Class 9 · ArtsNCERT 2026 Revised Syllabus
Chapter 8: Raga and Tala (0907AR08)
Madhurima
Introduces raga scales and jatis, achala and chala swaras, and the tala system including Teental and its notation.
Chapter code: 0907ar08 · Book: Madhurima · Class 9 Arts
Find complete NCERT solutions for Class 9 Arts, Madhurima Chapter 8. Every question has a clear, step-by-step answer for chapter code 0907AR08.
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Section A - Rāga(4 questions)
1
Write any Audava Rāga scale.
Ans.
Rāga Bhoopali (Hindustani): S R G P D S -- a 5-note (audava) scale.
2
Write any Shadava Rāga scale.
Ans.
Rāga Gurjari Todi (Hindustani): S R G M D N S -- a 6-note (shadava) scale.
3
Write any Auḍava-Ṣhāḍava scale (5 notes in ascent, 6 in descent).
Ans.
Arohana (5 notes): S G M P N ; Avarohana (6 notes): N D P M G S.
4
If you could name a rāga, what would it be? Describe how you would like it to make a listener feel.
Ans.
Sample answer: `Rāga Śānti' -- using soft, sustained notes in the lower octave, sung slowly, so that the listener feels a deep sense of calm, peace and quiet reflection.
Section B - Tāla(1 questions)
1
Write a lyric to Tāla (Sample Answer).
Ans.
Teental (16 mātrā, one syllable per beat), sample lyric line -- continuing the given example:
• Mātrā 1–4: Ran into the -- Mātrā 5–8: gar-den to play -- Mātrā 9–12: ran-ning a-round -- Mātrā 13–16: un-der the sun.
Rupaka Tāla (6 mātrā, in the pattern 1-2 / 3-4-5-6), sample lyric -- continuing the given example:
• Mātrā 1–2: Ra dha -- Mātrā 3–6: Sha ya ma la.
(These are sample fills -- any lyric, in any language, may be fitted with one syllable per beat, as instructed in the activity.)
Exercises(8 questions)
Q1
Explain the following in one line:
Ans.
• Ṣhāḍava-Saṁpūrṇa -- a rāga-Jāti in which the Arohana uses 6 notes and the Avarohana uses 7 notes (or vice versa).
• Vibhag -- a division or group of beats within a tāla.
• Jatis in Hindustani Music -- the classification of rāgas according to the number of notes (5, 6, or 7) used in their ascending and descending scales.
Q2
If a rāga has 6 svaras in the ārohaṇa and 6 in the avarohaṇa, what is the jāti of the rāga? Give an example from the rāgas you have learnt.
Ans.
The Jāti is Shadava-Shadava. Example: Rāga Gurjari Todi (S R G M D N S), which uses 6 notes in both ascent and descent.
Q3
Which are achala-svaras/prakṛiti-svaras and chala-svaras/vikṛiti-svaras? Explain with examples.
Ans.
• Achala-svaras/prakṛiti-svaras -- the invariant notes that have no variant form: S (Shadja) and P (Panchama).
• Chala-svaras/vikṛiti-svaras -- the movable notes that have a lower and a higher variant: R, G, M, D and N. For example, R has Komala R (lower) and Shuddha R (higher).
Q4
Name two rāgas and their scales derived from Śhaṅkarābharaṇam.
Ans.
• Rāga Hamsadhvani (audava) -- Arohana: S R G P N ; Avarohana: N P G R S -- formed by removing M and D from Śhaṅkarābharaṇam.
• The textbook explicitly demonstrates Hamsadhvani as the named example; it does not name a second rāga in this section.
Q5
Answer the following:
Ans.
• A rāga with 5 notes is called Audava.
• The Melakarta system was devised by Venkatamakhi.
• Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande grouped the Hindustani rāgas in the That system.
• Complete the series: SMGR, RPMG, _____.
Q6
What is the difference between Jatisvaram and Svarajati?
Ans.
A Jatisvaram uses only svaras and rhythmic syllables (jatis), with no lyrics (sahitya). A Svarajati combines svaras and jatis with simple lyrics (sahitya).
Q7
Give a brief introduction of Rāga Hamsadhvani.
Ans.
Hamsadhvani is an audava (5-note) janya rāga derived from Śhaṅkarābharaṇam, formed by omitting M and D. Arohana: S R G P N ; Avarohana: N P G R S. The textbook shows its five-note scale and explains that M and D are removed from Śhaṅkarābharaṇam to form it.
Q8
Describe one system of classification of rāgas with examples.
Ans.
Rāgas are classified by Rāga-Jāti -- the number of notes used in the Arohana and Avarohana. A 7-note scale is Sampurna (e.g., Yaman), a 6-note scale is Shadava (e.g., Gurjari Todi), and a 5-note scale is Audava (e.g., Bhoopali).
Activities — How to Do (Tala)(4 questions)
1
Activity 8.2 (identifying bols): listen to a theka recording on tabla and pick out its bols. How should you listen?
Ans.
Play the theka in short loops; speak each bol (dha, dhin, na…) aloud with the strokes; count which bol falls on each beat. Repeat till you can recite the full bol-cycle from memory.
2
Activity 8.3 (finding sam): follow the bandish’s tabla theka in class and catch the sam; watch how the artist lands on it differently each time. What should you track?
Ans.
Keep silent beat-counting through the theka; raise a finger at every sam. During elaboration, track how the artist curves back to sam each cycle — different phrases, same landing point.
3
Activity 8.4 (tala pattern of a song): first respond naturally (tap, clap), then find how many beats the tala cycle holds. What is the method?
Ans.
Tap or clap along freely till the pulse sits in the body. Then count beats from one sam to the next — that number is the tala’s cycle length (e.g., 8 for Keherwa, 16 for Teental).
4
Activity 8.6 (fitting your song to tala): take your Activity 6.7 family song — does it fall into a tala? Reshape it (speed, stretched/compressed syllables, added/dropped words) and sing it on a steady beat. What should you test?
Ans.
Sing the song against a steady clap: does it already sit in a cycle? If not, speed/slow it, stretch or squeeze syllables, add or drop a word till it locks. Note how the feel changes once tala holds it.