A Foundation of Traditional Tabla Compositions

The first goal of DigiTabla has been to present a basic foundation of traditional, classical tabla material. This material comes mostly from my own teacher, Pandit Chhotelal Misra, a disciple of Pandit Anokhelal Misra of the Benares gharana.

When first planning the website with Chhotelal, he suggested that I begin with the contents of his first book Tal Prasoon (ताल प्रसून) (English version: Playing Techniques of Tabla – Banaras Gharana).

Tal Prasoon was first written for tabla students studying for their bachelor’s degrees at Benares Hindu University, where Chhotelal served as Reader in the Faculty of Performing Arts. The book is, in fact, a foundational repertoire of Chhotelal’s lineage.

And so much of the material on DigiTabla is also found in Tal Prasoon/Playing Techniques, while a few other compositions are from Chhotelal’s advanced book of compositions Tabla Granth (तबला ग्रन्थ). With time, I hope to include more compositions from Tabla Granth, as well as some unpublished material.

See Chhotelal’s biography for more information about Chhotelal’s books. And see the Compositions page for the full list of compositions.

Why Traditional Material?

Most students today learn a variety of compositions and styles from different gharanas, even if they remain grounded in one lineage. Chhotelal himself did not teach only Benares material.

However, for the purposes of this website, I felt it would be more helpful to begin with a traditional foundation from one particular gharana. Naturally I chose the only tradition I know in depth.

The main reason for this choice is that it makes it easier for students and listeners to understand the tradition; it makes it easier to learn the language when there is greater consistency of bol (phrasing), and it makes it easier to see the connections across compositional forms and tals.

For example, we can more easily see how a rela can be made from a kayda, or how a tukra is based on a particular kind of mukhra, or how a kayda in tintal can be transformed into a kayda in rupak tal.

The traditional Benares material also gives us a historical snapshot of a tradition going back to the great Anokhelal Misra and beyond, a world of tabla that recedes further into the past with every generation.

The Repertoire of Anokhelal Misra and Chhotelal Misra

Like all masters, both Anokhelal and Chhotelal had certain preferences and specialties. Chhotelal’s two volumes of compositions (Tal Prasoon and Tabla Granth) reflect his own sense of which compositions best represent their lineage.

Many of the Benares compositions on this website are common to all Benares lineages. However, some are less common, or may not be played at all by others. There may also be some differences in phrasing or technique, even for some well-known compositions.

Meaning of "Benares"

All compositions which Chhotelal called "Benares" are labeled as such on DigiTabla. However, as in all gharanas, some Benares compositions will be the same as, or very similar to, compositions in other gharanas. In some cases, no one knows for sure where they originated (despite what some players will tell you).

And because Benares tabla descended from Lucknow, which descended from Dilli, there are many compositions in Benares which surely did originate in these other gharanas, though they may be modified, or adapted to the Benares baj, or style.

So while the Benares gharana certainly has a great deal of unique material, in some cases, the gharana label is used loosely.

Material from Dilli and Other Gharanas

In addition to the Benares material, there is also a substantial amount of Dilli material on DigiTabla.

Dilli compositions in particular were more strongly emphasized by Chhotelal than in other Benares lineages. And Dilli techniques are more integrated into his overall technique than they may be for others.

A smaller number of compositions from the other major gharanas (Ajrara, Lucknow, Farrukhabad, and Punjab) are also included (or will be). Most of these were taught by Chhotelal. To begin with, I will give just a few compositions from each of these gharanas, but I plan to add more in the future. (See the Compositions Section for examples.)

References