Ananda Bhairavi

Anandabhairavi or Ananda Bhairavi (pronounced ānandabhairavi) is a very old melodious rāgam (musical scale) of Carnatic music (South Indian classical music). This rāgam also used in Indian traditional and regional musics. Ānandam (Sanskrit) means happiness and the rāgam brings a happy mood to the listener.

It is a janya rāgam (derived scale) of the 20th Melakarta rāgam Natabhairavi, although some suggest that it is janya of 22nd melakarta Kharaharapriya.

Structure and Lakshana

Its ārohaṇa-avarohaṇa structure is as follows (see swaras in Carnatic music for details on the notations used):

ārohaṇa : S G₂ R₂ G₂ M₁ P D₂ P Ṡ[a]
avarohaṇa : Ṡ N₂ D₂ P M₁ G₂ R₂ S[b]
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Arohanam Avarohanam for Ananda Bhairavi
(chathusruthi rishabham, sadharana gandharam, shuddha madhyamam, Chatusruthi dhaivatham, kaishiki nishadham)

It is a sampoorna rāgam – rāgam having all 7 swarams, but it is not a melakarta rāgam, as it has vakra prayogam (zig-zag notes in scale) and uses anya swaram (external note) in comparison with its parent rāgam. The anya swaram is the usage of shuddha dhaivatham (D1) in some phrases of the rāgam. Anandabhairavi ragam is also a bhashanga rāgam, since it uses more than one anya swaram. Anya swaram of a rāgam is the swaram which does not belong to the arohana or avarohana of its melakarta (parent rāgam), but it is sung in prayogams (phrases used in raga alapana, kalpanaswarams). It is also classified as a "rakti" raga(a raga of high melodic content).