From: gangolli@frobenius.math.washington.edu (Ramesh Gangolli)
Newsgroups: rec.music.indian.classical
Subject: Re: Article on Pt.Bhatkhande
Date: 12 Jan 93 18:36:54 GMT
Article-I.D.: shelley.1iv346INNed7
Organization: University of Washington, Mathematics, Seattle
NNTP-Posting-Host: frobenius.math.washington.edu

In article <4914@copper.Denver.Colorado.EDU> vgangoll@copper.denver.colorado.edu (Vinata Gangolli) writes:
>
>
>    The article on Pandit Bhatkhande made an interesting reading. Pandit Bhatkhande also wrote a book in Sanskrit called 'Abhinava Raaga Manjiri' in addition to
>the books mentioned in the article. This was prior to the publication of
>'Hindustani Sangeet Paddhati'. In fact, a number of verses from that book are
>quoted in the 'Paddhati' in addition to the ancient and medieval musicological
>works and Pt.Bhatkhande's other book 'Mallakshayasangeetam'.

Bhatkhande wrote two books "Abhinava Raga Manjari" and "Abhinava Tala Manjari"
in the period between 1910-20. I do not have the exact date available right
now. These were in sanskrit,in the form of shlokas, and were synoptic
accounts of two books by Hridaya Narayan Dev, entitled Hridaya Koutuka and
Hridaya Prakash; obviously Bhatkhande found the contents of those books in
agreement with his views. Incidentally the correct name of the other volume
mentioned is "Shreemallakshyasangeetam" (Shreemat + Lakshya + Sangeetam;
Lakshya = objective, observed; Shreemat can be read as either an ornamental
honorific, or more literally as 'one with lustre or grace'; Thus the title
can mean either "the lustrous, or graceful, (book of) observed, or
objective music", or merely "Observed, or objective, music".  


>    The concept of time cycle has been recognised since ancient times in
>Hindustani music. Pt. Bhatkhande made a study of this aspect and made a
>classification of Raagas into three groups based on this concept.  
> viz. Ri-Dha Komal Raagas, Ri-Dha Shuddha Raagas and Ga-Ni Komal Raagas.
>   Another scheme suggested by him is based on the same principle of time but
>classifies the raagas according to the position of the sonant note in the
>octave.

I believe that his position was a subtly different. He does not state that
his classification into these groups is based on the time concept. What he
says is something like this. He OBSERVES that the prevalent ragas of his
time fall into the three groups mentioned above, and then correlates these
groups with the conventions, prevalent from older times, regarding the times
at which the various groups are sung. He notes that the correlation between
the groups and the times of the day is not consistent, so no strict rules
can be formulated on an empirical basis. He also notes that although the
conventions regarding the times appropriate for various ragas are mentioned
in certain older musicological works, these works are not consistent in
their approach, mainly because the works differ in their notion of which
scale is appropriate for a particular raga. A particular raga can occur
with different scales in the different works, so that no consistent
correlation based on the musical material of the raga and the the
"appropriate" time for it can be drawn on the basis of these works as
"shastras".

The other scheme mentioned has to do with the following observation : he
notes that many ragas assigned to the period between dusk and dawn have
their sonant (vadi) in the second tetrachord (uttaranga), while many ragas
appropriate for the period between dawn and dusk have their vadi in the
first tetrachord (purvanga). Once again, he did not make this a basis for a
classification, because there were too many exceptions to the scheme. He
did however, offer it as an interesting observation, useful to those who
are interested in the possibility that certain times of the day are more
suitable for certain scales.

                        
>Vinata Gangolli 

It is nice to know of another Gangolli on this net. (moreover, a relative
through her own family  as well as through her husband's family at that;
such are the facts of extended family in the Konk community). I hope there is
strength in numbers! Hi. 


Ramesh Gangolli.
-- 
Ramesh Gangolli (gangolli@math.washington.edu)
Dept. of Mathematics GN-50
University of Washington
Seattle WA 98195.