Do not stop experimenting – A case study

WHILE PRODUCING SARGAM/NOTATIONS DO NOT STOP EXPERIMENTING

There are two versions of a song called “Har kisiko nahi milta, yaha pyar zindagi me“.  One from a movie called “Jaabaaz” (1980) and other from a movie called “Boss” (2013).  This is one of my favourite songs, and the only song till now which I love to hear in both the versions.  The basic tune of this song, in both the versions, remains same.

When I produced Sargam for this song (2013 version), I took the first note on my G scale flute, as “Sa” and went on to develop the entire Sargam for this song.  It took me about one and a half hour!

Do lafz ki hai baat ek hi hai
S | RS | G | (R)G | G | RS | S | (.P)D

THE PROBLEM

Next day when I heard the song again, I found that I missed the famous interlude or the signature tune of this song (listen to it at 1:22 timeline of the above video) . Now, going by the Sargam which I produced (taking “Sa” as first note), I started playing the Sargam for this interlude, with “Pa” as the first note.

The Sargam which I had produced earlier for the antara in the song was like:

Pyar na ho to zindagi kya hai
GM | P | P | P | SSP(D’) | P | P

But, however hard I might try I was unable to come back to the correct note for the start of the above “antra” immediately after playing the interlude piece.  I realised that something has gone wrong.  Because the beauty of Indian music lies in the fact that an entire song is weaved perfectly around notes which supplement and complement each other, generally, without a change in the scale.

THE SOLUTION

I was getting frustrated, because with these notes I had to change the scale from its interlude tune, which was not sounding good. I tried different things on my flute for about half an hour trying to find out the missing link.  I took a break for sometime before I resumed my effort in placing that interlude into the rest of the song’s notations. And, then I thought why not play this tune at one note above.  I knew that if I did so, I had to start from the scratch and that might take me another hour or so.  But, being a finicky person when it comes to correct notes, I began re-writing the notations for this song. So, this time instead of starting this song from its first line, I took the interlude to begin with and that too at one note above, i.e., “Dha” instead of “Pa”.  The notations for the interlude, thus, came out as:

DSRg | RS | RgM
DSRg | RS | RSnD
DSRg | RS | RgM
DSRg | R

And, that was it.  After this interlude piece, when I played “Do Lafz ki hai…” taking “Re” instead of “Sa” as first note, the entire song sounded even better on the flute.  The new Sargam, came out like this.

LESSON LEARNT

Producing Sargam/Notations of a song or tune is difficult, sometimes.  But it is not impossible, if you have patience and a good ear to hear the correct tone, pitch, beat and note.  Sometimes, you may have to experiment with one or even a half note below or above the one that you are already playing, to get that ‘perfect’ sound.  This particular song has taught me this lesson.  And, I hope this will be informative for you also.

Please do drop a line of what you think about this experience.

Thank you!

Share This Post On...

11 Responses

    1. Dear Tarun Soni ji, I think whether it is a flute or a harmonium, or any other instrument, the basic theory remains the same while producing notes.

  1. Very Nice Sir. I am also trying to learn keyboard and your exposure/experience is a GOOD STEP TOWARDS LEARNING

  2. It was really helpful and very clear. It also explained how the perfect ear for music play a role in developing even a small piece of music. Playing an instrument takes much more than singing and is an art which one could excel only with concentration and efforts.Thanks Sir.

  3. Very true. I’ve experienced that while setting up sargam on my own. When i fails to set up some song.. i keep on changing the scale.. and could find some missing notes. Thanks for sharing the experience

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

No. of Songs
Useful resources on music
Find SARGAM notations for

Find Piano Notes / Sargam notations for the songs in regional languages, like, Bengali, Marathi, Maithili, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Punjabi, etc. Songs available on this website is arranged below – language-wise to make it easier for your to instantly find what you need.

Books of Notations
Lets Play Music

LET'S PLAY MUSIC

How to play songs on flute and other instruments with 60+ easy to play Sargam Notations. Basic introduction to Hindustani Classical Music. Self-learning tips and tricks. INR 250

Best-of-R D Burman

50 BEST OF R D BURMAN

Play 50 superhit R D Burman songs on musical instruments with these easy to play Sargam Notations. Also contains stories behind RDB songs and his life. INR 300

Notations on Request
sARGAM-request

REQUEST FOR SARGAM

In case you do not find notations of your song in this website, then you can place a request here. Your sargam will be delivered within 72 hour in your inbox. INR 300

Genre Wise

Find Piano notes / Sargam notations for the songs of different genres like, Gazal, Devotional, Patriotic, etc..

Mood Wise

Find Sargam notations for the songs of different moods like, romantic, philosophical, sad, etc.

Era Wise

Find Sargam notations for the songs of different eras of Indian Film Music Industry, starting from 1940s.

Thank you!Please use the following options to make payment through UPI or Wallet:

Click to Copy this number and pay through Wallets:
UPI Wallet Payment to Notes and Sargam
Or
Pay to Notes and Sargam

 

Please share the screenshot at the same number, after making payment.

On realisation of payment:
– Sargam Notations will be sent within 72 hours.
– Books in .pdf format will be sent within 24 hours.