Swara Bedham

[sureshvv]

Can the knowledgeable rasikas help me in analyzing this clip?

https://soundcloud.com/carnaticdude/swara-bedham

Are there 2 swara bedhams?

ma -> sa and ma -> pa?

I tend to lose track as I hear it.

[Rsachi]

Suresh, I hear Ma-Sa twice, first the middle octave and then the higher octave. It becomes Hamsadhwani.

[uday_shankar]

Suresh , Indeed Rsachi is right.

There's only one bhedam (Nagasvarali -> Hamsadhwani), it manifests in various places during the sequence. Some thing about the language used below - when I use S R G M P etc... I mean the actual notes, and when I use Sa Re Ga Ma etc... I mean the words or "what the mouth is saying".

So what happens is as follows:

Nagasvarali runs as S G M P D S (to be more precise, S G3 M1 P D2 S). If you take the M of Nagasvarali and set it as your internal S, you can do a graha bhedam into hamsadhvani if you keep the "sounds" (literally frequencies !) the same, i.e., Ma Pa Da Sa Ga Ma of Nagasvarali maps on to Sa Ri Ga Pa Ni Sa of Hamsadhvani, keeping the "sounds" same.

So if you sing a swara sequence in Nagasvarali as Ma Pa Da Sa, you can keep the same "sounds" (i.e., literally frequencies !) and say (i.e., literally use the words) Sa Re Ga Pa. The singer initially sets the stage with a simple Sa Da Pa Ma (Nagasvarali) -> Pa Ga Re Sa (Hamsadhvani) transformation and continues with similar exercises in the upper octave.

If it will be of help I can post a second by second "analysis".

[vasanthakokilam]

Uday, good explanation. You may have explained this before in a different context,..What is the magician's trick that makes us believe the illusion that the new 'Sa' is S. Is it the solfa syllable 'Sa' itself or the violinist helps out with a prolonged bowing on the current M1?

[sureshvv]

Around 0.52 am I hearing D S' M' Pa' Pa'?

This is what threw me off.

[sureshvv]

So does he sing

D S' M' . .

Sa' Sa'

P' P'

at 0.52 or no?

[uday_shankar]

No Suresh, you're perhaps mistakenly hearing "Ma...Ma" as "Pa...Pa".

What's happening right after 0:52 is:

M,,,M
Mouthing "Sa...Sa"
M,,,M
Mouthing "Ma...Ma"

The idea is to reinforce the idea that for the same sound M1 (with respect to the everpresent AdhAra shadja), you can say the "words" Sa (in the new raga Hamsadhvani) or Ma (in the original rAga).

Is it the solfa syllable 'Sa' itself or the violinist helps out with a prolonged bowing on the current M1?

vk,
I believe that a large part of all "shruti Bhedam" perception has less to do with any help from violinists holding any swara steadily and much more to do with the intrinsic pattern that emerges from the interrelationship , i.e., intervals between successive notes. The solfa syllable also helps immensley as in this case with the swaras.

For example MPDSGM is an unlikely sangati in nagasvarli. So if you sing that phrase, say for experiment's sake without gamaka, in akAra without any other sounds, everybody will instantaneously identify it as the Arohanam of Hamsadhvani (Sa Ri Ga Pa Ni Sa). Similarly, the pentatonics. On a keyboard if you press the keys:

C,D,E,G,A C' in sequence, everybody will say it that the Arohanam of mohanam is being sung even if you had one of the other pentatonics in mind.
D E G A C' D' in seqence, everybody will say that it is Madhyamavati
and so on...

The same is true for phrases, especially vakra phrases, which will be unlikely in the "parent" rAga. Needless, to say, with gamakas practically most "bhedam" phrases are absent in the parent rAga and hence are instantly associated with the new raga. A notable exception is the Bharavi-Punnaga Varali phrase that I posted in a demo a long time back where you can go to considerable lengths with gamakas!

Depending on the musical perception of the listeners, some shruti bhedams are instantly evident while others fly past.

[sureshvv]

No Suresh, you're perhaps mistakenly hearing "Ma...Ma" as "Pa...Pa".

What's happening right after 0:52 is:

M,,,M
Mouthing "Sa...Sa"
M,,,M
Mouthing "Ma...Ma"

The idea is to reinforce the idea that for the same sound M1 (with respect to the everpresent AdhAra shadja), you can say the "words" Sa (in the new raga Hamsadhvani) or Ma (in the original rAga).

Yes. I hear it correctly now

[mkal]

To the OP, thanks for posting the clip! I am curious as to how this is different from Sruti Bedham (if at all). In this case, the swaras are explicitly rendered in both scales for the same frequencies, so it makes the bedham clear. In the "normal" demonstration of Sruti Bedham, is it done during a part other than kalpana swaras and thus it is more implicit and the listener has to perceive the bedha himself/herself?

[uday_shankar]

mkal, your observations are on the mark. Nothing more need be said.

[sureshvv]

My layman distinctions:

1. one is done during an alap vs. the other done during swaraprasthara.

2. In swara bedham the raga flavor does not change. Just alternate swaras are used. Sruti bedham done during alapana provides the flavor of the alternate raga.

3. You may need different skills to spot these.

[alpajnani]

My layman distinctions:

1. one is done during an alap vs. the other done during swaraprasthara.

2. In swara bedham the raga flavor does not change. Just alternate swaras are used. Sruti bedham done during alapana provides the flavor of the alternate raga.

3. You may need different skills to spot these.

Spot on re #2 above. However, w.r.t. #3, I would submit that the skill level needed to perceive and understand swara bhedam is perhaps lower (given explicit enunciation) vs. sruti bhedam (where one has to heavily depend upon mood - especially if the "second" raaga is not a melakarta raaga - the fact that this is not dwelt on for too long complicates things further (at least for me! )

[sureshvv]

However, w.r.t. #3, I would submit that the skill level needed to perceive and understand swara bhedam is perhaps lower

You have to know what swaras are valid in the raga which can be a higher level skill.