Raga Shudh Sarang

Raga Shudh Sarang is a khayal-based composition performed on the bansuri (North Indian bamboo flute) by Rajendra Prasanna. The track appears as the fourth piece on the album Indian Classical Flute Music. The recording spans 15 minutes and 40 seconds and showcases the artist’s interpretation of the raga in the Shudh Sarang thaat (parent scale), characterized by its use of komal re (flattened second) and shuddha ma (pure fourth) in ascent and descent.

Rajendra Prasanna renders the alaap, jor, and jhala sections with gradual elaboration, followed by a structured gat (composition) in vilambit (slow) and drut (fast) ektaal (12-beat cycle). The performance emphasizes the raga’s emotive chalan (melodic movement), particularly the oscillation between shuddha dha (pure sixth) and pa (fifth). Accompaniment details remain undocumented in available sources, though the track aligns with conventional dhrupad-ang (style derived from dhrupad) flute traditions.

The album Indian Classical Flute Music features Prasanna as the primary artist. The release year and label are not specified in accessible records. The work exemplifies the Maihar gharana (school) influence on Prasanna’s playing, marked by precise intonation and rhythmic control. No lyrical content or vocal accompaniment is present, as the track adheres to instrumental raga presentation.

Notable aspects of the recording include the extended meend (glissando) techniques and the use of gamak (ornamentation) to highlight the raga’s vadi (dominant note, re) and samvadi (subdominant note, pa). The track concludes with a tihai (rhythmic cadence) resolving on the sam (first beat) of the taal.