Listener’s Guide to Classical Tabla

About the Listener’s Guide

To make any sense of classical tabla, you need to learn at least the basics of three areas:

  • Bol (syllables, strokes, and phrases)
  • Tal (rhythmic cycles)
  • Compositional forms (kayda, tukra, etc).

Below is rough guide for doing this.

Of course, you can always explore tabla for yourself however you like. But you probably won’t understand much. Classical tabla is that different.

If you really want to understand and appreciate classical tabla, I recommend the steps below.

You don’t need to "complete" any of the steps before moving on to the next. But try to get familiar enough with each step so that the next one makes sense.

Start with simple rhythms

If you are completely new to the tabla, the simplest introduction is with light-classical rhythms:

But most of the tabla repertoire is made of classical compositions. So after you are familiar with some light-classical rhythms, you should move on to the classical stuff. And for that, you need to learn something about the language.

Learn the basics of the language

The spoken version of classical tabla is the gateway to understanding.

Any stroke, pattern, division, or composition—anything that a tabla player plays—can be understood through the language.

The best way to learn some basic phrases is to learn to speak some tabla compositions—not just read and listen, but actually practice speaking.

I know most listeners won’t do this. But I highly recommend that you try.

Speaking is the best way to get a feel for classical tabla patterns and compositions without playing. And learning just a little of the language will greatly improve your ear for the tabla.

I suggest starting with beginner kaydas, both Dilli and Benares:

Focus only on the main bol (theme). Listen closely to the spoken recordings and try to speak them yourself.

You might also learn to speak a few kaharawa and dadra thekas, since these are easy to follow. But when you’re ready, move on to kaydas. Kaydas have more of the classical language’s essential bols and patterns.

You can also explore individual strokes and patterns in the Tabla Bols section, but it’s better to learn bols in the context of compositions first.

Learn about tali-khali counterparts

Many tabla compositions are composed using tali-khali counterparts. These are pairs of strokes which have both an open and a closed version (stressed and unstressed versions). The kayda, rela, and bant, for example, all use these pairs as a rule.

If you spend some time listening (and speaking) kaydas, you’ll start to recognize them easily. And then you’ll start to recognize them in other kinds of compositions.

See the section on Tali-khali Counterparts and the Structure of Kaydas for more information.

Learn the basics of tal

In both accompaniment and tabla solo, everything a tabla player does happens inside of tal (rhythmic cycles). So you need to understand something about how the surface music relates to the tal beneath.

This relationship is both complex and unsual. But it can’t be avoided; you have to learn the basics of how the tabla relates to the tal, or much of the music simply won’t make any sense.

See the section on tal for this.

After you learn the basics of tal, focus on tintal. Learn its basic structure, including its vibhags (divisions), and its tali-khali pattern.

Learn about theka

Tals are strongly assoicated with theka. A theka is a pattern which both shows the form of the tal and keeps the rhythm in performance.

Every tal has a standard (or mostly standard) theka. So after you learn the basic structure of a particular tal, you should learn the theka for that tal.

Start with the theka description section to understand something about how thekas work in relation to the tal. Then learn some thekas.

Start with the tintal theka. This is the primary tal for classical tabla.

You should also learn a number of tintal theka variations, and some simple mukhra (start with 4-matra mukhra). Both theka variations and mukhra are common while giving the theka in accompaniment.

Learn to keep time

The best way to learn the structure of any tal, and the best way to follow the tal in a performance, is to keep time with the hands.

As you learn to keep time, you should also learn how to read the vibhag indicators (X, 2, 0, 3, etc.). These simple indicators will help you easily keep time for any written tal or composition in the Compositions Section.

I recommend the following sequence for learning to keep time:

  1. Keep Time for Tintal: Once you understand the basics of tintal, practice keeping time while counting the matras of the tal. The Tintal section provides a demonstration of this.
  2. Keep Time for the Tintal Theka: After you learn to speak the tintal theka, start to keep time while speaking. The Tintal Theka section provides a demonstration.
  3. Keep Time for Simple Compositions: Practice keeping time while speaking some of the beginner compositions that you have already learned, such as the beginner Dilli kaydas and Benares kaydas mentioned above. Use the vibhag indicators in the written compositions to help you keep time.

Keeping time with the hands might seem like a nerdy academic exercise, but it is the fastest and most intuitive way to get a feeling for a tal’s structure, and will help you to eventually hear and appreciate the music.

Learn the most common kinds of compositional forms

There is a wide variety of compositional forms, but most of these can be put into two general categories: theme-and-variation and fixed, or the similar categories of cyclic and cadential.

Even though there are some problems with these categories, it’s true that tabla players are usually performing in one of these two modes, whether in accompaniment or solo. Understanding this can help you to better follow classical tabla performance.

Start with the Overview of Compositional Forms, and then spend some time with the most common forms of the two categories.

Theme-and-Variation/Cyclic:

Fixed/Cadential:

Focus on the Kayda

For theme-and-variation/cyclic forms, the theka is essential because you will hear it all the time. But when you are ready, you should spend as much time as possible exploring the kayda, including all three sub-sections: The Structure of Kaydas, Kayda Phrases, and Kayda Variations. The kayda is central to the classical tradition, and it will help you understand much about the rest of the tradition.

Focus on the Tukra

Similarly, for fixed/cadential forms, the tihai is essential because you will hear it all the time. But after you have learned the basics of tihai, you should move to the tukra.

The tukra, and its big brother the chakradar, are the most important fixed/cadential forms. But they are also challenging for new listeners. The phrasing and structures of these forms do not follow the more accessible style of the kayda, or other theme-and-variation/cyclic forms. But they are among the most unique and beautiful in the tradition.

Learn about the tabla’s two performance roles

In classical tabla, there are two general performance roles: accompaniment and tabla solo.

Accompaniment (sitar with tabla, vocal with tabla, etc.) is more common than tabla solo. But most of the tabla repertoire is heard only in tabla solo, or done in practice. This includes most of the compositional forms on this website.

Both accompaniment and tabla solo are challenging for new listeners. It will take some time before you can listen comfortably to accompaniment, and much longer before you can follow a tabla solo.

So in the beginning, I don’t recommend that you listen much to either accompaniment or tabla solo. It’s easier to learn simple phrases, beginner compositions, and the basics of tal first.

With time, accompaniment and tabla solo will start to make more sense.

Learn about classical tabla’s cultural and historical background

Although this is not essential for following the music, you should understand something about the tabla’s history and culture.

For some, these are the most interesting aspects of classical Indian music, as many books and PhD dissertations have been written on various aspects of the music’s culture and history.

For classical tabla, you should at least know something about the tabla gharanas and how the modern repertoire emerged from this history.

Central to the gharanas is the guru-shishya (“master-disciple”) tradition. This has been the primary method of teaching and learning tabla, though it has changed greatly in the modern era.

See the Tabla Tradition section to learn about the tabla’s culture and history.