Ahir Bhairav


Ahir Bhairav is a Hindustani classical raga. It is a mixture of Bhairav and the ancient, rare raga Ahiri or Abhiri, or perhaps a mixture of Bhairav and Bageshree.

Theory

Arohana and avarohana

Arohana:
Avarohana:
Key:
S, G, M, P, D: shuddha ;
r, n : komal ;
Pa and Sa are sometimes avoided in ascending Arohan. The descent can be direct, but is often expressed as S' N d P m, G m Gr ~ S with a slight oscillation on komal re to express the character of Bhairav.

Vadi and samavadi

Vadi:
Samavadi:

Pakad or Chalan

S, r G M, G M r, ṇ Ḍ, ṇ r S

Organization and relationships

It may include impressions of Kafi. The image of Ahir Bhairav is easily maintained with the characteristic passage ṇ Ḍ ṇ/r~ S with the characteristic Bhairav andolan on komal re. Sometimes shuddha ni is used in the lower octave to emphasize the Bhairav character.
The Carnatic music equivalent to this raga is Chakravakam.
Related ragas:
Thaat: Bhairav

Behaviour

Ahir Bhairav is a typical uttarang raga, which means emphasis is on the upper tetrachord.

Performance

It is usually sung as the first Prahr of the morning, around 6:00 am – 9:00 am.

Recordings and compositions

Ravi Shankar, Three Classical Ragas. His Master's Voice LP, 1957. and Angel Records CD, 2000.
Hariprasad Chaurasia, Raga Ahir Bhairav and Marriage Song from Uttar Pradesh. Nimbus Records CD, 1987.
Nikhil Banerjee, Raga Ahir Bhairav. Multitone Records, UK Limited, 1995. LP.
Wasif-ud-din Dagar, Chalo sakhi braj raje. Alap and Composition in Dhamar. Music Today. A97015. Cassette.
Traditional compositions in Raag Ahir Bhairav are:

Carnatic music

Chakravakam, the 16th Melakarta raga of Carnatic music, which is a sampurna scale, closely resembles Ahir Bhairav. However, in the modern times Ahir Bhairav raga has been used in a few Carnatic music compositions and many South Indian film songs as well.