināyakā'' by

Veena Kuppayyar Veena Kuppayyar (1798–1860) was an exponent of Veena and a composer of Carnatic music. He was a student of the famous composer Tyagaraja. Kuppayar composed his songs in Telugu language and has left behind a number of popular '' kritis''. Earl ...

in Sanskrit * ''Varavallabha Ramaṇa'' by

G. N. Balasubramaniam Gudalur Narayanaswamy Balasubramaniam (6 January 1910 – 1 May 1965), popularly known as GNB, was an Indian Carnatic singer. He innovated the art through emphasis on ''laya ''control and reducing the ''gamakas'' which eventually made Carnatic ...

* ''Gaṃ Gaṇapatē'' by

Muthiah Bhagavatar Harikesanallur Muthiah Bhagavatar (15 November 1877 – 30 June 1945), commonly known as Muthiah Bhagavatar, is one of Carnatic classical music's famous twentieth-century composers. He also created about 20 ''ragas''. Early life Muthiah was bor ...

* ''Pirai Aniyum Peruman'' by Dr

M. Balamuralikrishna Mangalampalli Balamuralikrishna (6 July 1930 – 22 November 2016) was an Indian Carnatic vocalist, musician, multi-instrumentalist, playback singer, composer, and character actor. He was awarded the Madras Music Academy's Sangeetha Kalanidhi in ...

* ''Vinayaka Vighnavishaka'' by R Ganapati * ''Sundar Gopālaṃ'' by

Devaki Pandit Devaki Pandit ( mr, देवकी पंडित; born 6 March 1965) is an Indian classical singer. With melody in her voice and charm in her persona, Devaki Pandit has developed her own unique style of singing and has won many hearts throu ...

* ''Varuvai Arulvai Shantanayagi'' by Manachanallur Giridharan * ''Tumbikkai Andavane'' by Manachanallur Giridharan * ''Vinayaka Ninnu Vina'' by E.V. Raamakrishna Bhaagavatar * ''Vande Anishamaham'' by

Mysore Vasudevachar Mysore Vasudevacharya (28 May 1865 – 17 May 1961) was an Indian musician and composer of Carnatic music compositions who belonged to the direct line of Thyagaraja's disciples. Vasudevachar's compositions (numbering over 200) were mostly in Telu ...

* ''Bhajamahe Sree Vinayakam'' by Tulaseevanam * Arul purivai and Karunai seiguvai by Sudhanandha bharathy

Film songs

* ''Lagi Lagan Pathi Sakhi Sangh'' from the movie " Meghe Dhaka Tara"

In Tamil language

Related rāgas

''Graha bhedham''

''Hamsadhvani's'' notes when shifted using ''

Graha bhedam ''Graha Bhedam'' in Carnatic music is the process (or result of the process) of shifting the Tonic note (''śruti'') to another note in the rāgam and arriving at a different rāgam. Its equivalent in Hindustani classical music is called a ''mur ...

'', yields another pentatonic rāgam, '' Nagasvaravali''. ''Graha bhedam'' is the step taken in keeping the relative note frequencies same, while shifting the ''shadjam'' to the next note in the rāgam. For more details and illustration of this concept refer '' Graha bhedam on Hamsadhvani''.

Scale similarities

* ''

Mohanam Mohanam is a rāga in Carnatic music (musical scale of South Indian classical music). It is an ''audava'' rāga (or ''owdava'' rāga, meaning pentatonic scale). It is usually described as a '' janya'' rāga of Harikamboji (28th Melakartha Raga) ...

'' is a rāgam which has ''chatushruti dhaivatam'' in place of the ''nishadam''. Structures are shown in second table. * ''

Amritavarshini Amr̥tavarṣiṇi is a rāgam in Carnatic music (musical scale of South Indian classical music), created in the early nineteenth century by Muthuswami Dikshitar. It is an ''audava'' rāgam (meaning pentatonic scale) in which only five of the ...

'' is a rāgam which has ''Prati Madhyamam'' in place of the ''rishabham''. Structures are shown in first table. * '' Gambhiranata'' is a rāgam which has ''shuddha madhyamam'' in place of the ''rishabham''. Structures are shown in first table. * '' Niroshta'' is a rāgam which has ''chatushruti dhaivatam'' in place of the ''panchamam''. Structures are shown in second table.

In Hindustani music

Vadi and samavadi

Vadi: Sa

Samavadi The Samavadi is the second-most prominent (though not necessarily second-most played) note of a raga in Indian classical music. The primary note of the raga is the '' vadi''; the vadi and samvadi are in most cases a fourth or fifth apart. A ''s ...

: Pa

Pakad or chalan

ga pa ni Sa ga re ni pa Sa The Pakad is the one where one can identify to which raga does the composition belongs.

Organization and relationships

Thaat A Thaat () is a "Parent scale" in North Indian or Hindustani music. It is the Hindustani equivalent of the term ''Melakartha raga'' of Carnatic Music. The concept of the ''thaat'' is not exactly equivalent to the western musical scale because t ...

Time

Late Evening w.w.w.wikipedia

Important recordings

* Amir Khan, Ragas Hansadhwani and Malkauns, on HMV LP (long-playing record), EMI-EASD1357 * ''Lagi Lagana'' (Drut – Teental) by A. Kanan in Meghe Dhaka Tara * ''Ja Tose Nahin Bolun Kanhaiya'' by

Lata Mangeshkar Lata Mangeshkar () (born as Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 06 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is widely considered to have been the greatest and most influential singers in India. Her con ...

in Parivar (1956)

Notes

References

Literature

* Bor, Joep ''(ed).'' Rao, Suvarnalata; der Meer, Wim van; Harvey, Jane ''(co-authors)'' ''The Raga Guide: A Survey of 74 Hindustani Ragas''. Zenith Media, London: 1999.

External links

SRA on Samay and Ragas

Rajan Parrikar on Ragas
{{Rāgas as per Performance Time Janya ragas