The Vijayanagara musicological nonet or the Sangitashastra navaratna are a group of nine musicological treatises written during the reign of the Vijayanagara empire. These works are counted among the most important and definitive treatises in Carnatic music theory.[citation needed] Each of these works contributed seminally to the growth of the Carnatic music tradition. These nine works are the Sangitasara by the sage Vidyaranya, Taladipika by Salva Gopa Tippendra, Sangitakalanidhi by Kallinatha, Bhandaru Vittaleshwara's commentary on the Sangita Ratnakara, Bhandaru Lakshminarayana's Sangitasuryodaya, Achyutadevaraya's Talakalabdhi/Talakalavriddhi and the much celebrated Swaramelakalanidhi by Ramamatya.
The reign of Vijayanagara empire was a watershed period in the cultural history of South India, particularly the history of Carnatic music. The period witnessed the prolific contributions of numerous musicians, saints and theoreticians. By virtue of the geo-political influence it exerted, Vijayanagara had become the confluence of many religions, art forms and cultures. Society and culture went through a process of conflict and eclectic assimilation of the traditional and elite values on the one hand and the emerging folk and foreign influences on the other. There was a strong interaction between traditional and elite values on the one hand and folk and foreign influences on the other.[citation needed] Much of this was also the result of a reaction and revolt against emerging sociological and aesthetic trends. Even as this assimilation and nativization of the contending or opposing influences took place, traditional purity and historical continuity continued to be preserved. These cultural trends and objectives were later sustained and fostered in the several feudatory states that continued to thrive beyond the fall of the Vijayanagar empire. Some of the notable states included Anegundi, Penukonda, Tanjore, Mysore Kingdom, Madurai, Ikkeri etc.,.[citation needed]
Innovations in theory and practice
A wide range of experiments and innovations were carried out in the field of instruments too. The Tamburi introduced during the period soon became the principal drone instrument.[citation needed] Seminal work and innovations also took place in the Vina keyboards with regard to the accordatura, tonal range and instrumental parameters. The mela replaced the grama and it's the theoretical possibilities were fully explored through mathematical schemes of tabulation. The innovation of the concept of mela and organization of the entirety of contemporary melodic material under its umbrella culminated in Venkatamakhin's Melakarta scheme, one which continues to influence greatly the theory and practice of Carnatic music to this day. New classificatory models emerged for ragas; svayambhusvara (upper partials), paryaya-svara (alternative svara denomination) and pratinidhi-svara (representative note) scales and intervals were tuned to be brought into alignment with contemporary musical practice.[citation needed]
Various melodic and rhythmic structures found their way art music. All music became desi and marga music passed into oblivion as did the madhyamagrama and its paraphernalia. The totality of melody came to be referred to sadja grama alone. The arbitrary, archaic and prolific desi talas made way for the suladi talas engendered by the Haridasas. These were further refined based on the principles of the ten vital elements called taladasaprana.[citation needed]
Prominent composers
At the height of the Vijayanagara empire great saint-composers like Purandara Dasa, Sripadaraya, Vyasaraya, Vadirajatirtha, Kanaka Dasa, Tallapakam Annamacharya and his descendants, and Nijagunashivayogi flourished. Musical forms, the Kriti, the Suladi, the Ugabhoga, the Dandaka, the Urttanama, the Namavali, the Mundige, the Gita, the Thaya and the Prabandha developed and found wide currency during this period.[citation needed]
The 'nonet'
Throughout the Vijayanagara period, theory and musical practice kept pace with each other closely. Great musicologists like Salva Gopa Tippendra, Kallinatha, Kumbhakarna, Ramamatya, Laksmanarayana, Pandarika Vittala, Somanatha, Locana Jha and Hrdayanarayanadeva contributed to musical theory of both North and South India during this period. Tanappacharya, Govinda Dikshita and Venkatamakhin made foundational contributions from Tanjore about a century later. Each work of these scholars records a revolutionary and seminal concept or development which cumulatively resulted in modern Carnatic music. Nine musicological treatises of great significance were composed in the Vijayanagar period and these have been called the Vijayanagara Sangitashastra Navaratna or the 'Vijayanagara Musicological Nonet'.[citation needed]
Sangitasara
The first of the navaratnas is Vidyaranya's Sangitasara, composed in the second half of the fourteenth century. The work dealt with, among other things, the fifteen melas and their fifty janya ragas as well as certain types of singers. Some of this even found its way into Govinda Dikshita's Sangitasudha (nidhi), authored in the early seventeenth century.[citation needed]
Taladipika
