A time of day · about 10 pm–4 am

The night roomरात्रि

Bageshri, Darbari, Malkauns and Sohini, deep into the dark.

Ragas here: Bageshri, Darbari Kanada, Malkauns, Sohini

Night: a bansuri on a stone step by moonlit water, a small lamp floating among petals

Late at night the music slows and drops low. Bageshri is a raga of longing. Darbari Kanada, the "raga of the court", is sung around midnight, deep and majestic, with wide swings on flat Ga and Dha; tradition links it to Tansen at the Mughal emperor Akbar's court. Malkauns, five notes with no Re and no Pa, belongs to the hours after midnight. At the very end of the night comes Sohini, high and bright, looking toward dawn.

Night ragas are often sung slowly, with a long opening without drums (the alap) before the tabla comes in.

The ragas of the night

Bageshri बागेश्री

Late night, the second watch of the night · about 9 pm–12 midnight
Parent scale (thaat): Kafi

Going upNi Dha Sa Ga Ma Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Ma Ga Re Sa

A late-night raga of longing built around komal Ga and komal Ni. Pa is used sparingly or not at all, depending on the school, so the tanpura is often tuned to Ma.

Traditionally described as longing, tender, quiet.

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Darbari Kanada दरबारी कान्हड़ा

Around midnight · about 10 pm–2 am
Parent scale (thaat): Asavari

Going upSa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Pa Ma Ga Re Sa

Named after the royal court (darbar), and linked by tradition to Tansen at Akbar's court. It is sung around midnight, slowly and low, with a wide oscillation on komal Ga and komal Dha.

Traditionally described as majestic, grave, slow.

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Malkauns मालकौंस

Deep night, after midnight · about 12 midnight–3 am
Parent scale (thaat): Bhairavi

Going upSa Ga Ma Dha Ni SaComing downSa Ni Dha Ma Ga Sa

Five notes, with no Re and no Pa, sung deep in the night. Malkauns is usually given a grave, meditative character. Because it has no Pa, the tanpura is tuned to Ma instead.

Traditionally described as grave, meditative, deep.

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Sohini सोहनी

End of the night, before dawn · about 2–5 am
Parent scale (thaat): Marwa

Going upSa Ga Ma Dha Ni SaComing downSa Re Sa Ni Dha Ma Ga Re Sa

A raga of the very end of the night, from the Marwa family, sung mostly in the upper octave with a sharp, bright beauty. Like Marwa, it leaves out Pa.

Traditionally described as piercing, bright, wistful.

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How to read the notes: an underlined note is komal (flat), Ma with a mark (Ma) is tivra (sharp), and a dot below or above means the octave below or above.

▶ For the quiet hoursMore in the library

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Play Malkauns yourself

Malkauns has no Pa, so its tanpura is tuned to Ma.

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For the quiet hours

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Editorial portrait: a woman waiting on a marble terrace at nightfall, an oil lamp beside her

Where sources differ

Some place Bageshri in the evening and others late at night, and whether it uses Pa depends on the school. Sohini sits at the very end of the night for most, at dawn for some.