Life is nicer with a background score

I am a musician. An Indian Classical singer. I have been singing for a tad less than two decades now. Many think, that singing, by definition must be audible. That is a misconception. I can sing in my head, and in fact that is exactly what I do for most of the day.

All my music is spontaneous and reflects my state of mind. The music in my head changes with my mood, and the situation. The tempo increases when I am excited, slows down when I am down. The raga [1] (melody, composition) too follows my mood, as does the ornamentation. Alaapi[2] reflects calmness, laziness, relaxation; Sargam[3] reflects excitement, happiness, anxiety and even restlessness; Taans[4] express a high, extra-creative surges, passion and sometimes anger!

I have noticed, that in the mornings, I sing (in my head) morning ragas. Lalit when I am serious, Ahir Bhairav when I am feeling good, Bairagi when I want to get away from it all, Gujri Todi when I am excited or in a hurry, Bilaskhani-todi when I feel serene or devotional and Charukeshi when I feel romantic or enthusiastic.

In the afternoon, my mind renders noon and early evening ragas. Bhimpalas when I can feel the heat, but also feel a cool breeze on my face, Suddha Sarang when I am feeling slightly anxious, Vrindawani Sarang when I feel warm and cheerful, Madhuwanti when I feel the loneliness of dusk, Multani when I feel saddened, or irritated, Yaman when I feel happy, or philosophical, or even sad.

At night, I seem to be capable of a wider spectrum of moods, and my mind spontaneously dives into the raga that expresses it effectively. Baageshri typifies romance, but for me it also expresses everything from sadness to loneliness, amorousness to devotion and happiness to serenity. Malkauns also sweeps through an equally wide spectrum. Kalawati makes me feel at home, Bhinna Shadaj makes me ponder on the deeper nature of things, Marwa is when I long for my loved ones, or am depressed, Puriya Dhanashri , "Puriya Kalyan are quite versatile, expressing a wide range of bitter-sweet blues. Hansadhwani is when I feel helpful, cheerful, selfless and enthusiastic. This list can go on quite a bit, but I am sure you get the picture.

There are some ragas that are seasonal. Malhar and all it's varieties signify the rain, describing everything from nature's glory to the associated fear, romance to thrills and the electric excitement caused by the monsoons. Megh, Ramdasi, Miyaan, Gaud are variations on the basic theme of rain. Basant is sung in Basant ritu, or the season that makes it's appearance around Holi (April), after the Hemant season. This is the season that ushers the blooming of flowers, the singing of birds like Kokila (cuckoo), the humming of the bees, ripening of fruit and harvest etc. From the description of Basant in the ancient poetic compositions, Spring would be it's Western counterpart.

Don't think, that it's a one-to-one relationship; a particular mood doesn't dictate a particular raga, nor the other way around. Every raga is capable of expressing a wide gamut of expressions, and one's mood and many other factors go into the choice of the raga-mood correspondence.

I love to sing out aloud when I am walking, and out of earshot of the other pedestrians, and while driving. In fact, when I rode my motorbike, back in India, the tempo of my singing often matched the speed with which I drove! Sometimes, I sang some really memorable stuff, and at times I would get so engrossed in a particular taan, I often forgot to turn and would crash into a wall, or a fence! Luckily, I wore a helmet. I still remember the taan though!

In conclusion, my life has a musical score that changes with the type, intensity and the mood of the scene being enacted. I think life becomes much more palatable with the background music than without! I think that the music director must be given an award, don't you?

Definitions

[1] Raga: A traditional compositional framework for improvisation in Hindustani Classical music, consisting of a theme that expresses an aspect of emotions, devotion, feelings etc. and sets forth a tonal system on which variations are improvised within a framework of progressions, melodic formulas and rhythmic patterns. Ragas are often based on a temporal classification.

[2] Alaapi (Alap) : The introductory section of any Hindustani music performance. Improvisation based on the rules of the raga being rendered, its length may vary from a few minutes to many hours depending upon the creative ability of the artist.

[3] Sargam: The Hindustani or North Indian equivalent to the western solfege. Explicit intonation (or pronunciation) of the names of the notes (Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, Ni) in patterns of varying tempo.

[4] Taan: An improvised phrase, often performed at a fast tempo, based on the raga being performed. Often the most challenging part of the concert. Lengths, tempos and intricacy of patterns are based on the artist's skill.