The second of the nonet (chronologically) is the Taladipika. Authored in the mid-fifteenth century by Salva Gopa-Tippendra, brother-in-law of king Praudha Devaraya II and a viceroy of Mulbagal, the work deals at great length with the tala. It describes over a hundred desi talas including some of the author's own inventions. Most importantly, the concept of taladasaprana (ten vital elements of tala) is elucidated for the first time in the work. This innovation was to prove so influential that, following its explication, all temporal activities in music and dance came to be organized and consolidated under these elements.[citation needed]
Sangitakalanidhi
To the same period belongs the third work of the Nonet, Kallinatha's Sangitakalanidhi, a versatile commentary on Sharngadeva's Sangita Ratnakara, the encyclopedic magnum opus on Indian music. It was about dancing and aesthetics of the thirteenth century. In the work, Kallinatha meticulously annotated, explicated, criticised and emphasised all the central issues of the Ratnakara; he also illumined it through comparison with contemporary practices, theories and norms of music and dance. He anticipated many developments in these arts.[citation needed]
Bhandaru Vittaleshwara's commentary
A Telugu commentary by Bhandaru (-ri?) Vittaleshwara on the Sangitaratnakara in the last quarter of the fifteenth century forms the fourth of the navaratnas.[citation needed]
Sangitasuryodaya
In 1525, Vittaleshwara's son Bhandaru (ri?) Lakshminarayana composed the fifth treatise, the Sangitasuryodaya, under the patronage of king Krishnadevaraya of Vijayanagara.[citation needed]
Talakalabdhi/Talakalavriddhi
In the generation that immediately followed, Achyutadevaraya's Talakalabdhi/Talakalavridhi was written. This was an important treatise on tala. This work organizes for the first time the theory and practice of the suladi talas' of the Haridasas in terms of the dasapranas. In the work, he also compiles views from several earlier works on tala such as Talakalavilasa, Sangitavidyavinoda, Jainamata, Sangitamarga, Chaturasabhavilasa, Sangitachudamani, Anjaneyamata, Nrttachudamani, Sangitamanidarpana, Katyayaniya, Sangitarnava, Rangaraja Bharatabhashya, Kapardi, and Parameshvara (all of them non-extant), and refutes them. Further, Achyutaraya applies all the five laghu-jatis to each suladi tala and thereby expands the scope and function of the suladi talas. Around the same time, Ashtavadana Somabhatta composed the Svararagasudharasa or Natyachudamani under the guidance of his guru Sitarama and probably under Achyutaraya's patronage. This work is now available only in fragments.[citation needed]
Swaramelakalanidhi
The final 'gem' in the series is the much celebrated Svaramelakalanidhi authored by the illustrious Kallinatha's grandson, Ramamatya ca. 1550. Ramamatya was the royal composer and architect in the court of de facto king Aliya Rama Raya.[1] He described himself as abhinavabharatacharya and todara-malla (meaning "the hero" (malla) who wears the honorific anklet(todar)). The last epithet however, is usually interpreted by scholars as alluding to the Todarmal, a minister in Akbar's court, the anachronism notwithstanding. The Kannada term, in fact translates to 'the hero (malla) who wears the honorific anklet (todar)'.[citation needed]
Svaramelakalanidhi importance lies in the fact that it is more relevant and related to modern practice than the books written prior to it. The work, spread over five chapters deals primarily with Raga and preliminary to it, describes the Mela-s for the classification of Raga - and the different Suddha svara-s and Vikrta svara-s constituting the Mela-s. Similar works by other celebrated contemporaries like Pandarika Vitthala and Somanatha project a common theme, namely the description of Ragas, classification under Melas and the enumeration of the Suddha and Vikrta svaras constituting the Melas. Minor ideological differences can however be discerned among these works.[2]
The Svaramelakalanidhi brings the theory up to date, rationalizes intervals and scales, introduces the concepts of svayambhu-svara (self-generating note, upper partial), dharashruti paryayatattva and pratinidhitattva of svaras. Mukhari is established as the shuddhasvara saptaka. It also fixes and standardizes musical intervals on the keyboard, defines the accordatura, range, preferred strings (for particular notes) etc., for a variety of stringed keyboards. It also innovates and dedicates a new keyboard to Achyutaraya. A new scheme for classifying ragas into uttama (superior), madhyama (middling) and adhama (inferior) on the basis of their expressive potential is also expounded in the work. It also resolves the problem of the antara and kaishiki notes.[citation needed]
Carnatic music, known as Karnāṭaka saṃgīta or Karnāṭaka saṅgītam in the South Indian languages, is a system of music commonly associated with South India, including the modern Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana. It is one of two main subgenres of Indian classical music that evolved from ancient Hindu texts and traditions, particularly the Samaveda. The other subgenre is Hindustani music, which emerged as a distinct form because of Persian or Islamic influences from Northern India. The main emphasis in Carnatic music is on vocal music; most compositions are written to be sung, and even when played on instruments, they are meant to be performed in gāyaki (singing) style.
