22 Shruti Research Topics

   Harmonium was patented first by Alexandre Francois DeBain in France on 9th August 1840. It was imported in India first by the British Officers ruling India around the 1860s and since, has remained as one of the most popular musical instruments in India. Today, it is being played actively not only in Classical music but also in Folk music, Dramas, and Cinema music. The position of Harmonium has however remained controversial in Indian Classical Music, so much so that it was even banned by All India Radio from 1940-1971. This was allegedly due to the 'European' tuning of the instrument which did not provide any of the 'Indian' 22 Shrutis. However, having been played for over 150 years, Harmonium has become a part of cultured Indian homes which often possess a harmonium. I started playing harmonium ever since I remember, as, my mother and her father both were harmonium players. Later, I was very fortunate to learn harmonium solo/accompaniment for about 25 years from my Guruji Late Pt.Govindrao Patawardhan.

During my music career, I observed that harmonium did not have a universal acceptance from Indian Classical Vocalists due to what was called as the 'tempered' tuning. As against this, the string instruments such as the Sarangi or the Violin were considered more acceptable for accompaniment. When I made enquiries about the details of the so called 'tempered' tuning and it's differences from 'Indian Classical' tuning, to my surprise, I found very little script, and that too was inconsistent.

I therefore had decided to plunge into this research myself at a suitable time in my life, which happened in 2004, when I gave up my pharmaceutical career and started research work on shrutis. Fortunately, the research work and it's applications are now getting known in many parts of the world and are being considered revolutionary.