ManyCarnatic Ragas Player
Pick a Carnatic raga, hear its arohana and avarohana over a drone, and play a keyboard that highlights just its swaras.
Free online Carnatic ragas player
The ManyHand Carnatic Ragas Player is a free interactive tool that runs entirely in your browser. Choose a raga — Mohanam, Hamsadhwani, Kalyani, Shankarabharanam, Todi, Kambhoji, Abheri, Bhairavi and more — and see its ārohaṇa (ascending) and avarohaṇa (descending) swaras, then hear them played with a mellow voice. Unlike a parent scale, many Carnatic ragas are asymmetric — the notes coming down differ from those going up — and this tool renders each raga's real path. Switch on the tanpura drone and sing along in tune, and use loop to repeat the scale for practice. Every note is synthesized live with the Web Audio API. Set your Sa to practise in any key.
Looking for the parent scales? See the 72 Melakarta ragas. For North-Indian ragas, try the Hindustani Raga & Scale Player. Add a drone with the tanpura or shruti box.
What are ārohaṇa and avarohaṇa?
Ārohaṇa is the ascending swara order of a raga; avarohaṇa is the descending order. Many Carnatic ragas are asymmetric, and this tool shows and plays both faithfully.
Which ragas are included?
Popular ragas including Mayamalavagowla, Shankarabharanam, Kalyani, Kharaharapriya, Todi, Mohanam, Hamsadhwani, Hindolam, Madhyamavati, Abhogi, Abheri, Kambhoji, Bilahari, Harikambhoji, Natabhairavi and Bhairavi.
Is this the same as the 72 melakartas?
No — the melakartas are the 72 complete, symmetric parent scales. This tool focuses on the ragas people actually perform, many of them janya (derived) ragas with asymmetric or crooked paths. Browse the parents in the Melakarta explorer.
Can I change the key?
Yes — pick your Sa (shruti) and the keyboard, drone and playback all follow.
Do I need to install anything?
No. Everything is generated live in your browser with the Web Audio API — nothing to install and no permissions required.
Are the swaras tuned properly, or like a piano?
Both, and you choose. The default is just intonation — the small-integer shruti ratios Carnatic music actually uses, so the swaras lock into the tanpura instead of beating against it. Each swara shows how far it sits from its piano equivalent, which runs from about 2 to 18 cents. Switch Tuning to Equal temperament when you need to match a keyboard or a backing track.
Does it play gamaka?
Yes — set Gamaka to Light or Full and the swaras are shaken and slid into rather than landed on flat. Sa and Panchama stay steady, because they are the achala (fixed) swaras and shaking them is the clearest sign of a synthetic rendering. This is the general gamaka grammar, not raga-specific ornamentation, which varies by raga, phrase and school.
What is the drone actually playing?
A four-string tanpura, plucked in a cycle rather than held as a chord, with the jvari shimmer that makes the upper partials swell after each pluck instead of fading with it. You can tune the first string to Pa, Ma or Ni, or set all strings to Sa.
More music tools: Melakarta Ragas · Raga & Scale Player · Tanpura · Shruti Box · All tools