‘Sapta’, the Sanskrit word, means seven and saptak means ‘containing seven’. The scale of all 7 notes (SA RE GA MA PA DHA NI) executed in an ascending or descending order.Usually three saptaks are used in performance. They are:
[a] Mandra or Udara (lower saptak) — “NI “DHA “PA “MA “GA “RE “SA
[b] Madhya or Mudara (middle saptak) — NI DHA PA MA GA RE SA
[c] Taar or Tara (higher saptak) — NI” DHA” PA” MA” GA” RE” SA”
** Note The (“) before the note is used to indicate lower saptak and after the note is used to indicate upper saptak.**
Some skilled musicians also use ati-mandra saptak that is lower than the mandra saptak and ati-taar saptak that is higher than the taar saptak.
Content Provided By: Sangeetpedia