Like Snow White and the seven dwarves, the seven musical notes Sa, Ri, Ga, Ma, Pa, Da and Ni are said to be the constant companions of Saraswathi the goddess of music. Music is nothing but the seven notes playing a game together. If one or two notes don't join the play, then the game and the rules change. But it's good fun anyway. In Carnatic music jargon-it is the presence or absence of a single note which gives a scale and its melody its special trait. Read on and get tuned to the Carnatic Swara - diaspora.

Pull a switch for a pitch

Very simply a swara is a note of a particular sruthi or pitch.

Now what is a note? And what is pitch?

Consider this illustration.

Switch on three different domestic appliances.

Say, your mixer, air conditioner and generator.

The Seven Swaras

The machines make their customary sounds.

Say 'Sa'. Say 'Do'. They mean the same. The Carnatic system of music has identified seven basic kinds of notes and they are denoted by the syllables- Sa, Ri, Ga, Ma, Pa, Da, Ni. The notes are in the ascending order of their pitch.The seven notes are collectively called the Sapta Swaras.

Listen to tis audio clip of the seven notes sung in carnatic style.

In the Western Classical music system the same notes are denoted by the syllables Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So, La, Ti.. The note articulated by the syllable "Do" in Western Classical Music is articulated by the syllable "Sa" in Carnatic Music. The table below shows the other corresponding notes.

The Origin

It's Story time Here's an interesting legend about the origin of notes from the sounds of nature.

The joyous shrill made by the peacock on seeing the dark clouds prior to a rain shower is compared to the note Sa (the first and basic note).

The bellowing of the cow when it calls for its calf that's being dragged away is likened to Ri.

A goat's bleat is compared to Ga.

The Three Octaves

The orderly arrangement of the notes in ascending order of their pitch is called a scale - much like a staircase. Hence the order will be : sa ri ga m pa d ni because the pitch is in the ascending order.

The pitch of sa< ri < ga < ma < pa < d i < ni.

Note Position

If 26 letters can do it, so can 7 notes

The notes or swaras can encompass any and all tonal sounds in the audible range of frequency made in this world by things animate and inanimate.

If you are slightly sceptical about this claim, you can look at it this way.

Take the English alphabet.

It consists of twenty six letters representative of various sounds.