An old raga, Lalit is still very popular for its sweet and unique features. However, the depiction of this Raga has changed a little over time and one finds two versions of Lalit. The older one belonged to the Maarwa Thhaat and the contemporary version is attributed to the Poorvi Thhaat. It is somewhat similar to the Raga lalitha in Carnatic Music, which is without the Teevra Madhyam
Thhaat (parent scale)
Poorvi
Jaati:
Shaadav (hexatonic, 6-notes in both ascent and descent)
Vaadi:
Madhyam (M)
Samvaadi:
Shadja (S)
Swaras:
Omit Pancham completely, deploys Komal Rishabh (r ) and Komal Dhaivat (d). Its interesting feature is that both Shuddh and Teevra Madhyam (M and m) are applied one after the other in ascent as well as descent.
Aaroh (ascent):
N.r G M, m M G, m d N S’ (Western Notes: B C# E F, F# F E, F# G# B C)
Avaroh (descent):
S’, N r’N d, m D m M G, m G R S (Western Notes: C’, B C#’ B G#, F# G# F# F E, F# E C# C)
Key phrases:
S N.r S, N.r G M, m M G r, m G r S, N. r G M, G m d N d, m d m M G, m d N S’ N r’S’, N r’G’r’, m’G’r’S’, N r’N d, m d m M G, m G r S
Time:
Early Morning (sunrise)
An emphatic successive use of both forms of a swara is a rare phenomenon in Hindustani classical music. This is the uniqueness of this raga wherein the pitch ratio of both the lower cluster (N.Rgm) and upper cluster of swaras (mdNS’) is exactly the same. Both remain hinged on the two Madhyam’s peaceful coexistence. The older Lalit with Shuddh Dhaivat is rather somber while this contemporary version with Komal Dhaivat stimulates devotional feelings.
Bibliography
1. Bhatkhande V.N. (1919-1937) ‘Kramik Pustak Malika Vol 1-6’
2. The Oxford Encyclopaedia of the Music of India
3. The Raga-ness of the Ragas by Deepak Raja
4. Ustad Amir Khan, Pioneer of Indore Gharana by Pandit Tejpal Singh
Links
Indrani Mukherjee (khayal vocalist) presents Raag Lalit at Darbar Festival 2017 with Gurdain Rayatt (tabla) and Milind Kulkarni (harmonium).
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