A raga is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a melodic mode. Rāga is central to classical Indian music and a unique feature of the tradition: no equivalent concept exists in Western classical music. Each rāga consists of an array of melodic structures with musical motifs; and, from the perspective of the Indian tradition, the resulting music has the ability to "colour the mind" as it engages the emotions of the audience.
Indian Classical Music is the classical music of the Indian Subcontinent. It is generally described using terms like Marg Sangeet and Shastriya Sangeet. It has two major traditions: the North Indian classical music known as Hindustani and the South Indian expression known as Carnatic. These traditions were not distinct until about the 15th century. During the period of Mughal rule of the Indian subcontinent, the traditions separated and evolved into distinct forms. Hindustani music emphasizes improvisation and exploration of all aspects of a raga, while Carnatic performances tend to be short composition-based. However, the two systems continue to have more common features than differences. Another unique classical music tradition from the eastern part of India is Odissi music, which has evolved over the last two thousand years.
Mēḷakartā is a collection of fundamental musical scales (ragas) in Carnatic music. Mēḷakartā ragas are parent ragas from which other ragas may be generated. A melakarta raga is sometimes referred as mela, karta or sampurna as well, though the latter term is inaccurate, as a sampurna raga need not be a melakarta.
Srinivasa Nayaka, also known as Purandara Dasa was a composer, singer and a Haridasa philosopher from present-day Karnataka, India. He was a follower of Madhvacharya's Dvaita philosophy. He was one of the chief founding proponents of Carnatic music. In honor of his contributions to Carnatic music, he is referred to as the Pitamaha of Carnatic music. According to a legend, he is considered as an incarnation of Narada.
A tala literally means a 'clap, tapping one's hand on one's arm, a musical measure'. It is the term used in Indian classical music similar to musical meter, that is any rhythmic beat or strike that measures musical time. The measure is typically established by hand clapping, waving, touching fingers on thigh or the other hand, verbally, striking of small cymbals, or a percussion instrument in the Indian subcontinental traditions. Along with raga which forms the fabric of a melodic structure, the tala forms the life cycle and thereby constitutes one of the two foundational elements of Indian music.
Karnataka is a state of India with a long tradition of innovation in the fields of both Carnatic and Hindustani classical music.
Kambhoji or Kambodhi is a popular Raga in Carnatic Music. It is classified as a derived raga from 28th Melakartha, Harikambhoji, and has existed since the 7th century.
Pandit Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande was an Indian musicologist who wrote the first modern treatise on Hindustani classical music, an art which had been propagated for centuries mostly through oral traditions. During those earlier times, the art had undergone several changes, rendering the raga grammar documented in scant old outdated texts.
Sripadaraja or Sripadaraya, also known by his pontifical name Lakshminarayana Tirtha, was a Hindu Dvaita philosopher, scholar and composer and the pontiff of the Madhvacharya mutt at Mulbagal. He is widely considered the founder of Haridasa movement along with Narahari Tirtha. He has influenced both Carnatic music and Hindustani music through his compositions. His songs and hymns, written under the mudra of Ranga Vitthala, contain the distillation of Dvaita principles infused with mysticism and humanism. He is also credited with the invention of the suladi musical structure and composed 133 of them along with several kirtanas. He was the advisor of Saluva Narasimha Deva Raya and mentored the young Vyasatirtha. He also authored a commentary on Jayatirtha's Nyaya Sudha called Nyayasudhopanyasa-Vagvajra. Sripadaraja is believed to be the incarnation of Dhruva.
