One of the great things about music is that it is universal in many aspects and yet so different among different cultures. The best way to highlight this is to understand some of the Indian Classical Ragas on a piano or a keyboard.  In this post, you will see how, just by using the white keys on the piano and starting from C, we can arrive at 6 Sampurna, Melakarta Ragas. Carnatic Music uses that terminology. In Hindustani Music, the equivalent concept of Melakarta would be Thaat.

These 6 ragas are known as Modes in Western music. There are 7 modes in Western music starting from C major. Six of them are translatable into Indian ragas. Let us check them out now. But before that…

A quick note on Sampurna Ragas

What exactly is a Sampurna Raga? Sampurna is a Sanskrit word that is used in many other Indian languages, and it means “complete.” Sampurna Raga is simply a raga that has all seven notes in the ascend or Aarohana as well as descent or Avarohana and these 7 notes are the same going up and coming down and there are no zig-zag (Vakra) notes.

All Melakartas are Sampurna Ragas but all Sampurna Ragas are not Melakartas.

Additionally, what we are going to do here is something that the Carnatic Musicians refer to as Greha Bhedam. More on that later. Let us go!

(C) – Carnatic

(H) – Hindustani

(W) – Western

Dheerasankarabharanam (C) / Bilawal Thaat (H) / Ionian Mode or the Major Scale (W)

Dheerasankarabharanam is the 29th raga in the Melakarta system and is perhaps the most popular sound across the world. It is also affectionately called Sankarabharanam, Bilawal, or the Major Scale. From Western Pop, Rock to Bollywood, this raga is probably the most used sound. We arrive at this by starting with the C as the root or the Sa and playing all white keys.

KHARAHARAPRIYA (C) / KAFI THAAT (H) / DORIAN MODE (W)

Kharaharapriya is the 22nd raga in the Melakarta system and is probably the second most popular sound across the world after the Major Scale. It is also known as Kafi thaat in Hindustani and the Dorian Mode in Western music. It is a raga that is often heard in pop and rock music and has its place in Bollywood Music too.

A point worth noting here is that the Kafi thaat and Kafi raga are two different things. In Hindustani, Thaats are guidelines and are not sung or performed per se. Every Thaat has a signature raga that is performed. Kafi raga, which is not a Sampurna raga, is the signature raga under Kafi Thaat.

We arrive at this raga by playing all white keys, starting from the D as the root or the Sa.

HANUMATODI (C) /BHAIRAVI THAAT (H) / PHRYGIAN MODE (W)

Hanumatodi is the 8th raga in the Melakarta system and is a popular raga in both Indian Music systems. It is known as Bhairavi in Hindustani and the Phrygian mode in Western music.

Hanumatodi is also affectionately known as Todi. Note that Hindustani Todi is a different raga, also, Carnatic Bhairavi is a completely different raga.

We arrive at this raga by playing all white keys, starting from the E as the root or the Sa.

MECHAKALYANI (C) /KALYAN THAAT (H) / LYDIAN MODE (W)

Mechakalyani, also known as Kalyani is the 65th raga in the Melakarta system and is an incredibly popular raga in both Indian Music systems and has numerous compositions in Bollywood and other regional Indian films. It is known as Kalyan Thaat in Hindustani and the signature raga is Yaman which is very similar to Kalyani raga in Carnatic. It is known as the Lydian mode in Western music.

We arrive at this raga by playing all white keys, starting from the F as the root or the Sa.

HARIKAMBHOJI (C) / KHAMAJ THAAT (H) / MIXOLYDIAN MODE (W)

Harikambhoji is the 28th raga in the Melakarta system and is a widely popular raga across the world. It is known as Khamaj Thaat in Hindustani and the signature raga is Khamaj which is very similar to Khamas raga in Carnatic. It is known as the Mixolydian mode in Western music and is quite frequently heard in Pop and Rock songs.

We arrive at this raga by playing all white keys, starting from the G as the root or the Sa.

NATABHAIRAVI (C) / ASAVARI THAAT (H) / AEOLIAN MODE /MINOR SCALE (W)

The Melakarta system categorizes Natabhairavi as the 20th raga, and people worldwide widely use it in a lot of compositions. It can compete with the major scale in terms of popularity and use. It is known as Asavari Thaat in Hindustani and the signature raga is Asavari. Known as the Aeolian mode in Western music, it is quite frequently heard in Pop and Rock songs to convey feelings of sadness and melancholy.

We arrive at this raga by playing all white keys, starting from the A as the root or the Sa.

BONUS:

The 7^th mode of Western music, known as the Locrian mode, does not translate into a valid Melakarta or Thaat as it has both types of Ma and no Pa. We arrive at this mode by playing all white keys starting from B. The Locrian mode can be heard in death metal guitar solos and background scores of film scenes that portray extremely sad, creepy, and scary scenes.

The raga that comes closest to sounding like the Locrian is a Carnatic raga called Rohini.

In conclusion, these six Sampurna ragas demonstrate the universal nature of music and its richness and diversity in all music forms and how they relate to each other despite being rooted in different cultures. Despite being limited to the white keys on the piano, each raga has its unique personality and emotional appeal. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced musician, these ragas along with their Janya ragas  (ragas derived from these ragas) offer a wealth of material for exploration and creativity.