Jairazbhoy on N. Indian variable intervals, harmoniums, shrutis, etc.

Hi Folks,

Disclaimer: In the hopes of preventing a misunderstanding, I want to
make clear that I receive the tuning list posts in digest form. If my
posts seem out-of-sync with those of you who receive each post
individually, now you one at least one reason why. :-)

[Sorry for the disclaimer, but I have been involved in such a
misunderstanding in the past.] :-)

I am at home now and have my copy of N. A. Jairazbhoy's "The Raags of
North Indian Music" [note that "Raags" is typeset in (and on) this book
as "Rags" with a bar over the "a"] in hand and Dr. Jairazbhoy does talk
about the variable nature of intonation in Hindustani (North Indian)
classical music in this book. He also talks a little about the use of
harmoniums in Hindustani classical music in this book.

Following are a few paragraphs I thought folks on this list might find
interesting. Apologies in advance for any typographical errors I have
made. My notes are in the form [CJC: ... ], the [#]'s are footnotes,
and /.../ indicates italics. I used a form of academic ASCII notation
for the Hindi and Sanskrit diacriticals for which I can probably dig up
or write a summary if someone really wants to learn it. :-)

If you get a lot out of the following, please buy Dr. Jairazbhoy's book
so that I can feel less guilty about transcribing so much of it here.
:-)

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(pp. 4 - 5)

There is no shortage of evidence to show that the relationship
between musicians and musicologists in India is not without tension.
Banerjee (1986:10), in her lead paper for the /Sangeet Natak/ issue
devoted to the teaching of Indian classical music, quotes Pandit
Ravi Shankar (1969:10): "... today one finds a certain tension
between musicologists and performing artists in India, particularly
in the North ..." and states, "Probably in very few countries of the
world had the theoretical study of music and its practical work
become separated in such water-tight compartments and for such a
long time as in India." There is no doubt that this is true, but
why? The reasons are no doubt very complex and we can only offer
here a simplistic explanation. With the exception of a few
scholars, most theoreticians, cognoscenti and even many music lovers
have tended to believe that the reason underlying the fact that
contemporary performance practice does not conform to the theories
espoused in the historical Sanskrit treatises is because performers
have neglected the sources (or been unable to consult them) and thus
the music has degenerated. As a result, they have not only been
critical of performance but on occasion, have attempted to impose
their notions on performers. The most obvious instance of this has
been the case of the harmonium which has been criticised by numerous
scholars [4] and was banned from All India Radio for perhaps twenty
years because its basically tempered set of twelve semitones were
thought to dull the acute sense of perception implicit in the 22
/shruti/ (microtone) octave described by the most revered Sanskrit
musical treatises (e.g., /Naatyashaastra/ and /Sa.ngiita
Ratnaakara/). The harmonium has been used as an accompaniment by
some of the leading singers of this century and still continues to
be used in this capacity. The issue that emerges from this is
whether or not those who presume to know what Indian classical music
ought to be have the right to censor musical practice.
It is not at all surprising that attitudes of this kind caused a
rift between theorists and practising musicians. If the breach is
to be repaired, theory must follow practice -- not attempt to
dictate the course of practice; if, however, theoreticians can
create one or more theories which are meaningful to the performers,
they will undoubtably feed back into practice, but this must be left
to the discretion of the performer/composers, and not dictated by
the theoreticians.

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[4] e.g., Fox Strangeways, A.H., /Music of Hindostan/, p.16.

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(pp. 34-35)

While the present-day North Indian gamut is comparable to the
twelve-semitone octave of the West, some discussion on the subject
of intonation is necessary. In the classical music of North India
there is no need for equal temperament, since the factors which lead
to this -- changing harmonies and the system of keys -- do not
apply. Moreover, the technique of tempering notes by the use of
beats is generally unknown, and since it is uncommon to find a
number of melody instruments playing together, no objective standard
of tuning is in general use. The only Indian instrument with fixed
intonation is the harmonium which is often used for accompanying
singers, but even here the precise tuning varies with each
instrument. In general, intonation is governed by the individual
musician's feeling for intervals. Except for the simple consonances
of the ground-note, octave, fifth and fourth, these only approximate
to a twelve semitone standard. Electronic analysis has confirmed
that there is variation in intonation from one musician to another,
as well as for a single musician during the course of a performance.
[1]
Apart from this unconscious variation in intonation, there are
musical traditions in North India which consciously recognise that
in a few particular /raags/ one or two notes are flatter or sharper
than that which they conceive of as the standard in the /raags/ as a
whole. Bhaatkha.n.de refers to these traditions on a number of
occasions; for instance, when discussing the /raag Aasaavrii/ he
says, 'Some say that the Dha (VI) of /Aasaavrii/ is flatter than
that of the /raag Bhairavii/'. However, he does not appear to give
much credence to this and prefers not to go further into the matter.

