Seven Types of Apaswaras -Sapta-apaswaras

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Sachi_R
Posts: 2174
Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Seven Types of Apaswaras -Sapta-apaswaras

Post by Sachi_R »

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Dear Rasikas,
While invoking the blessings of Lord Ganesha, and with His express permission, I am now going to share with you an insight that struck me just now, while listening to some particularly strident loudspeaker bhajans in the neighbourhood.

I am emboldened by the fact that just like Carnatic music is the "grandest form" of music, perhaps in terms of the sheer population of apaswaras in our music taking place per unit time, we should be holding the world record. This in spite of so much insistence on shruti alignment and multiple types of shruti assist devices on the stage (sometimes I can count about four/five devices & instruments).

I am saying all this with a nonchalance hoping that you folks won't be offended by what I say, and see the humour in all this. By the way, many great rasikas I know insist on saying aBaswara instead of apaswara.

So here goes my generic definition of the seven types of apaswaras:
1. Basic shruti or tonic Sa drifts during the song significantly. This is Aadhaara apaswara.
2. The purity of the scale is compromised, and the notes Ri, Ga, Ma, etc. have a randomness of pitch, much like the walking of a Rishabha on the road.
3. Some of the apaswaras are esoteric, and hard to discern, as the musician forays into fantastic manodharma. This is the Gandhara type of apaswara. (The seventh and sixth are different by being more particular types. Here it is basic manodharma type of apaswara).
4. Then there is the Madhyama variety. This occurs in the middle of a long piece or concert, and all is forgiven and forgotten, until at the pause between pieces, the musician/s decide to do a reference check, and find they have not stuck to the middle path of the shruti. After they realign themselves, the music returns to a particularly happy phase. ( this could be for the mridangam, and even violin, a big issue).
5. The Panchama apaswara is a special one. In this, everyone, vocalist, mridangam, violin,flute, etc. introduce a number of apaswaras, due to poor shruti alignment and also imperfect pitch positions for the swaras. The whole experience can be blamed on the primordial Panchabhootas. This is particularly obvious when the musicians accompany dance. Also, even a solo veena can have significant shruti issues due to tuning, playing, fret positions etc. In other words, Pancha bhootas.
6. The Dhaivata type of apaswara is a bit difficult to define. In fact I am searching for words to define it. This type of apaswara occurs in mainly some difficult songs. The fast sangatis, the complex chitte swaras, etc. land the musician/s in offkey notes. This type of apaswara is purely an indication of the difficult songs. (eg bhavayami gopalabalam, vasudevayani etc.)
7. The seventh, and final, type of apaswara is the exclusive preserve of some musicians who present a wide vocal/instrumental range. They hunt, like a Nishada in the forest, for the impossibly high and low notes. They go there, reach the precipice, and hold out. Sometimes they fall. Sometimes they manage to keep the balance, and come back to firmer ground. But everyone has an inescapable feeling that they lost the swara shuddham at that point. But this is condoned by most of us as an innovation side-effect.

So in summary, a drifting Aadhara, a meandering intermediate note, an esoteric apaswara that comes in manodharma sections, sometimes like attempted graha bheda ( I am being cheeky here); the fourth variety is the loss of shruti shuddham in the middle of long pieces. The fifth one is a kind of democratic apaswara anarchy. The sixth is occasioned by fast/complex pieces. The seventh is the hallmark of adventurous manodharma hunting in impossible territory.

I hope you can all add your erudite remarks and responses.

Once again, Happy Ganesha!

arasi
Posts: 16774
Joined: 22 Jun 2006, 09:30

Re: Seven Types of Apaswaras -Sapta-apaswaras

Post by arasi »

"much like the walking of the rishabha on the road"...Sachi, you crack me up. Like the dish of the day--mOdaka :)

shankarank
Posts: 4042
Joined: 15 Jun 2009, 07:16

Re: Seven Types of Apaswaras -Sapta-apaswaras

Post by shankarank »

Get rid of closed auditoriums and come to open air. Bharat Kalachar home to some of the best concerts I have heard of Sanjay, Sowmya and TNS!

apasvarams guaranteed to reduce under the grace of two bhootas, vAyu and AkASa , but under the torment of two others , bhoomi/varuNa which spring mosquitoes and the sweltering heat (Agni) of Chennai - well not so much in not so globally warmed up years of margazhi!

Agni pumping varuNa into vAyu ( humidity) ensures toppi sukham is the highest! All apasvaras melt - but the apsaras may not care ;)

varuNa may quench your thirst though or drench you, if the music doesn't ;) :lol:
Last edited by shankarank on 27 Aug 2017, 10:10, edited 1 time in total.

Sachi_R
Posts: 2174
Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Re: Seven Types of Apaswaras -Sapta-apaswaras

Post by Sachi_R »

Shankarank, I watch a TV show called Elementary. In which a modern Sherlock Holmes in NY unravels criminal plots with an amazing level of knowledge-based analytical genius.

He is my inspiration. One day I will be able to reconstruct/deconstruct your history by piecing together evidences you have hinted at in your myriad, knowledge-studded bouquets of rampantly opinionated avuncular rants.

Sorry for distracting/digressing. So you suggest we can escape the apaswaras in open air auditoria, but are at the mercy of mosquitoes, Madras heat, and marauding monsoons. OK! That's an idea! Thank you!

MV
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Joined: 19 Dec 2009, 08:01

Re: Seven Types of Apaswaras -Sapta-apaswaras

Post by MV »

:D :lol:

SrinathK
Posts: 2477
Joined: 13 Jan 2013, 16:10

Re: Seven Types of Apaswaras -Sapta-apaswaras

Post by SrinathK »

@Sachi_R

Your synopsis is good enough to feature in a musical treatise. We should actually make these apaswara types a formal part of our music education :D :mrgreen:
2. The purity of the scale is compromised, and the notes Ri, Ga, Ma, etc. have a randomness of pitch, much like the walking of a Rishabha on the road.
This one was hilarious!

Sachi_R
Posts: 2174
Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Re: Seven Types of Apaswaras -Sapta-apaswaras

Post by Sachi_R »

Srinath,
Yes, I don't feel any qualm in feeling mightily pleased with the idea.

But honestly, I am only the cataloguer. The body of work belongs to so many..
endaro mahanubhavulu who constantly sing apaswaras ☺️

SrinathK
Posts: 2477
Joined: 13 Jan 2013, 16:10

Re: Seven Types of Apaswaras -Sapta-apaswaras

Post by SrinathK »

@Sachi_R, There is an 8th apaswara also IMHO

8) The 8th type of apaswara, known as the anahata (unsounded), that lies in a different category from all the others, that occurs almost exclusively on stage (but not at home) when due to overwhelmingly bad mic settings and poor acoustics, the musician's own sound gets drowned out on stage, rendering them essentially deaf. This leads to several apaswaras because the extinction of natural sound means the musician cannot hear themselves and has no clue as to what is actually happening to their notes. Hence the name...

The only solution to this is to set the artificial sound level back to silence. In that silence, everything becomes audible once more and suswaras emerge. If you look at it this way, anahata (absence of sound), depending on what sound is being silenced :lol: :lol:, can be both the origin of suswara and apaswara -- hence it belongs in a separate category while all the other 7 apaswaras belong to the audible category
Last edited by SrinathK on 28 Aug 2017, 23:11, edited 5 times in total.

Sachi_R
Posts: 2174
Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Re: Seven Types of Apaswaras -Sapta-apaswaras

Post by Sachi_R »

Sure, I agree. The stage and sound settings often add to the problem.

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