Notation Writing, Raga–Tala Identification and Listening
This domain combines writing and recognising: notate a bandish correctly, name a raga from a phrase, name a tala from theka bols, and describe what you hear using the right vocabulary.
Rules of Bhatkhande notation
- One column per matra; a Teental line holds exactly 16 columns, closed by | at vibhags and × at sam, 0 at khali.
- Capitals shuddha; small letters komal; M* tivra Madhyam; apostrophe = taar, dot below = mandra.
- A dash lengthens the preceding note; meend is shown by a curved line or an arrow between notes; kan swara is written in brackets.
- Lyrics sit below the sargam, syllable-aligned to their matras.
Identification cues
- Bhairav: slow andolan on komal Re and Dha.
- Yaman: tivra Ma paired with shuddha Ni.
- Bihag: shuddha Ma in both directions, Re and Dha avoided rising.
- Malkauns: g M d n, no Re, no Pa.
- Kafi: komal Ga and Ni with shuddha Ma.
- Tala from bols: "dha dhin dhin dha" = Teental; "dhi na dhi dhi na" = Jhaptal; "dha dha din ta" style 8-matra cycle = Keharwa.
Listening task
Identify voice or instrument, raga via pakad, tala via theka, laya, and form via text. Name ornamentation you actually hear rather than listing every ornament.
Worked example
A phrase given as "G M P N S' N D P | M G M G R S" must be notated with × on the first matra and the vibhag line after four columns of Teental. Step 1: count the sargam units and expand long notes with dashes to fill 16 columns. Step 2: place the text syllables under the aligned notes. Step 3: identify the raga (Bihag) and mark khali at matra 9 in the second half.
Traps
Writing 15 or 17 columns in a Teental line; placing × on khali; using komal signs for shuddha Ma; identifying a raga from its scale alone without the pakad; confusing meend with kan in a listening answer.