[CJC: There follows an interesting, amusing, and lengthy footnote on
what more Bhaatkha.n.de actually did write about varying
intervals in Hindustani classical music, but I am leaving that
out in the hopes of tempting you to go buy Jairazbhoy's book.
Besides, I am tired. :-) ]

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[1] For further discussion on intonation, see N. A. Jairazbhoy and
A. W. Stone, 'Intonation in present-day North Indian classical
music', Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies,
Vol. XXVI, Part 1, 1963, pp. 119-32.

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(p. 35)

In the introductory chapter we have already suggested that the
/shruti/, which was the basis of distinction between two parent
scales in ancient India, had certainly lost its original
significance by the 17th century. In modern times certian
musicologists and musicians still attempt to apply the old
twenty-two /shruti/ system to present-day music, while others go so
far as to assert that the present-day gamut can only be explained in
terms of forty-nine or even sixty-six different intervals. The fact
remains that /shrutis/ are no longer functional, that is they are
not a primary basis of distinction between /raags/.

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(pp. 70-71)

A fundamental question arises out of the foregoing discussion.
How can we recognise and appreciate a /raag/ when the dynamic
function of its notes is variable? The only explanation which
appears to fit this condition is that the mind has considerable
latitude in the comprehension of musical intervals. This is borne
out by the fact that in Indian music the precise intonation of notes
also varies from performer to performer, from recital to recital and
even within the same recital, [1] and yet the /raag/ being performed
is clearly recognized by the audience. Perhaps the best way to
understand this is in terms of an analogy. Let us imagine that the
consonance-dissonance graphs represent the terrain on which we are
walking. As we walk down from a peak into a valley, at a certain
point we suddenly recognise the valley and can say this is Dha [CJC:
sixth] or this is Ga [CJC: third]. The point of lowest potential
energy of this valley is at its bottom, but recognition dawns
somewhere on the slopes. The analogy must now be carried into three
dimensions if we are to convey the dynamic function of the notes, as
the particular valley we are concerned with may be located in the
mountains, and a river in this valley will run into a lower valley
and continue downwards until it finally reaches the ocean. In two
dimensions the bottom of the valley appears to be a state of minimum
potential energy; in three dimensions, however, it is seen that the
bottom of the valley is itself sloping towards a lower valley. The
incline is less steep in the valley than on the slopes, thus the
kinetic energy, which can be correlated with the dynamic function of
the notes, is lower in the valley than on the slopes. Would a
musician necessarily choose the point of lowest kinetic energy when
he wishes to convey suspense, anticipation or tension? It has been
noted that the leading note (Ni) is often sharper in ascent than in
descent. Is not this sharpening of the Ni a subconscious device to
increase its dynamic value so that it more urgently demands
resolution on the tonic (Sa)?
To summarise, music is concerned, from one viewpoint, with
states of tension and release, with contrasts of energy levels.
Where the musician wishes to convey the feeling of relief from
tension, he must seek the bottom of the valley, and particularly
those valleys which have a low potential energy level, in other
words the more consonant notes. When he aims to convey tension,
however, he would not necessarily seek the /bottom/ of the valley of
the less consonant notes. Yet he cannot stray too far up the slope,
else the note would sound disturbingly out of tune.

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[1] Jairazbhoy here again cites the following work (specifically pp.
130-131):

Jairazbhoy, N. A., with Stone, A. W. 'Intonation in
present-day North Indian classical music', Bulletin of the
School of Oriental and African Studies, Vol. XXVI, Part 1,
1963, pp. 119-32.

and then goes on to note, "There is reason to believe that the
same occurs in Western music played on non-keyboard instruments
or sung, despite its basis of equal temperament."

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Seriously folks, if you got a lot out of the preceding excerpts, please
buy Dr. Jairazbhoy's book so that I can feel less guilty about having
transcribed so much of it here. If you are interested in Hindustani
classical music, it is definitely worth having. It is listed on
amazon.com. :-) Thanks. :-)

Cheers,
Christopher