Ramapriya
Also known as: Ramamanohari, Ramamanohari (Muthuswami Dikshitar school), rAmapriyA, Ramapriya (Melakarta 52)
Melakarta raga — 52
Practise Ramapriya →Ramapriya is the 52nd melakarta (9th chakra Brahma, "sa ra gu mi pa dhi ni"), the prati-madhyama counterpart of Chakravakam (mela 16). It is a rare, gentle and soothing raga generally recommended for morning recital; in concert its identity is elusive from a stray phrase and is often mistaken for Vachaspati or Pantuvarali until the R1 and prati-madhyama color settle it. It has a modest but real repertoire, with kritis attributed to Muthuswami Dikshitar, Tyagaraja, Swathi Thirunal and M. Balamuralikrishna, and it has also been used in film music (e.g. Ilaiyaraaja).
Gamaka
| Swara | Style | Hold allowed | Oscillation | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S | steady | yes | — | Shadja is the tonic/drone reference and is sung plainly and held as a graha and nyasa point. |
| r | kampita | no | — | Shuddha rishabham is a coloring tone typically given a gentle oscillation/kampita in phrases rather than held as a flat long note. |
| G | steady | yes | — | Antara gandharam is a bright, relatively stable landing note that can be held plain or given only a slight inflection. |
| M | kampita | yes | — | Prati madhyamam is the characteristic jeeva swara, usually rendered with a slight oscillation for color though it can be held as a nyasa in slow passages. |
| P | steady | yes | — | Panchamam is a stable consonant pillar sung plainly and used as a resting note. |
| D | kampita | yes | — | Chatushruti dhaivatam carries light gamaka movement in phrases and can also serve as a brief resting note. |
| n | kampita | no | — | Kaisiki nishadham is a soft coloring tone usually inflected/oscillated toward the upper shadja rather than held flat. |
Common pitfalls
- Confusing it with Vachaspati (mela 64): Vachaspati has chatushruti rishabha (R2) whereas Ramapriya uses shuddha rishabha (R1) — singing R2 turns it into a different mela.
- Confusing it with Pantuvarali/Kamavardhini (mela 51), which shares R1 and prati-madhyama but takes shuddha dhaivata (D1) and kakali nishada (N3); Ramapriya instead takes chatushruti dhaivata (D2) and kaisiki nishada (N2).
- Rendering the prati-madhyamam (M2) as a flat, steady shuddha-madhyamam and holding it plainly, which flattens the raga's characteristic higher-madhyama tension.
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramapriya — Corroborates scale (Arohana S R1 G3 M2 P D2 N2 S; Avarohana reverse), the swara varieties, the Dikshitar-school alias Ramamanohari, 52nd melakarta / 9th chakra Brahma / 'sa ra gu mi pa dhi ni', prati-madhyama equivalent of Chakravakam, and composers (Dikshitar, Tyagaraja, Balamuralikrishna).
- https://meetkalakar.com/Artipedia/Ramapriya — Independently corroborates the same arohana/avarohana and swaras, the sampoorna melakarta classification, Ramamanohari alias, the 'rarely heard, very soothing, suited for morning recital' character and the tendency of listeners to mistake it for Vachaspati/Pantuvarali, plus composers (Dikshitar, Swathi Thirunal, Thyagaraja, Ilaiyaraaja).
- https://www.ragasurabhi.com/carnatic-music/raga/raga--ramapriya.html — Third independent source confirming Arohanam S R1 G3 M2 P D2 N2 S and Avarohanam S N2 D2 P M2 G3 R1 S as the 52nd mela, offers a signature-phrase audio, an explicit comparison with Vachaspati, and cites the composition 'Korinavara'.
Related ragas
Ragas that share Ramapriya's family, scale, or swaras: Chakravakam · Gamanashrama · Namanarayani · Nasikabhushani · Navaneetam · Shadvidamargini.