Hindolam (Sanskrit: हिन्दोळम्, Kannada: ಹಿಂದೋಳ, Telugu: హిందోళం, Tamil: ஹின்தோளம், Malayalam: ഹിന്ദോള്ം ) is a rāgam in Carnatic music (musical scale of South Indian classical music). It is an audava rāgam (or owdava rāgam, meaning pentatonic scale). It is a janya rāgam (derived scale), as it does not have all the seven swaras (musical notes). Hindolam is not the same as the Hindustani Hindol. The equivalent of Hindolam in Hindustani music is Malkauns ^[1] (or Malkosh ^[2]).

It is known to be a rāgam that is generally beautiful and soothing to listen to. Being symmetrical in its ascending and descending scales, it lends itself very well to improvization and is therefore popular at concerts.

[edit] Structure and Lakshana

Hindolam is a symmetric rāgam that does not contain rishabham and panchamam. It is a pentatonic scale (audava-audava rāgam ^[1][2] in Carnatic music classification - audava means 'of 5'). Since pentatonic scales can be found in other world music such as Chinese music, shades of Mohanam and Hindolam can sometimes be traced in Chinese and east Asian music. Its ārohaṇa-avarohaṇa structure (ascending and descending scale) is as follows (see swaras in Carnatic music for details on below notation and terms):

• ārohaṇa : S G2 M1 D1 N2 S
• avarohaṇa : S N2 D1 M1 G2 S

This rāgam uses the swaras sadharana gandharam, shuddha madhyamam, shuddha dhaivatham and kaisiki nishadham. Hindolam is not a melakarta rāgam, since it does not contain all the seven swaras.

Experts in Carnatic music hold differences of opinion on the janaka rāgams (rāgams of origin) that should be attributed to Hindolam. It is widely accepted that Natabhairavi is the parent rāgam of Hindolam, but some would like to associate it with Hanumatodi.^[1][2] It can be derived from both, by dropping the rishabham and panchamam.

[edit] Popular Compositions

Saamaja vara gamana by the maestro Thyagaraja is the most popular composition in Hindolam. Mamavathu Shree Saraswathi by Mysore Vasudevachar is another popular composition. Here are some more kritis composed in Hindolam.

• Govardhana girisam smarami by Muthuswami Dikshitar
• Sama gana lolane by G. N. Balasubramaniam
• Nambi kettavar evar by Papanasam Sivan
• Maa Ramanan by Papanasam Sivan
• Govardhana Giridhari by Thyagaraja
• Padmanabha Pahi by Swathi Thirunal
• Deva Devam Bhaje by Annamacharya

Numerous bhajans, stotras, kritis and film music numbers have been composed in the Hindolam rāgam.

[edit] Related rāgams

This section covers the theoretical and scientific aspect of this rāgam.

Hindolam's notes when shifted using Graha bedham, yields 4 other major pentatonic rāgams, namely, Mohanam, Shuddha Saveri, Udayaravichandrika (also known as Shuddha Dhanyasi) and Madhyamavathi. Graha bedham is the step taken in keeping the relative note frequencies same, while shifting the shadjam to the next note in the rāgam. For more details and illustration of this concept refer Graha bedham on Mohanam.

[edit] References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Ragas in Carnatic music by Dr. S. Bhagyalekshmy, Pub. 1990, CBH Publications
2. ^ ^{a b c} Raganidhi by P. Subba Rao, Pub. 1964, The Music Academy of Madras