Raga Megh - Song of the Clouds

Posted on 30 May, 2020 • 3 min read

There are many systems of Raga classifcation in Indian Classical Music including Raga - Ragini, Melakarta, Janaka - Janya, Thaat, etc. These different systems enable a musician to understand the melodic structure of a Raga based on its heritage and association with other Ragas. The Raga-Ragini system of classification is one of the oldest systems. This system is generally regarded as consisting of six principal Ragas, namely, Bhairav, Hindol, Shree, Megh, Deepak and Malkauns. There is also a symbolic association here to Indian deities. Specifically, some say that the first 5 Ragas came from Lord Shiva, and the sixth, Raga Malkauns, from Goddess Parvati.

Be that as it may, Raga Megh is a grand and beautiful Raga. It is generally considered a cooling Raga, and associated with the monsoon season. Many traditional lyrical compositions talk of dark clouds, thunder and lightning. Given its description, the use of appropriate Gamakas (intonations) embellishes the Raga. Raga Megh is even featured in Ragamala paintings which depict Indian Ragas in the form of miniature paintings on silk, along with a textual description of the Ragas.

The popular scale of Raga Megh is Sa Re ma Pa ni. An allied Raga to Megh is Madhyamavati or Madhumad Sarang which has the same scale as Megh. There is a traditional version of Megh which uses Komal Gandhar and Tivra Dhaivat as well. This differentiates the Raga from Madhyamavati or Madhumad Sarang.

In this presentation of Raga Megh on Chandraveena, I have used ati-komal (extra flattened) Gandhar (ga) as a grace note. I explore the Raga in Alap, Jod and Jhala.

Program Notes

Raga Alapana in Megh

Raga Alapana is an improvisation and a systematic presentation of a Raga. This part has no rhythmic accompaniment. It has three parts - Alap, Jod and Jhala. This format is also known as Ragam and Tanam.

Here are some notes about the Raga.

Raga - Megh

Scale - Sa Re ga ma Pa ni

Family - Kanada

Melakarta - Natabhairavi (Sa Re ga ma Pa dha ni)

Prahar - All prahars during monsoon or 3rd and 4th prahar (equivalent to 12 PM - 6 PM)

Reading the scale

In Indian Classical Music, the seven notes in an octave are called Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni and then Sa comes again. Notes with a capitalised first letter are called Tivra (or sharp) notes. E.g., Re above. Notes written fully in lower case are called Komal (or flat) notes. E.g., ma and ni above. Sa and Pa are always written with a capitalized first letter.

Prahar

In Indian Classical Music, Ragas are classified into Prahars (time periods of a day or night) which are said to represent the most appropriate time to perform the Raga.

Use of Komal Gandhar

The popular scale of Raga Megh is Sa Re ma Pa ni. This presentation of Raga Megh make use of ati-komal (extra flattened) Gandhar (ga) as a grace note.