Vijayanagara literature was produced in the Vijayanagara Empire during a golden age of literature in South India in general. The rulers patronised Kannada, Telugu, Sanskrit and Tamil scholars who wrote in the Jain, Virashaiva and Vaishnava traditions. The period produced hundreds of works on all aspects of Indian culture, religion, biographies, prabhandas (stories), music, grammar, poetics and medicine. An attempt is made in this section to list the various poets and saints and their most famous works.
Mayamalavagowla is a raga of Carnatic music. It is classified as 15th melakarta raga under Venkatamakhin's melakarta system. Originally known as malavagowla, "maya" was prefixed to it after the advent of the scheme of the 72 melas. The number 15 was assigned to it following the Katapayadi sankhya system. This is a morning raga.
Śārṅgadeva (1175–1247), also spelled Sharngadeva or Sarnga Deva, was a 13th-century Indian musicologist who authored Sangita Ratnakara – a Sanskrit text on music and drama. It is considered to be the authoritative treatise on Indian classical music by both the Hindustani and Carnatic music traditions.
Geetam, (Sanskrit: गीतम्; gītaṃ) the simplest music form in Carnatic music, was created by Purandara Dasa in order to introduce talas with sāhityaṃ (lyrics).
The Haridaasas, the Vaishnava saints of Karnataka, are classified into the Vyaasakuta and Daasakuta. The Vyaasakuta were the pontifical saints known for their scholarship and exposition of Madhva's philosophy. The Daasakuta were the peripatetic saint disciples of the Vyaasakuta sanyasins. They were proficient singers and composers and used classical music and the Kannada language as a medium to propagate the teachings and philosophy of the Dvaita school. While Sripadaraya is sometimes credited with starting this musical movement, Purandaradaasa, a disciple of Vyaasasraaya, became renowned as Karnataka Sangita Pitaamaha.
Swaramelakalanidhi is a much celebrated musicological treatise of 16th century Vijayanagara. Authored by Ramamatya in the year 1550, the work is counted among the sangita shastra navaratnas or the nine 'gems' of the theory of Carnatic Music. The work's importance lies in the fact that it is more relevant and related to modern practice than the books written prior to it. Spread over five chapters, it deals primarily with the theory of raga, describes the melas for the classification of raga -and the different shuddha svaras and vikrta svaras constituting the melas.
Govinda Dikshita (Dikshitar) was the minister of three successive Nayaks of Thanjavur, who ruled the region of Thanjavur in South India between the 16th and 17th centuries CE.
Venkatamakhin or Venkatamakhi, was an Indian poet, musician, and musicologist of Carnatic music. He is renowned for his Chaturdandiprakashika in which he explicates the melakarta system of classifying ragas. Venkatamakhin composed geethams and prabandhas, as well as 24 ashtapadis in praise of Lord Thyagaraja of Tiruvarur.
The Asampurna Melakarta scheme is the system of 72 ragas originally proposed in the 17th century by Venkatamakhin in his Chaturdanda Prakasikha. This proposal used scales with notes that do not conform to the sampurna raga system. Skipped notes or repeated notes, etc., were used in some of the ragas. Some of the ragas of any Melakarta system will use Vivadi swaras. The original system is supposed to avoid such ill-effects and was followed by the Muthuswami Dikshitar school. The naming of the original system followed Katapayadi system. Muthuswami Dikshitar's compositions use the name of these ragas in the lyrics of the songs and is still referred to by those names even in radio / TV announcements of these songs.
The Chaturdandiprakashika is a Sanskrit treatise written by the musicologist Venkatamakhin in the mid-17th century. It introduced a theoretical melakarta system to classify and organise ragas in the Carnatic music tradition of India. In the 20th-century, this system would form the basis of the thaat system that is used in Hindustani classical music today. Some portions of the Chaturdandiprakashika are now lost.
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