Understanding Raag Kirwani
Formalized in the Carnatic music pantheon in India, Kirwani exemplifies "Shringar" / Romantic themes and is often used to portray emotions of longing, love and devotion.
Kirwani is officially the 21st Melakartha ragam in the Carnatic music system and also made its way into the Hindustani music system in recent years. It’s a complete Raag - meaning it uses all 7 notes with Komal Ga and Komal Dha and the rest being Shuddha swaras.
In Western music theory, this is called the Harmonic Minor scale, aka Aeolian ♯7 scale. The appeal of the harmonic minor scale is the distance between the flat 6th and raised 7th - called the Augmented Second. In Indian music terms, the 3 swaras distance between Komal-Dha and Ni.
Here’s a cool video from David Bennett showcasing popular songs using the harmonic minor scale
Treatment in the Indian music
To begin, it’s a Raag that’s transcended across both classical systems with the same moniker. Across both systems the compositions generally tend towards Shringar dealing with themes like romance and devotion. It’s also used liberally in Bollywood and other film music.
Songs like Kaa Karun Sajni, aaye na baalam and Ajahun aaye baalama sawan are popular even to this day in the performance circuit. Lata Mangeshkar’s Ek Radha Ek Meera is another classic.
Music directors from the South like Illayaraja and AR Rahman also love using Kirwani in their music. Songs like Ennai Thalatta Varuvala and Kannalaney, which is one of my favorite Chitra-ARR combo songs
On the Hindustani front, there are a few classic bandishes like.
Tore Bina Chain - Ustad Rashid Khan - the change in melody during the asthayi is magical.
Nanda Nandana - Dr Prabha Atre - Listening to this, it feels like Prabhaji is slowly taking the Raag apart in this haunting melody, and in each syllable, you can hear the twists and turns of Kirwani and why it’s such a perfect framework for romance in Indian music.
Sudha Lijiye - Dr Raja Kale - a composition of Pt Ramashreya Jha (Raamrang), rendered masterfully by Dr. Kale.
To end this post, here’s a song that I learned from my guru. This is another composition of Pt Ramashreya Jha in Drut Ektaal. The combination of melody and the time signature elevates Kirwani to its heights.
Happy Thanksgiving Week! Remember to show gratitude and thank the folks who helped you this year.
Bonus
Two other popular songs that use the Harmonic minor scale.
Bury a friend - Billie Eilish and Come out and play - The Offspring
Lastly, here’s our singing group’s performance of Kirwani from our annual recital.