Sur Sangat from Me Vasanth Rao in Raag Tilak Kamod
This cousin of Raag Des has come back into the mainstream recently with compositions like "Aaoge tum" sung by Ustad Rashid Khan, and old classics like Sur Sangat
Every Indian knows the song Vande Mataram - the popular version based on Raag Des. Said to be composed by Pt Vishnu Digambar Paluskar in the early 1900s, the song is sticky and instantly appeals to listeners. Its popularity and subliminal message meant it was banned for over 50 years.
Tilak Kamod is a close cousin of Des, and yes, there’s a close family resemblance. It’s hard to sing Tilak Kamod for extended periods without falling into Des’ territory. However, the Raag and its characteristic Meend (glide) from Sa’ → Pa should be enough of a blueprint to demonstrate Tilak Kamod to any passerby.
Chalan of the Raag goes as follows
,P ,N S R G S R P M G S R G S ,N
R M P D M P S’ … S’ ~→ P … D M G (Khamaj Ang), S R G S N’
R P M G .. S R G S ,N
This Vakra Raag features a prominent Ga and sometimes a Komal Ni, and packs a punch.
Popular compositions in Tilak Kamod
We’ll begin with a traditional composition from the Jaipur-Atrauli Gharana - Sur Sangat, covered by the whos-who of music. Rahul Deshpande's version is superbly done, with a haunting Roopak setting the mood for the bandish.
Others have covered this song, and some of my favorites are from Ashwini Bhideji, Pt Mansur, Pt Basavaraj Rajguru.
In terms of popular songs, Manarang’s composition - Teerath Ko Sab Kare is probably on par with Sur Sangat. Here’s a version sung by Pt Bhimsen Joshi followed by a Drut bandish - Mann Mein Mohan Biraaje.
Adding a few more songs in this raag,
Aavat Ghar Aaj - by Kala Ramnathji with Yogesh Samsiji on Tabla
Damaru Dama Dama Baaje - by Pt Venkatesh Kumar singing Miya Tansen’s composition
Ustad Naseeruddin Sami singing Tilak Kamod and a Tarana in Des
Bonus
Do you know the earliest known musical instruments & how early did music emerge?
Why go down this rabbit hole, you ask? When practicing this Raag, I thought the Sa to Pa Meend reminded me of a bird call. I got curious about if birds made music. For now, science suggests birds don’t exhibit any musical abilities. However, I found this body of work exploring the ability to keep rhythm.
The range of species capable of human-like synchronization to a beat is currently an unsolved mystery. Apart from further research on parrots and nonhuman primates, which other animals should be tested for this ability? In terms of vocal learners, further work is needed to find out whether the capacity to synchronize to a beat is latent in all vocal learners (e.g., including bats), or only in a subset of vocal learners who also have other key traits. Parrots, for example, can imitate nonvocal gestures and are also deeply social creatures who may have a propensity for coordinated movement with social partners
- journals.plos.org
Take a few seconds to watch this video of a horse syncing its trotting pattern to the music playing. The fact that all known human cultures have some form of music suggests it may be a fundamental aspect of human cognition with evolutionary roots.
Some birds, like the mockingbird in California and some thrush species, have highly musical calls. Some have even been discovered to use the perfect fifth interval. We can only speculate whether music originates in animal sounds. Some of the oldest instruments found (bone flutes, dated to 40-60,000 years back) predate cave paintings by about 20,000 years are suspected to be from a different hominid species entirely. You guessed it right: Neanderthals had both language and music.