The Krishna aarti, and the most musically interesting of the household aartis. It opens high — up on Pa rather than down on Sa — and then walks all the way down an octave. That descent is the whole character of the song, and it is the first aarti that will teach your right hand to travel.
The sargam, line by line
Sa is on C. Capital letters are shuddha (natural) swaras, lowercase is komal (flat), and a dot under a letter — written here as Ṇ — means the octave below. Each ▶ plays just that line on the keyboard above; turn on 🐢 Slow while you learn.
P P P M PAarti Kunj Bihari Kin n D P M G RShri Girdhar Krishna Murari KiThe same notes as Western keys
| Line | Keys | Sargam |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | G G G F G | P P P M P |
| 2 | B♭ B♭ A G F E D | n n D P M G R |
Harmonium notes in Hindi — हिंदी में सरगम
| प प प म प | आरती कुंज बिहारी की |
| ऩि ऩि ध प म ग रे | श्री गिरिधर कृष्ण मुरारी की |
Reading the harmonium notation
Harmonium notation and harmonium notes mean the same thing — different sites use different words for the same rows of letters. What follows is sargam, the Indian system, where every note carries a name instead of a letter. The table above gives the Western key for each one.
- S R G M P D N — Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, Ni: the seven swaras. With Sa on C they are the white keys running up from C.
- Lowercase letters — komal, meaning flattened by a semitone. A komal swara is a black key.
- | — a phrase break, put there so the line is readable. It is not a bar line and you do not pause on it.
Aarti Kunj Bihari Ki uses 6 of the twelve keys in the octave: Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, komal Ni. Aarti Kunj Bihari Ki is not all white keys, which is exactly what the lowercase letters above are marking.
How to play it
- Start with your thumb high. Unlike most aartis this one begins on Pa, not Sa. Put your thumb on Pa before you play a note, or you will run out of fingers on the way down.
- The komal Ni is the song. Both published notations mark the Ni as komal — the B♭ black key. Play it as a natural B and the aarti stops sounding like itself. This is the one black key you must not miss.
- Take the descent slowly. n n D P M G R walks down six steps. At speed it blurs; at practice tempo each step should sound like a deliberate footfall. Use the slow toggle until every step is even.
Common questions
What are the harmonium notes for Aarti Kunj Bihari Ki?
With Sa on C, the opening is P P P M P, then a descent n n D P M G R using komal Ni (B♭). Two independent published notations agree on all twelve notes.
Which black key does it use?
Only one: the komal Ni, B♭, at the top of the descent. Everything else in the opening is a white key.
Why does it start on Pa instead of Sa?
Because the melody is built as a descent. Starting on the fifth gives the line an octave of room to fall through, which is what gives this aarti its sweep compared with the Sa-centred household aartis.
Is harmonium notation the same as harmonium notes?
Yes. Both names describe the same thing, and you will find Aarti Kunj Bihari Ki published under either one. This page gives the notation three ways so you can use whichever you read fastest: sargam, Western key names, and Devanagari. Aarti Kunj Bihari Ki draws on 6 of the twelve keys in the octave — Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha, komal Ni.
Where to go next
- Om Jai Jagdish Hare — harmonium notes with the same follow-along player.
- Jai Ganesh Deva — harmonium notes with the same follow-along player.
- Happy Birthday — harmonium notes with the same follow-along player.
- All song notes — every song we publish, each with a follow-along player.
- The harmonium notes chart — sargam, komal and tivra, and the 10-thaat system.