What Is Raga Bageshri in Hindustani Music?

Bageshri is a night raga of Kafi thaat with komal Ga and komal Ni. Its aroha (rising line) usually leaves out Pa, and Pa stays light in the descent. Its most important swara (vadi) is Ma, and its second (samvadi) is Sa.

The swaras and forms of Bageshri

With Sa on C, the swaras of Bageshri are C, D, E flat, F, A and B flat. Pa, which falls on G, is used lightly or not at all. The Bhatkhande aroha is S, R G_, M D, N_ S'. The avaroha is S', N_ D, M G_, R, S.

Many textbooks also drop Re from the aroha and write S G_ M D N_ S'. That form makes the jati (class) audav-sampurna. It has five swaras going up and seven going down. Some performers add a little Pa in the descent, as in M P D G_ M G_ R S. Practice varies between schools.

The central phrase and the weight on Ma

The Bhatkhande texts treat the phrase M D N_ D M G_ as the true core of Bageshri. A rising version, M D N_ S', reaches taar Sa (upper Sa). Phrases return to Ma constantly because it is the vadi.

Bageshri is sung late at night. The Bhatkhande texts give the third prahar (three-hour period) of the night. Other references give the second prahar.

How Bageshri differs from Rageshri

Rageshri belongs to Khamaj thaat. It takes shuddha Ga where Bageshri takes komal Ga, and it also leaves out Pa. With Sa on C, a descent M D N_ D M G that lands on E natural points to Rageshri.

The same descent landing on E flat points to Bageshri. Its vadi Ma and its frequent turn back to Ma confirm the raga.

A singer who comes from Kafi may give Pa full weight in Bageshri. A stressed Pa makes the music sound like Kafi. In Bageshri, Pa should stay brief or absent.

How it looks

Neither line of this Bageshri aroha and avaroha contains Pa. Some performers add a light Pa in the descent.

This phrase begins and turns on Ma, the vadi. The second half rises through komal Ni to taar Sa.

In exams and courses

Bageshri is on the Gandharva Prarambhik and Praveshika Pratham raga lists. Madhyama Pratham studies it in depth with a vilambit (slow) and a drut (fast) composition and ten minutes of elaboration. The CBSE Class 12 vocal and melodic syllabi prescribe it with Bhairav and Malkauns.

Practice tests on this site with questions on this term:

Practice it

CBSE Class 12 Hindustani Vocal practice test. Practice the Class 12 paper, which sets Bageshri beside Bhairav and Malkauns.
Gandharva Madhyama Pratham practice test. Practice the theory of the level that sets Bageshri with a vilambit and a drut composition.
Tanpura. Sing the phrase M D N_ D M G_ over the drone and hold Ma steady at the end of each turn.

Flashcard

What is bageshri?

Related terms

Raga: A melodic framework of Indian classical music. It is defined by its notes, characteristic phrases, emphasized tones and mood.
Thaat: A parent scale of seven swaras used to classify Hindustani ragas. The Bhatkhande system uses ten thaats.
Kafi: A raga of Kafi thaat with komal Ga and komal Ni. Its vadi is Pa and its samvadi is Sa. It is widely used in lighter forms such as thumri and hori.
Komal: Flat, in Hindustani music: the lowered form of Re, Ga, Dha or Ni, a half step below the shuddha form. Bhatkhande notation marks it with a line below the swara.
Malkauns: A pentatonic late-night raga of Bhairavi thaat. It uses Sa, komal Ga, Ma, komal Dha and komal Ni and leaves out Re and Pa. Its vadi is Ma and its samvadi is Sa.

Sources

Open it in The Music Dictionary →