About BeatRootRaga
BeatRootRaga is an independent music label and audio technology platform from India. We release independent music, build free audio tools for musicians, and publish practical guides to Indian music and music production.
The label
BeatRootRaga records and releases ghazals, Indian classical pieces, Malayalam and Hindi acoustic covers and indie originals. Every release has its own page with the video, the credits for every singer, composer, lyricist and arranger, and links to where it streams. The label credits people by name only when a credit has been confirmed with them.
The tools
The free audio tools on this site grew out of the label's own work: mastering singles for streaming, separating reference tracks so singers can practise, converting and cutting files for rehearsal, and a tuner and metronome that speak sargam and taal. The converter, cutter, tuner, BPM finder and metronome run entirely in your browser and upload nothing. Mastering and stem separation run on our servers and you keep every right to your recordings.
The guides
The Learn section explains ragas, taals, ghazal form, film-song structure and the language of Indian music in plain words, alongside practical mastering, mixing and releasing guides. The guides are written by John, a music lover from Bangalore, and each one is reviewed by BRR, the group of musicians who record with the label, before it is published. Facts are traced to the sources listed at the foot of each guide.
Who is behind it
A small team in India: the musicians who record for the label and the people who build the site. We do not publish individual names or photographs at the moment. The label's YouTube channel and Instagram carry the releases and the day-to-day work.
Working with us
Independent musicians from anywhere in India, in any Indian language, and from the wider world, can send an unreleased track through the Submit music page. Questions about the tools, the guides or a release go through the contact page.
Featured releases
All releases
Latest guides
All guidesTeentaal: the 16-beat cycle of Hindustani music
Teentaal is a 16-beat Hindustani rhythmic cycle counted in four groups of four, with claps on 1, 5 and 13, and a wave on 9. Its theka, or basic tabla stroke pattern, is dha dhin dhin dha | dha dhin dhin dha | dha tin tin ta | ta dhin dhin dha.
Taal for beginners: teentaal, keherwa and dadra with clap patterns
A taal is a repeating rhythmic cycle: count 16 beats for teentaal, eight for keherwa, and six for dadra. For teentaal, clap on 1, 5 and 13, wave on 9; for keherwa, clap on 1, wave on 5; for dadra, clap on 1, wave on 4.
Rupak: the 7-beat taal that starts on khali
Rupak is a taal, or repeating rhythmic cycle, with seven beats grouped 3 + 2 + 2. Its opening closed strokes make sam, the first beat, sound light; this beat is khali, marked by a wave, rather than tali, marked by a clap.
Keherwa: the 8-beat taal of film songs, bhajans and folk
Keherwa is an eight-beat taal, or repeating rhythmic cycle, arranged as 4 + 4. To recognise it, listen for two groups of four, a lighter second half, and the recurring drum pattern: dha ge na ti | na ka dhin na.
Jhaptaal: the 10-beat taal
Jhaptaal is a taal, a repeating rhythmic cycle, with ten beats. Its four vibhags, or divisions, follow 2 + 3 + 2 + 3, alternating two-beat and three-beat groups.
Ektaal: the 12-beat taal of khayal
Ektaal is a twelve-beat taal, or repeating rhythmic cycle, divided into six two-beat sections called vibhags. Its stretched beats let the tabla player elaborate the stroke pattern in vilambit (slow-tempo) bada khayal, the slow opening composition of a khayal performance.
Questions people ask
What is BeatRootRaga?
An independent music label and audio technology platform from India. It releases ghazals, Indian classical, acoustic covers and indie originals, builds free browser-based audio tools, and publishes guides to Indian music and music production.
Where is BeatRootRaga based?
In India. The label records with musicians in Bangalore and elsewhere in the country, and releases worldwide through Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music and Amazon Music.
Is BeatRootRaga the same as Beatroot Records or beatroot.com?
No. BeatRootRaga is a separate, independent label from India with no connection to Beatroot Records, beatroot.com or any other company with a similar name.
Who writes the BeatRootRaga guides?
John, a music lover from Bangalore, writes them from the label's own recording, mixing and mastering work. BRR, the group of musicians around the label, reviews each guide before it is published.
Are the BeatRootRaga tools free?
Yes. The converters, cutter, tuner, BPM finder and metronome run in your browser with no account. Mastering and stem separation are free too; an account keeps the results in your dashboard.