What is the Katapayadi sutra?

The Kaṭapayādi sūtra is an aid to memory or “mnemonic system”.  Its name corresponds to a “thread” (sūtra), here provided by the initials of four sets of letters within the Sanskrit alphabet:  Ka Ṭa Pa and Ya A total of 33 letters are distributed among ten numbers including 0 (zero): K (1st) to 9 (nava = 9) + …

“Bhava” and “Rasa” explained by V. Premalatha

“Rasa is realised in from the combination of the sthāyibhāva (permanent and dominant emotional mood) with the vibhāva-s (the objects of emotions such as the hero and the heroine, and the exciting causes such as the spring, flowers, moonlight and the bower), anubhāva-s (the external manifestations of emotions such as the movement of the eye-brows, …

Indian music and the west – an account by Sangita Kalanidhi Trichy Sankaran

Tiruvarur to Texas, Carnatic musicians have transcended global cultures, echoing the seven notes to the West. Trichy Sankaran,to be honoured with the Sangita Kalanidhi today, summarises Carnatic music’s history in America in a chat with critic Veejay Sai While everyone is aware of how Hindustani music became popular in the West, especially America, with maestros like …

Melakarta raga application

12 positions are available in the South Indian 72 mela system. To learn more, read the following explanations. Source © Ludwig Pesch | Creative Commons License >> A scale – mēla in Carnatic or thāt in Hindustani music – isn’t a raga yet: it is no more than an imaginary arrangement of notes for the …

Why Carnatic Music Matters More Than Ever

by Ludwig Pesch For this musicologist and author, there are good reasons to believe that Carnatic music matters, perhaps more than ever and almost anywhere in the world. So why not perform and teach it in the service of better education for all, for ecological awareness or in order to promote mutual respect in spite …