I have a tune in my head that uses the notes C, D, Eb, E, Gb. It sounds very much inspired by Indian classical but I have no training to speak of. Could someone please identify a raga that contains these notes?
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Please edit the question to limit it to a specific problem with enough detail to identify an adequate answer.– Community BotCommented Apr 19 at 8:38
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Is there a reason you suspect there is a raga with this pattern of intervals, or does it just "sound Indian" to you? (Also, note, ragas are much more than just sets of notes.)– Andy BonnerCommented Apr 19 at 13:03
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1 Answer
The question does not specify whether the tune contains the given notes exclusively or in addition to other notes. However, I feel it merits an answer as it seems to reflect a common misunderstanding about Indian scales.
If the tune contains just the notes C,D,E♭,E,G♭, it would not be an Indian raga, as it has too many notes crammed into one half, while missing the entire other half of the octave.
Two of the key rules for a scale to function as a raga are:
- It must have a minimum of five swaras,
- It must contain the root note sa(1), and at least one of either ma(4/4#) or pa(5)
A swara is the Indian equivalent of do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti (sa re ga ma pa dha ni in Indian classical). Of these, re ga ma dha ni have two variations each, making for 12 notes in total in an octave. In sequence, they are:
sa, re♭, re, ga♭, ga, ma, ma#, pa, dha♭, dha, ni♭, ni.
In the set of notes you've provided, the only way to get five distinct swaras including the root note sa would be to consider E♭ as sa (which would give you the notes dha, ni, sa, re♭, ga♭), but in that case, you would be breaking the second rule mentioned above, as both ma and pa are missing.
Edit: My answer is based mainly on Hindustani music. I am not entirely sure what the rules are in Carnatic music, so perhaps someone who knows Carnatic music could write about that.
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If you play down and up near the octave there can be many half notes, like e.g. Tanarupi in Indu chakra. Did you miss that?– EmilCommented Jun 23 at 7:10
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(So D3 N3 and S R1 G1 in octave above would be next to eachother, that is 5 half notes adjacent to eachother).– EmilCommented Jun 23 at 7:37
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Ah, I think you're talking about Carnatic music. I was talking about Hindustani. It's possible you're right. I am not entirely sure how it works in Carnatic music. I'll add a note to that effect, even though I suspect even Carnatic music does not have ragas that focus exclusively on one half on an octave.– SadhanaCommented Jun 23 at 8:38
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It felt to me like it happened in S.D. Batish album on Melakartas I listened to but sometimes traditions have rules that seem arbitrary to foreigners (like me) so maybe they have a rule against that.– EmilCommented Jun 23 at 10:08