Svara

Swara (Sanskrit: स्वर) or svara is an Indian classical music term that connotes simultaneously a breath, a vowel, a note, the sound of a musical note corresponding to its name, and the successive steps of the octave, or saptanka. More comprehensively, it is the ancient Indian concept of the complete dimension of musical pitch. At its most basic comparison to western music, a swara is, essentially, a "note" of a given scale. However, that is but a loose interpretation of the word, as a swara is identified as both a musical note and tone; a "tone" is a precise substitute for sur, relating to "tunefulness". Traditionally, Indian musicians have just seven swaras/notes with short names: sa, re, ga, ma, pa, dha, ni, which they collectively refer to as saptank or saptaka. This is one of the reasons why swara is considered a symbolic expression for the number seven. In another loose comparison to western music, saptak (as an octave or scale) may be interpreted as solfège, e.g. the notes of a scale as Do, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La, Ti (and Do).