Improvisation is what makes each of us unique. The moment we stop improvising, we become one with “status quo”. In Carnatic music, extempore improvisation on how a particular song is rendered by the artists is called “Manodharma”.
How is Manodharma really done? For one thing, it has to bring out the essence of the raaga, does the essence of the raaga come about by simply singing all combinations of notes possible in that raaga? Perhaps not, for example, we all know that there are raagas which have the exact same notes!!
Manodharma is an intricate art, call it the black art of the Carnatic Masters, to play on the jeeva swara (literal translation ‘life note’) of a raaga and a specific set of phrases (also called prayogas).
Check out these lecdems, they are good for someone trying to improvise in carnatic music. Manodharma Lecdem I and Manodharma Lecdem II
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