Paper short abstract:

Raga, composition, and notation form an important triad in knowledge processes in Carnatic music. Is composition a creative expression of the composer or documentation of raga? To what extent can notation, a written document, help in knowing the aural aesthetic of a musical composition, and how?

Paper long abstract:

In the Carnatic music system, two terms that are most significant are ‘raga’ and ‘composition’. Raga refers to the melodic material based on which any performance happens. While composition is a specific melodic structure that summarizes the characteristics and dimensions of the raga it is based on. Composition therefore can be a tool for documenting the form and character of a raga at a given context. It is at the same time a creative statement of the composer, at the instant of its expression. With time, this statement becomes a marker for tradition, sometimes, the only guide to understanding the raga, and sometimes, an archive for the raga’s history. Thus, becoming a guide to the knowledge of the raga.

In the context of documentation, another aid that has gained considerable prominence in the last two centuries is notation. The ways in which notation is thought of – as an aid to memory, as a documentational tool, or as a feature which could make melodic perception linear- makes for a multi layered relationship between composition and notation. This leads to interesting ideas about responsibility of the performer towards the composer, the composition and context; as well as using notation as a memory aid or a tool to melodic retrieval.

In this paper I will look at raga, composition, and notation in relation to each other, as well as, in combination with the musician, for whom they form a part of the process of ‘knowing’ the music.