Here is the eight one in the series (click here for the seventh one). Again, not exactly a rare raga, but a very delectable one. It is not very often rendered, but it is not too rare.
(Answer below)
Select the text below to reveal the answer and some comments:
Artist: Nedunuri Krishnamurthy
Raga: kannaDagauLa, belonging to the kharaharapriya (22) mela. The raga could be viewed as sort of a cross between suddhadhanyAsi and contemporary AbhEri (and thus can resemble either of them here and there), but with some added individual characterictics. I find its structure to be especially interesting when compared with the structure of these two ragas.
suddhadhanyasi’s structure is straight forward pentatonic/audava as in S G2 M1 P N2 S / S N2 P M1 G2 S. Contemporary Abheri’s structure is S G2 M1 P N2 S / S N2 D2 P M1 G2 R2 S – i.e. same as suddhadhanyasi in the ascent but sampUrna as in including all swaras of the mela in descent. kannaDagaula is not a straight-forward cross of these two, and its structure is S R2 G2 M1 P N2 S / S N2 D2 P M1 G2 S. In the Arohana, we have some aspects of characteristic suddha-dhanyasi and Abheri ascent as in G2 M1 P N2 S. However, we have ri in the ascent (thus e.g. s r g, r g m etc. are allowed), which is found in neither suddhadhanyasi nor Abheri. In the descent, we have the S N2 D2 P like AbhEri, but we have M1 G2 S of suddhadhanyasi. This means you would have d p m g s, n d p m g s etc. which may resemble suddhadhanyasi somewhat although the whole phrase as such is disallowed in suddhadhanyasi (no dha). This whole phrase also isn’t supposed to be done in AbhEri. In AbhEri, one should descend as g r s there, which of course is disallowed in kannaDagaulA as one cannot descend from ri in it!
In any case, I find the raga to be an instantly attractive one just like suddhadhanyasi and AbhEri, somewhat close to them but still having its own unique charm.
Now that you know the raga, enjoy the kalpanaswaras for this raga by the same artist (but actually for a different song):
August 11, 2009 at 10:11 pm
My perceptions while listening to the piece was almost word for word identical to the first paragraph of your commentary
I did not get the raga, but caught on to the underlying aesthetics right, “sort of sounded like those two other allied ragas but there is something more to it” For some other reason, I was reading about their HM equivalents and so this gang was fresh in my mind.
I sensed some novelty in the alapana, more than in the kalpanaswara.
August 11, 2009 at 11:20 pm
Got the ragam, but definitely felt a lot of AbhEri and also quite some sAramati (in the m g s descent especially). Only realised the shuddha dhanyAsi connection after reading your explanation. Thanks!
August 12, 2009 at 2:05 am
This was a good one,I was more attached to the “A” raga and had thought it to be that.
But then it would have been easy for people and not that rare and had to check your hidden answer to get the correct one.Once revealed it became clear to me
August 12, 2009 at 4:48 am
I could hear the correct ragam only when the violin came on. Somehow, Nedunuri-garu’s alapanam didn’t help me to identify the ragam correctly.
August 13, 2009 at 12:04 pm
Excellent choice and one of my favorite ragams!
Apart from Orajoopu and Sogasujooda tarama, there is also the lesser known Nilothpalamba vibhakthi kriti by Dikshitar
http://sangeethamshare.org/sunil/guruguha/audio/krithis/copyrighted_nIlotpalAmbikAyA–kannaDagauLa–Adi–Sowmya.mp3
R. Vedavalli in one of her lec-dems (not online) mentioned that Dikshitar’s Kannadagowla is different from Thyagaraja’s but she did not elaborate on what the difference is. I have not been able to find anything on this anywhere else either.
If you or any other reader know about this, I will be glad to hear.
August 13, 2009 at 2:50 pm
Very pleasing and emotive rAga. It will fit in very well into rUpakas/dance dramas/operas.
Arun, you have missed the RShabha in abhEri’s descent.
kannaDagauLa that is in vogue at present is very different from the rAga given in the SSP. Although dIkShitar’s kRti itself is not notated therein, there are 2 gItes and SD’s sancAri. It is not possible to reduce this to a scale. Although SD expands it to
S GG, M P NN,S*|S*NN,D MM S,N P N, D MM G S|
there are many phrase that do not fit into this structure either. Some are “PMGS”, “SNDNS”, “MGRS”, “NRS”, “SRGM”.
But a common theme running though the iverall flow is the prominence of madhyama and niShAda swaras and the profusion and the particular use of tripuccha gamaka with these 2 swaras i.e triplets. There is also use of quartets of these swaras. They rarely occur singly. Panchama is used as a resting note.
Appears tough but if heard more often, likely will sound simpler andof course sweet.
Arun: Thanks for the detailed analysis Drs. I also corrected the slip-up w.r.t Abheri’s avarohana!
August 13, 2009 at 5:00 pm
I am an avid listener but not as educated as you people who post the swara nuances all over. Orajupu is taught widely I thought; heard it from young students when I was growing up. If you remember Orajupu and kannada gaula then one can definitely identify it from Nedunuri’s alapana. One other thought – in some phrases it does have shades of bhimpls.
August 13, 2009 at 5:01 pm
Addendum
Without the viSESha sancAras, the rAga willbe very similar to mALavaSrI. I surmise this may perhaps be the reason that the tessitura of mALavaSrI is restricted to madhyastAyi ShaDja and not below. there is no such restriction on kannaDagauLa.
August 14, 2009 at 12:14 pm
Pointers to any renditions of malavasri? Also, I did not realize that our raga used to be more complicated than how it is sung today even including ri in the descent in some phrases.
August 14, 2009 at 1:38 pm
A search of “malavas” on sangeethapriya yields a few compositions in mALavaSrI. I have composed a couple including a “swarAnka prabandha” in it.
Arun: Thanks. I listened to one – and yes it is certainly has similarities to our raga
!! I would love to hear you sing your compositions
August 18, 2009 at 8:56 pm
[...] under Carnatic Music, Rare Treats Leave a Comment Here is the ninth one in the series (click here for the eighth [...]
September 10, 2009 at 1:37 am
The best Kannadagaula I’ve heard is Shashank playing Sogasujudatarama in one of his CDs. Do listen to it…
September 21, 2009 at 9:09 am
Sounded a great deal like Abheri in the beginning, so I thought it could end up being Karnatakadevagandhari as well. Nice post!
October 26, 2009 at 4:50 pm
Arun,
Looks like there’s something wrong with the audio files – I see a File Not Found error when I click play.
Thanks!
Arun: Thanks – the website where the audio content is on was down for some time yesterday. It should work on