Vilambita Sutra: Slow Music on the Bamboo Flute
Bansuri.
Relax. Soothe. Heal.
Raj’s soundscapes in the Hindustani
tradition of the Classical Music of India:
Deliberate. Dignified. Delightful.
Solemn. Serene. Sublime.
Melodious. Meditative. Mystical.
Photo by Kshitij Vasudevan
© Rangaraj Mandayam Rangayyan
2023
Namaste! Hello! Welcome! My name is Rangaraj
Mandayam Rangayyan; you may call me Raj. By the way, “Ranga,”
while
being one of the many names of Lord Sri Krishna – The Divine One
with the bamboo flute, peacock feather, and cows – also means color, the arts,
sentiment, and emotion. “Raj” means king. So, now you know
me!
My Training: I learnt the Hindustani genre of the Classical
Music of India on the bansuri bamboo flute from
my Guru Sri K.P. Shenoy and on the sitar from my Guru Sri N.R. Rama Rao,
in Bangalore. I have given many concerts and lecture-demonstrations in India,
Canada, and Brazil. In Calgary, I have performed for the University of Calgary,
the Raga Mala Music Society, the City of Calgary, the Glenbow Museum, Arts Commons,
and many other organizations.
My Music: My arrangements and presentations have
included innovative combinations of many varieties of instruments and genres of
music. My aim is to present and promote the classical music of India in its
pure, serene, soothing, and natural acoustic character to facilitate
celebration, mindfulness, meditation, contemplation, reflection, yoga, and
relaxation. The 50 compositions in my seven CDs, with Utpal Mazumdar on the tabla and pakhawaj, are available
through iTunes, Spotify, Amazon, and many other distributors;
please visit rangayyan.ca for details.
Slow Music: In Sanskrit, vilambita means long or slow;
sutra means a string, connection, formula, composition, or exposition. In the
present context, the title means a long, slow, and deliberate exposition of a raga (a melodic
concept), presented as a formulation or path to relax, soothe, and heal the
mind. Slow Music is the perfect antidote to the present rushed, fast-paced, and
speed-driven lifestyle.
The approximate ranges of laya (tempo) for a tala (rhythmic cycle) in
Hindustani music are:
10 – 30 bpm: ati vilambit; very slow. 30
– 90 bpm: vilambit; slow.
90 – 150 bpm: madhya laya; medium pace.
150 – 240 bpm: dhrut; fast. 240 – ...
bpm: ati dhrut; very fast.
(bpm = beats per minute.)
Slow Music on My Bansuri: The sounds of my bansuri, with the
reference note at the bass C#3, are naturally soothing and pleasant. With more
emphasis on delicate raga-based melody than pronounced tala-based rhythmic
passages, I wish to create intricate and exquisite soundscapes that open up your mind to explore uncharted paths in your own
imagination. I weave the natural and sonorous tones of the bamboo flute into
acoustic patterns with depth and texture so as to
facilitate a state of mindful being with emotional balance and inner peace.
Classical Music of India: The seven notes of the saptak (group of seven or the range of an octave) are sung as
Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, and Ni; they are written
here as S, R, G, M, P, D, and N. The notes are approximately equivalent to Do,
Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La, and Ti (Si), or C, D, E, F, G, A, and B in Western music.
The komal (soft or flat)
version of a note is indicated by the underline (R, G, D,
and N). The tivra (augmented or
sharp) version of the fourth note is indicated as M’. Sa and Pa have no variants.
In the tradition of Hindustani classical music, each raga is assigned a
specific period of the day or a particular season as the most appropriate time
to render, enjoy, appreciate, and benefit from the effects of the designated
set of notes and passages derived using them, while respecting certain rules
and norms. Each raga also is associated with a specific rasa or bhava
that
corresponds to a particular mood or sentiment.
My Offering: I would like to present on my bass bansuri
with Sa=C#3, for your listening pleasure, my renditions in ati vilambit ek tala, a rhythm with 12
beats per cycle, at 12 and 18 bpm, of the following ragas. Click on the name
of the raga to listen to the music and view the related image. The
following tracks are also available on my YouTube channel!
Vibhas: A meditative raga for sunrise, using the
notes S, R, G, P, D.
Bairagi: A mystical raga
for early morning, using S, R, M, P, N.
Abhogi: A sublime raga
for early morning, using S, R, G, M, D.
Bhupal Todi: A solemn raga for
the morning, using S, R, G, P, D.
Shuddha Sarang: A melancholic
raga for midday, using S, R, M, M’, P, D, N.
Madhuvanti: A serene raga for
the late afternoon, using S, R, G, M’, P, D, N.
Shri: A dignified raga for sunset,
using S, R, G, M’, P, D, N.
Gorakh: A delightful raga
for the late evening, using S, R, M, D, N.
Bageshri: A melodious raga
for the night, using S, R, G, M, P, D, N.
These are
just a few samples of my Slow Music. If you would like recordings
in other formats, please contact me. If you would like to listen to
medium-paced and faster compositions, you may check the 50 tracks of my seven
CDs available on Amazon, Spotify, iTunes, and several other digital music
distributors.
For
details about my CDs, concerts, lecture-demonstrations, lessons on the bansuri
flute and the sitar, and the Classical Music of India, please visit rangayyan.ca
or
contact me by email at raj_rangayyan@shaw.ca.
© Rangaraj Mandayam Rangayyan 2024