Pentatonic Scales in Film Music -
2
This is the second in the series of articles that discusses the Maestro's use of Pentatonic ragas in film music. The emphasis is on the Maestro's association of ragas to a particular film song situation.
Sivaranjani raga is known to evoke the moods of romance, and sorrow.
The Maestro has explained the usage of this raga in a number of instances. A perfect example of the usage would be the song "Kuyil Paatu Oh…Vandadhaena Ilam Manae" (tamil - film unknown; the telugu version goes like this: "Koilara Oh….."). The song is based on a village backdrop and is supposed to symbolize the life of a village girl. The shift in the notes from tune to tune in this song is amazing, and shows the novelty in sound, that could be created with such a simple pentatonic scale. The composer presents a happy and pathos moods.
The Maestro has explained the usage of Sivaranjani in a romantic situation, in the song "Enanna Pada Padutharan…" from the film Andan Adimai.
Though the composer steps out of the raga at certain places (by using the higher ga), the song is a gem in Sivaranjani with its creative tunes (especially in the charanam) and a magnificent orchestration. The use of phrases with ga and ri in the higher octave, evoke the emotions related to the song situation. This feature is also found in other compositions of the Maestro in Sivaranjani.
The duet song "Valli Valli Ena Vandan…" (dhaiva vakku - tamil) is an excellent blend of Sivaranjani and Mohana ragas. The pallavi is set in Sivaranjani while the charanam is set in Mohana.
The Hamsanadham (s r2 m2 p n3) raga has been used by the Maestro in joyful and romantic situations. The Maestro's usage of this raga (in the song Om namaha…) has been discussed in lesson 2.
The detailed structure of this raga can be learnt from the song "Isaiyil Thodungudhama…" from the film Heyram (hindi, tamil,telugu).
Valachi (s g3 p d2 n2) is a comparatively rare pentatonic scale in carnatic classical music. Interestingly, Maestro Ilayaraja has used this raga for an equally rare situation in film music. The song "Siva Pujaku…." (Swaranakamalam - telugu) is based on this raga.
This song is strongly entangled with the story of the film. The female character in this song is a classical dancer but is more attracted towards leading a sophisticated life. The male character tries to explain to her, the sanctity of classical dance and the transience of the pleasures of a sophisticated life style.
Maestros' amazing use of a simple pentatonic scale to explain such a unique situation, is a perfect example of the depth in such scales. Note the shift in the percussions backing up the male and female voices, dragging the song closer to the underlying situation.
Creating Melody with Hamsanandhi
| Rathiriyil Poothirukum...(Tamil) | |
| Based on Raga: | Hamsanandhi |
[Audio Courtesy: RaajaNGAHM.com ] |
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This is a duet song situation that is typically found in
almost all indian films. While the song is a lesson on the usage of
the Hamsanandhi raga on one hand, it is an ideal example that blends
shades of western classical music with the indian, on the other.
Hamsanandhi , a symmetrical raga, is very close to its parent raga ( 53rd Melakartha), in that, it doesn't sound the panchamam in its ascent and descent. It has a combination of flat and sharp notes that gives it a unique sound stucture.
This is an high pitched song that revolves round
the higher shadjyamam.
The composer captivates the mind of the listener in the very first
tune of the pallavi, with its strange note combination that lands on
the dhaivatham.
The charanam is a typical composition of the Maestro in terms of tune complexity. The
second tune in the charanam steps outside the scale and sounds the
shuddha madhyamam. The shuddha and prati madhyama are sounded in
sequence, adding to the novelty of the tune. This is immediately
followed by a tune that starts on the lower gandharam and jumps to the
one on the higher octave.
While the song has a strong flavor of Indian classical music, the
orchestration is coated with a western flavor. The use of westernized
percussion during the interludes while continuing to maintain the
indian raga with the violins and vocals, makes this song a a perfect
lesson on fusion music. A dominant use of vocal sections backed up by
the violins, is found to be used as a basic theme for the interludes.
The flute and guitar pieces in the first and second interludes add to
the melody content of the song.
A Crash Course in Raga Kamavardhini
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Song: |
Rojavai Thalatum Thendral....(tamil) |
| Film: |
Ninaivaellam Nithya |
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|
Audio Courtesy: RaajaNGAHM.com ] |
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Coated with the flavors of Indian and western classical music, this melody is yet another duet song from the music Maestro.
The song is based on a melakartha raga, Kamavardhini. The pallavi of the song presents a brief introduction to the raga. The first tune marvelously covers all the notes in the scale, except the dhaivatham. Two short tunes that follow this one break on unexpected locations (ri and ga). The composer brings out the emotion in the song with the powerful introduction of the dhaivatham at the end of the last tune in the pallavi. The composer thus shows that the careful usage of the notes of a raga is the key behind tuning a song for a particular mind set. This tune repeats itself at the end of the charanam too.
The charanam begins with wonderful oscillations on the lower nishadham (this is an important characteristic of Kamavardhini). The tunes "mounamae sammagham endru…theendudhae manmadha vandu" that are rendered in the female voice (first charanam) are marvelously interleaved with male humming (ni after the first tune and sa after the second). The male and female voices exchange their roles in the analogous tune in the second charanam.
The composer, once again, waves his flag of creativity with his outstanding orchestration in this song.
The westernized usage of the guitar in the interludes, for a song that is based on a indian raga, is a lesson on blending the two different styles of music.
