Deshkar
देशकार
S R G P D S' | S' D P D G P G R S
Origins & Context
Raag Deshkar is a Bilawal thaat raga of Hindustani music, performed in the morning, that uses five notes: Sa, Re, Ga, Pa and Dha, all shuddha. Shuddha means natural, and a thaat is a parent scale. It is also written Deskar. George Howlett traces its roots to the Bilawal raganga, the family of phrases that grows from Bilawal.
In this notation, an apostrophe marks the upper octave and a dot the lower. The aroha, or ascent, is S R G P D S', and the avaroha, or descent, is S' D P D G P G R S. The vadi, the most prominent note, is Dha, and the samvadi, its partner, is Ga. The AUTRIM project of the National Centre for the Performing Arts and the University of Amsterdam names Dha and Pa as its important notes.
Deshkar has the same five notes as Bhupali. AUTRIM writes that the two differ in note treatment and melodic progression. It calls Bhupali a serious night raga of slow glides, and Deshkar a lively morning raga that moves mostly in the upper registers. In Carnatic music the same five notes form Mohanam, which Howlett gives as an approximate counterpart.
KalaSudha presents Hindustani musicians in concert and releases their recordings. Its academy teaches ragas online and in local workshops, and each course is built by its instructor with KalaSudha.
Technical Details
Melodic structure and movement patterns
Aroha (Ascent)
S R G P D S'
Avroh (Descent)
S' D P D G P G R S
Pakad (Catch Phrase)
S R G P D, D G P, S' D, P D G P, G R S, .D S
Additional Notes
Phraseologies
Key for these phrases: an apostrophe puts a note in the upper octave, and a dot in the lower.
Dha is the strong note, and the link from Dha to Ga matters, as in P D G P. Re is used sparingly in the descent. Pa is the resting note: the alap stresses it and ends on it. The identifying turn is S' D, D P, P D G P.
The AUTRIM project finds the ascent and descent straightforward. It hears Dha held with slight oscillations, approached from komal Ni, a grace note outside the raga's five notes, and places most of the elaboration in the upper middle and high registers.
Common Phrases
Around the World
Global connections and equivalent scales
With Sa on C, Deshkar uses C, D, E, G and A. George Howlett gives the major pentatonic scale as its jazz translation, the same five notes.