Flow | Moods, feelings and colours

Colours, moods and feelings have been favourite subjects in the context of raga, literally “colour, beauty, pleasure, passion and compassion”.¹

We are aware that the ultimate aim of every composer and musician is to achieve the coalescence, the essential factors of classical music namely bhava, raga and tala. | Learn more >>

Explore this wonderful realm in imaginative ways – always in accordance with your own creativity and feelings

Suggestions for widening the scope for the “Flow”-exercises offered in this course:

• Alternate the singing of svara syllables with humming (-m):
  – lines wherein 3-2-3 svaras are highlighted become “3 svaras sung + 2 svaras hummed + 3 svaras sung”
  – lines wherein 8 svaras are highlighted become “4 svaras sung + 4 svaras hummed”
• Instead of humming (-m), extend the vowel found in the preceding svara variant (-a, -i)
• As always, “be patient” …

To get going, click on “Details” and enjoy your practice!

Details

Select one of the exercises offered here:

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Listen to Uma Ramasubramaniam demonstrating the svaras (notes) for the present raga(s) on Raga Surabhi >>

Here comes another challenge

Details

Designed for anyone in search of new “Flow-” horizons through music:

• Vary the vowels of svara syllables: –a, -i and -u yield ra-ri-ru, ga-gi-gu, ma-mi, dha-dhi-dhu, na-ni-nu.²
• Examples
  – in raga Sankarabharanam (seven notes, mela 29), the variants sung are: “sa ri gu ma pa dhi nu”³
  – these variants also apply to many janya ragas like Hamsadhvani: “sa ri gu pa nu” (five notes)
  – in melakarta raga Gamanasrama (seven notes, mela 53), the corresponding variants are: “sa ra gu mi pa dhi nu“
  – its janya raga Hamsanandi (six notes) lacks pa: “sa ra gu mi dhi nu“
  – other variants apply to janya raga Sriranjani: “sa ri gi ma dhi ni“
  – the “parent raga” for Sriranjani (six notes) is Kharaharapriya (seven notes, mela 22) to which the following variants apply: “sa ri gi ma pa dhi ni”

1. To learn more about the association of sound with colour, search the internet using the term “synesthesia”; according to a source cited on Wikipedia “individuals rarely agree on what color a given sound is”. [↩]
2. These variations traditionally serve as memory aids (mnemonics) even if hardly used today:
   “a” for the lowest variant, “i” for the middle one, and “u” for the highest one, always depending on the melakarta raga a given janya raga is associated with. [↩]
3. Please remember: sa and pa never vary (though pa is sometimes omitted altogether); ri, ga, dha and ni have three variants each (-a, -i and -u); and ma has two variants (-a and -i). [↩]