The song begins with a novel rhythm pattern that includes the tabla besides other percussive instruments. The guitar and tabla backup the vocal portions (pallavi and charanam) of the song. While the first interlude has a controlled usage of percussions, the second interlude does not sound any percussions (except the cymbals). This could probably be attributed to the song situation in the film (demanding more of emotion). The composer maintains the romantic mood of the song with the flute, violins and the guitar (typically found in most of the Maestro's compositions). Thanks to Maestro Ilayaraja, for this wonderful lesson.
Expressing Moods Through Music - 1 (Surpirse,Happiness)
| Vae Vaela Varnala...(Telugu) | |
| Film: | Sankeerthana |
| Based on Raga: | Mohanam |
[Audio Courtesy: RaajaNGAHM.com ] |
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The Mood of the Song
This song is a perfect example that describes how controlled deviations from a selected scale should be handled, thus tuning a song to evoke the required mind set.
This song has been composed for a joyful situation, wherein the character in the film describes the natural geographic beauty around him. The character expresses his feelings (of surprise and joy) while sailing in the fast moving river water. The tunes in this song are "musically" very close to the motion of the river water. The ups and downs in the flow of the notes in this song are analogous to those that occur during the journey through the river water. The composer thus gives an intelligent demonstration of how a song should be tuned to match the underlying situation.
The Scale
This song is based on the pentatonic scale Mohanam. This scale contains the chathusruthi dhaivatham , but the composer has made careful usage of shudha dhaivatham at several places in the song. The pallavi of the song begins with wonderful slides woven with the notes surrounding the higher sa. The second tune (Alalu silalu...) is unique in that it sounds both the dhavaitham in sequence. The unexpected appearance of the smaller dha (at several places in the song), adds to the uniqueness of the song in general.
The charanam maintains the high spirits of the character by beginning in the higher octave. The composer brings another surprise at the end of this tune by moving down to the smaller dha and finally touching the bigger dha before a tentative halt after which the next tune continues to the lower sa.
The amazing note combinations that constantly keep shifting between the bigger (chatustruthi) and smaller dhaivatham are beyond verbal description.These shifts in particular, express the feeling of surprise (as implied by the wonderful lyrics) and happiness in the mind of the character in the film. The charanam ending on the higher gadharam is the most unexpected musical surprise in this song. The lyircs for this last tune in the charanam, being a question, demonstrates the composer's ability to grammatically blend s tune with the meaning of its lyrics.
(Note: I'm note aware if the song was tuned to the lyrics or the lyrics were written to the tune).
The Orchestration
The high pitch and moderate tempo of the song speak of the composer's brilliance in matching the mood of the song.
The composer brings life to the song and fuses it with the situation in the film with a folk tune in the interlude. The female chorus backed up by a folk percussion, followed by the flute, gives a classical telugu folk color to the song. The fast pace of the song is supported by the tabla throughout the song (pallavi and charanam).
Expressing Moods Through Music - 2
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Song: |
Arum Adhu Azamila....(tamil) |
| Film: |
Mudhal Vasantham |
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[Audio Sample Sponsored By RaajaNGAHM.com ] |
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This
is a unique pathos
song that is sung
in a festive environment, according to the situation in the film.
The
female character in the film betrays the male character, who sings
this song on a festive occasion. The specific event in the
festival is that a group of women (including the female lead)
light lamps and float them in the lake. The male character
expresses the sorrow in him, through this song. The composer
proves his musical brilliance with his expression of pathos
without losing the celebratory mood of the situation.
The
composer shows that the usage of right instruments and raga are
the key factors that take a listener, close to the song situation.
The female chorus in the prelude (and the second interlude)
followed by the nadhaswaram (a south Indian wind instrument) with
the thavil (a south Indian percussion instrument) in the
background bring a traditional south Indian festive mood to the
song. On the other hand, the pain in the heart of the male
character is brought out through the raga of the song,
Vakulabaranam. Vakulabaranam is a melakartha raga that is
dominated by flat notes. The tunes in the song span between the
lower panchamam and the dhaivatham, typically found in many of the
composer's pathos songs.
The
song contains an excellent synchronization of guitar, keyboards
and percussion.
An example of the composers' mathematical skills (that make the song interesting to hear) is found in the guitar chords (with the flute melody) that sound in the latter half of the first interlude.
Applying Vocal Counterpoint and Harmony to Indian music
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Song: |
Avaesham antha..... |
| Film: |
Alapana |
This song is a lesson on the application of harmony and counterpoint, the essentials of western classical music, to the melodic patterns of carnatic music. It shows how melodies based on south Indian classical music can be subject to harmony and counterpoint, thus producing a perfect blend of the carnatic and western musical forms.
The song begins with a two voice counterpoint. The uniqueness of this counterpoint is that the two voices spell out plain notes (swaras) as in carnatic music. The composer touches the height of creativity by gradually overlapping the two voices with a third voice that sings phrases that are used in conjunction with Indian classical dance. While one of the first two voices gradually disappears the prelude ends with a two voice counterpoint.
The interludes present vocal harmony. While one voice spells out the swaras of an Indian melody the other hums the same without actually spelling out the notes.
The first interlude ends with another instrumental harmony with the flute, santoor (or probably the synthesis of santoor on the keyboard) and a bass line. A soul stirring Indian ( a typical Ilayaraja) melody that is ornamented with carnatic note slides (gamakas) is played on the flute and is backed up by the santoor and fretless bass giving a western shade to the whole piece.
These pieces of music are examples of perfect executions of harmony and counterpoint through carnatic music. They not only project the individuality of the western and Indian musical forms but also sound a novel musical form that is heard by blending the two.
