The 16th-century musicologist Pundarika Vitthala, who worked in north India, wrote the treatise:

Pundarika Vitthala, a 16th-century musicologist from Karnataka who worked in north India, wrote the treatise "Ragamala", along with other works on music.

About Pundarika Vitthala:

• He was born in the Karnataka region (near Shivaganga, in the Satanur area), in the 16th century.
• He moved to north India, where he served Burhan Khan Faruqi of Khandesh and later the Kachhwaha rulers of Amber (such as Raja Man Singh I), who were nobles of Akbar.
• He was one of the earliest scholars to try to bring together the music systems of the north (Hindustani) and the south (Carnatic).

His works:

• "Sadragachandrodaya": written at the court of Khandesh; describes the ragas and the scale system.
• "Ragamala": describes ragas and their families (raga-ragini system), along with their forms.
• "Ragamanjari": written for the Kachhwaha court; classifies ragas.
• "Nartananirnaya": a work on dance, written in the reign of Akbar.

Importance:

• His works are important sources for the history of Indian music in the 16th century, a time of change and new ideas.
• They show how music was patronised by both Hindu and Muslim rulers.

About the raga-ragini system:

• In this system, ragas were grouped into families, with a male raga and several female raginis.
• This system inspired "Ragamala" paintings, a famous genre of Indian miniature painting, in which each raga or ragini is shown as a scene with a particular mood, season and time of day.

Other medieval works on music:

• "Sangita Ratnakara": by Sarangadeva (13th century).
• "Sangita Parijata": by Ahobala (17th century).
• "Swaramela Kalanidhi": by Ramamatya (16th century, Vijayanagara).
• Good to know
• They were written by other musicologists.