Basic Scales and Thaats in Hindustani Music

Thaat refers to a framework or a set of rules governing the arrangement of notes in a scale within Indian Classical Music. It serves as the foundational structure upon which different Ragas are built. Thaat outlines the permissible notes (swaras) and their relationships within a specific musical context.

Ragas are melodic frameworks that evolve from specific Thaats, and thus follows the rules and guidelines laid down by that thaat. While Thaat provides the foundational structure, Ragas introduce variations and embellishments, allowing for creative expression within the established framework. Each Thaat has a unique sequence of these swaras, defining its distinct melodic identity and mood.

Remember that Indian scales do not mention the particular note - but the root-note is established by the performer or the composer. Let us understand how a basic thaat corresponds with a major scale on the keys of a piano. Assuming we begin with a C

Sa (Shadja) C
Re (Rishabha) D
Ga (Gandhara) E
Ma (Madhyama) F
Pa (Panchama) G
Dha (Dhaivata) A
Ni (Nishada) B

Aaroh: Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni Sa
Avaroh: Sa Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa

Bilawal Thaat features all the natural notes, meaning, no sharps or flats. In Indian music, they are referred to as shuddha swara and have no teevra or komal swar.

Each Thaat has its distinct flavor and mood, characterized by the arrangement of swaras and the presence of komal (flat) or tivra (sharp) swaras.

The same set of notes gives rise to Ragas in thaat Bilawal. Raga Bilaval uses the same set of notes and identifies Dha (6th note) and Ga (3rd note) as the most prominent Vadi and Samvadi. It is ideally performed in early morning. Bilaval raga also identifies some sequences or patterns of notes that appear in the compositions based on the raga.

1. Ga Re, Ga Ma Dha Pa, Ma Ga, Ma Re Sa
2. Ga Pa Ni Dha Ni Sa
3. Ga Re Ga Pa Dha Ni Dha Ni Sa

Raga Bilaval has been used in numerous popular movie songs.

Ragas in Thaat Bilaval

Another Raga based on the same thaat is Raga Durga. It is constructed with all the shuddha (natural) notes. However additional rules define this raga. Both ascending and descending patterns are restricted to a smaller subset. Ga (3rd) and Ni (7th) notes are not used.

Aroha: Sa Re Ma Pa Dha Sa
Avaroh: Sa Dha Ma, Pa Dha Ma, Re Dha Sa

Distinctive tonal phases are defined by the pakad as follows:

1. Ma Pa Dha Ma Re Pa
2. Dha Ma Re Sa Re Dha
3. Dha Sa