In Part I of this post we understood a bit of theory of raga Yaman and heard a composition in Yaman sung by Pt. Bhimsen Joshi and another one by Lata Mangeshkar whom we know mainly as a “light” music singer in films.
Note: The key for the notations used everywhere is included at the end of this piece.
Let us now listen to a famous ghazal Ranjish hi sahi which is in raga Yaman (actually Yaman Kalyan because he has used Shuddha Ma at a few places) sung by the emperor of ghazal, Ustad Mehdi Hassan:
Here is Shruti with the words and the sargam:
Ranjish hi sahi, dil hi dukhane ke liye aa
Nị Sa͜Pa͜Re Ga, Pa, Ma Dha Pa͜Re, Ma Dha Pa Ga ma Re Sa
Note that in the second phrase in the first line, the first Ma is teevra, whereas the second ma (highlighted in yellow) is shuddha. This is what makes it Yaman Kalyan as opposed to a pure Yaman.
And the second line is:
Aakhir se mujhe chhod ke jaane ke liye aa…
The notation of the second line is just a little bit more difficult, so we have a surprise gift for any reader who correctly sends us the sargam of the second line. You can post the sargam on RagaForum with the correct sargam of the second line of Ranjish Hi Sahi.. (Aakhir se mujhe chhod ke jaane ke liye aa…) You can use a harmonium or keyboard (or any instrument you play) to get the right answer. If this reminds you of your math exams where you were allowed to use a calculator, it is intentional J
Let us listen to a few popular songs that are known to be in raga Yaman.
Jiya le gayo ji mora sawariya from the film “Anpadh” sung by Lata Mangeshkar and with music by the great Madan Mohan.
And the sargam in Shruti’s voice:
Jiya le gayo ji mora sawariya, Jiya le gayo ji mora sawariya,
Sa Sa.. Sa Re Ga.. Re Re Ga Ma.. Dha Ma Ga.. Re Re Ga͜Sa… Sa Sa.. Sa Re Ga.. Re Re Ga Ma.. Dha Ma Ga.. Re Re Ga͜Sa…
Lagi man me lagan hui bawariya, Lagi man me lagan hui bawariya
Nị Dḥa Nị Re Ma Dha Sa͘ Ni Pa Pa.. Ma Re Ga Ma Ga… Nị Dḥa Nị Re Ma Dha Sa͘ Ni Pa Pa.. Ma Re Ga Ma Ga…
Jiya le gayo ji mora sawariya,
Sa Sa.. Sa Re Ga.. Re Re Ga Ma.. Dha Ma Ga.. Re Re Ga͜Sa…
And then we have Jab deep jale aana from Chitchor. Singers: Yesudas and Hemlata. Music: Ravindra Jain.
And the sargam in Shruti’s voice:
Jab deep jale aana, jab shyam dhale aana…
Nị Re Ga Ma Pa, Re Sa Nị Re Ga.. Nị Re Ga Ma Pa, Re Sa Nị Sa..
Sanket milan ka, bhul na jana, mera pyar na bisarana…
Pa Ma Dha Ni Ni Pa, Ma Dha Ni Sa͘ Ni, Pa Ma Re, Ni Re Ga Pa ma Ga
Jab deep jale aana, jab shyam dhale aana…
Nị Re Ga Ma Pa, Re Sa Nị Re.. Nị Re Ga Ma Pa, Re Sa Nị Sa..
Another famous song in raga Yaman, Aasoo bhari hai ye Jeevan ki raahe from “Parvarish” sung by Mukesh and with music by Dattaram Wadkar, who unfortunately got an opportunity to score music for only a few films in his career. I would encourage the reader to figure out the surawat of this song using a harmonium or keyboard if needed. Write to us at nandu@ragasphere.com with the correct sargam of the song, and win a surprise gift for the right answer.
There are literally hundreds of Hindi film songs as well as songs in regional languages in Yaman. Listen to them, try playing them on a harmonium or keyboard and figure out the notations to see how they use the characteristic melodic phrases of Yaman.
To summarize the discussion, the raga is a sort of a musical template for a melody, and it defines the notes and melodic phrases used in a piece of music in that raga. The more one listens to different compositions and songs in the raga, the more one becomes familiar with the raga, and the greater is the joy one derives from listening to it. Even seasoned listeners of classical music will sometimes struggle to recognize an anvat (अनवट) raga – an infrequently performed raga, and you will often see listeners sitting in the front row at a classical concert throwing quizzical glances at each other when the performer starts an unfamiliar raga without announcing the name.
In upcoming blog posts we will take up and try to “understand” more ragas in a similar way. So watch this space…
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Notation:
Shuddha and Komal swara: A swara in upper case (e.g. Re) denotes a shuddha (शुद्ध) swara, and a swara in lower case (e.g. re) denotes a komal (कोमल) swara. “ma” means shuddha ma and Ma means teevra Ma.
Mandra and Taar Saptak:A dot below a swara (e.g. Nị) means that it is in the lower octave (Mandra Saptak). A dot above a swara (e.g. Sa͘) means that it is in the higher octave (Taar saptak).
Meend: A double breve ( ͜ ) between 2 swaras denotes a glide (मींड) between the two swaras. A Ϩ indicates a sustain on the note. A swara in brackets () means that it is touched (कण स्वर) before or after the main note.
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Thank you Dattaji for your comment... I think the answer to your question about Yaman being the favourite raga for beginners, is that it is a sampoorna raga, and the challan is straight & uncomplicated, and therefore suitable for beginners.
Well written with illustrations of Raga Yaman. I enjoyed reading it and, of course, listening to both the classical and light music pieces. I have often wondered why most learners of classical music start with Raga Yaman? Is it because Raga Yaman is popular? Or Yaman is easy to teach or easy to learn? Or is it because Yaman uses all the notes in a scale?
Or is it because it is traditional to learn Raga Yaman?