Introduction to Jhaptal

Jhaptal is another popular classical tal. It is common in both vocal and instrumental styles, as well as in tabla solo.

Although jhaptal has an unusual number of matras (10), the vibhags are evenly divided into groups of 2–3–2–3. So learning to play or listen in jhaptal is not as difficult as it might seem.

As we will see, the jhaptal theka clearly corresponds to the tali-khali structure of the vibhags (not all tals do this). So it’s very easy to follow the structure of the tal by listening to the theka.

Jhaptal Structure

Jhaptal has a structure of 4 vibhags divided 2–3–2–3, with a tali-khali pattern of tali-tali-khali-tali:

In written form, the jhaptal vibhags are commonly marked as X-2-0-3:

• X = sam and first tali vibhag
• 2 = second tali vibhag
• 0 = khali vibhag
• 3 = third tali vibhag

Jhaptal Timekeeping Pattern

Jhaptal has the timekeeping pattern of clap-clap-wave-clap: