Responses from Professor (Pt.) Sanjoy Bandopadhyay’s pen
Our air contains different gaseous components like hydrogen Oxygen helium nitrogen and so on. Does the “swar khepan” or particular phrase delivery of particular ragas can change those elements either increasing or decreasing. [Amit Chakrabarty – April 12, 2026]
Interesting question. In the language of Indian music thought, every swar khepan is first and foremost an event of nāda—organized vibration shaped through intention, breath, body, and consciousness.
From the philosophical side, nāda is not merely “sound” as an object. It is vibration becoming meaningful through consciousness. A rāga phrase therefore is not just a sequence of notes; it is a living movement of energized resonance, emerging from the musician’s embodied awareness and entering shared space.
From the standpoint of acoustic physics, this intuition has a clear parallel. When a swara is produced, the surrounding air does not change its elemental identity, but its molecules undergo momentary patterns of compression and rarefaction. In other words, the air becomes a temporary field of organized pressure waves. (Physics LibreTexts)
This is where the philosophical bridge becomes fascinating:
- Physics says: sound reorganizes pressure in air
- Nāda thought says: consciousness organizes vibration into meaning
- Music says: rāga organizes vibration into aesthetic and emotional intelligence
So the “change” created by swar khepan is not really a chemical change of oxygen, nitrogen, or other gases, but a transformation of vibrational order within the same medium.
One may say that the air in the room becomes, for a fleeting instant, rāga-shaped.
Just as a still lake remains the same water while a stone creates intricate ripples, the atmosphere remains the same gaseous body while the rāga phrase inscribes wave-patterns upon it.
At a subtler level, Indian aesthetics would further suggest that the phrase also alters the experienced space:
- the musician’s breath changes the micro-environment,
- listeners’ nervous systems entrain with pulse and pitch,
- emotional states shift,
- silence before and after the phrase acquires different weight.
Thus, while science would describe the event as pressure-wave modulation, music-philosophy may describe it as nāda reconfiguring lived space.
So the deepest answer may be:
swar khepan does not alter the substance of air, but it alters the vibrational destiny of that air for the duration of the nāda.
That is perhaps the most elegant meeting point of rāga thoughts, acoustic science, and physical science.
Question: I am seeing over time sitarists are slowly reduced the amount of bass from the overall sound of the sitar , they are making modifications to the sitar and the there is a base cut – if a sitarist of this generation pics up a 50-60 year old sitar, invariably he cuts the bass What brought in the requirement to the present practitioners ? And does this help the overall sound ?? I personally love how the sitar used to sound previously- Ilyas Khan, Yusuf Ali Khan, Mustaq Ali khan, Nikhil Banerjee Their playing sounded more nuanced and true and rich and the raga. Please shed light on this if possible, thanks in advance, pranams. [Souradip Laha, India]
Question submitted on 14 Nov. 2024 | Responded on 15 Nov. 2024
Your question revolves around (a) your liking of a type of sitar, i.e., sitar with bass strings, and (b) the contrasting choice of sitar without bass strings by most current sitar players.
When (1) individual experiences shape an individual’s personal preferences and (2) broader trends within the sitar player community may happen because of one or combinational reasons that I shall discuss below.
For any specific individual, e.g., the questioner, musical choices are often influenced by a person’s unique exposure to different styles, cultures, and social contexts.
There are several reasons why a large number of sitarists are gravitating toward bass-cut instruments:
1. Some players may simply be connected to a tradition that uses sitars without bass strings and continue with this choice.
2. Players who have experienced both sitar with bass strings and bass-cut sitars might prefer one over the other for various reasons:
a. Technical advantages: One type of sitar might be easier to play or maintain.
b. Musical advantages: The sound produced by a bass-cut sitar may be preferred for its tonal qualities or for its better fit with modern music styles.
c. Both technical and musical advantages: A combination of these factors may make the bass-cut sitar a better choice.
d. Audience appeal: Some players might opt for bass-cut sitars if they believe it enhances their performance and audience connection.
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