Signature Series Vol. 3
Signature Series, Volume Three
Rag Marwa
Rag Marwa is a difficult and serious rag. Many other ragas are so near
to its notes that
you can never play the notes in a straight order or you will mix with
other ragas. Too
many slide notes or ornaments can also be dangerous. For instance, if you
use N r S it will
become Rag Puria, or M d N S r S will become Rag Sohini. Its mood or
emotions are
those of devotion and heroism. Dha is the king note (vadi) which leads
the mood of this
melody, and re is the minister (samvadi) that helps the other notes create
the mood. The
use of re is strong in this rag but quite different than the way it is
used in Shri Rag. Rag
Marwa is played in the evening before Kalyan that.
Evening Rag
Rag Misra Shivaranjani
The traditional rag is Shivaranjani. It is played in the evening and
is dedicated to Lord
Shiva. I composed Misra Shivaranjani because I was inspired by
Shivaranjani. I tried to
keep the same mood of Shivaranjani but put more feeling into the rag.
Misra Shivaranjani
can be played in the afternoon, evening, or night. The beauty of the rag
is created by the
use of 2 ga notes (G, g) and 2 dha notes (D, d). Ma and ni are kept
hidden and can only
be touched through slide movements and ornaments. In this way I can still
keep the mood
of 5 notes. Misra means to mix. There are 2 approaches to Misra. One way
is to mix one
rag with other ragas; this can create many different emotions. The other
approach (which
I took) is to mix within the same rag. I stayed with Shivaranjani and
didn't take anything
from any other rag. The mood of Misra Shivaranjani is created by not
playing the notes
one by one but curving them in and around each other. It is this kind of
an approach that
helps to create the effects of peace, pathos, and joy.
Afternoon or Evening Rag
CD9404
$15.95
