Just Intonation - Indian Scales

Indian Scales

In Indian music, the just diatonic scale described above is used, though there are different possibilities, for instance for the 6th pitch (Dha), and further modifications may be made to all pitches excepting Sa and Pa.

Note Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Dha Ni Sa
Ratio 1/1 9/8 5/4 4/3 3/2 5/3 or 27/16 15/8 2/1
Cents 0 204 386 498 702 884 or 906 1088 1200

Some accounts of Indian intonation system cite a given 22 Śrutis . According to some musicians, you have a scale of a given 12 pitches and ten in addition (the tonic, Shadja (Sa), and the pure fifth, Pancham (Pa), are inviolate):

Note C D♭ D♭ D D E♭ E♭ E E F F F♯
Ratio
Cents 0 90 112 182 204 294 316 386 408 498 520 590
Note F♯ G A♭ A♭ A A B♭ B♭ B B C
Ratio
Cents 610 702 792 814 884 906 996 1018 1088 1110 1200

Where we have two ratios for a given letter name, we have a difference of 81:80 (or 22 cents), which is known as the syntonic comma. You can see the symmetry, looking at it from the tonic, then the octave.

(This is just one example of "explaining" a 22-Śruti scale of tones. There are many different explanations.)

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