Rupak (19th Dec 09)

It was an honor to render a Tabla Solo in Rupak Taal (7 beats) in front of Guruji, Pandit Nakul Mishraji, on 19th Dec 2009. While there are shortcomings in the recital, solely attributable to me, it was a wonderful learning experience! Here are some excerpts....

About Rupak:

Rupak is a popular taal played on the Tabla. It comprises of 7 beats divided into sections (vibhags) of 3-2-2. It is widely played in Solo recitals. Many compositions (Gats) played on classical instruments (like santoor, sarod, sitar, guitar, flute)are set in Rupak taal. The taal is also popularly played in Gazals and film songs. The counterpart of Rupak in Pakhwaj is taal Tivra set in 7 beats,but which is much bolder and lounder than Rupak.

Rupak is a unique taal in a sense that the first beat of the taal is a Khali (wave of the hand),and not a Clap. Rupak consists of two talis (claps), on the 4th and the 6th beats respectively. The taal goes like this:

Tin Tin Na| Dhi Na|Dhi Na




Rupak Peshkar Qaida



Rupak Compositions



Rupak finale

Jugalbandi

Ustad Alla Rakha and Ustad Zakir Hussain







One very interesting facet of a Tabla performance is a 'Jugalbandi', i.e. a duet of Tabla players. Generally, both the Tabla players are for the same gharana, but on some rare occassions a jugalbandi could also be done between players from different gharana. The father-son duo of Punjab gharana, Late Ustad Alla Rakh and Ustad Zakir Hussain, can be credited for making Tabla jugalbandi's world famous. When listening to their jugalbandi, one would realize that they mostly play compositions from their Punjab Gharana. However, when Ustad Zakir Hussain is performing a solo, he would play compositions from various gharanas. Another prominant father-son duo is of Pandit Sharda Sahai and his nephew Shri Vishnu Sahai of Benaras Gharana.



While the progression of a jugalbandi follows the general rules of Tabla playing for each gharana, the beauty lies in the manner in which the two players co-ordinate i.e. distribute paltas, play chakradars, engage into musical question-answers (sawal-jawab), and reach the crescendo.



It is indeed a treat to listen to a great Tabla Jugalbandhi.

For more info on Tabla, please visit: www.northindiandrums.blogspot.com





Father-son duo: Rajiv and Soham

Origin of Tabla

While the origin of the tradition of Indian music can be traced back nearly two thousand years in the Vedic hymns of the Hindu temples, the Tabla is a relatively new percussion instrument. It is considered to have been invented in the 16th or 17th century. Historically, the pakhawaj was used to accompany the old Dhruvpad style of music. It is believed that the need for a new percussion instrument was felt to accompany newer styles of North Indian vocal music (i.e. Khayal gayaki) which evolved around the 16th century, as well as new North Indian instruments such as Sitar and Sarood during the Mughal era in India. Thus, the Tabla was invented. Tabla, with its rich and varied tonal qualities, is an extremely versatile percussion instrument. Today, it is the most recognized North Indian percussion instument both for solo performances as well as an accompanyments in vocal (essentially Khayal, bhajans, thumris, folk), instumental and kathak dance.

Tabla as an Accompanying and Solo Instrument

Accompaniment and Solo are the two main formats in which Tabla is played. The role and performance of a tabla player is distinct in each of the format. Hence, in order to be a good accompanist or soloist, it is pertinent for a tabla player to understand the fundamental characteristics of each of the two format.

Tabla: Role in Accompaniment

Tabla is widely used as an accompanying instrument in vocal, dance, and instrumental music. The key role of a Tabla player in an accompaniment is to keep time for the main artist and to enhance the aesthetic value of the raag (melody). The challenge for him is to show his virtuosity while being restraint. He should follow, and not overshadow, the main artist. During the performance, the main artist intermittently gives opportunities to the tabla player to demonstrate his virtuosity. The challenging aspect for the tabla player is to play compositions or improvisations that blend with the mood & raasa of the raga and the rhythmic patterns played by the main artist.

Out of the various facets of accompaniment viz. Instrumental, Classical Vocal, Semi-Classical Vocal, Dance etc, the fundamental progression of an instrumental accompaniment is shown here:



In an instrumental accompaniment, Tabla enters the recital in the ‘Gat’ phase after the Aalap, Jod & Jhala phases. The ‘Gat’ phase comprises of an alternation between the main theme and melodic variations.The Tabla player gets a chance to show his virtuosity when the main theme is being played. However, when the main artist is playing melodic variations, the Tabla player should constrain his playing to the basic Theka or its Prakars and clearly bring out the ‘Sam’ and ‘Khali’ to enable the main artist to judge where he is within the context of the Taal.

Tabla Solo Performance

A Solo rendition provides the Tabla player an opportunity to demonstrate his virtuosity and mastery over the various facets of Tabla playing such as different gharanas,rhythm cycles, tempos, traditional compositions, improvisations etc. Solo performances are typically accompanied by a repeating background melody called 'Lehra'. Lehra is fit to a rhythmic cycle. Besides providing a background melody, the Lehara essentially keeps time for the soloist and provides a baseline that guides the performance of the soloist within the framework of the Taal. Typically, Lehra is played on Harmonium or Saarangi.

For example: a Tabla solo set in Teentaal would be accompanied by a Lehara set to 16 beat cycle.

The progression and format of a Tabla solo largely depends upon the gharana, artistry & mood of the Tabla player and also on the quality of audience. For instance, two solo performances of an artist set to Teentaal could greatly vary in terms of progression and format, depending on the variables mentioned above.

However, a typical progression of a Tabla Solo could be depicted as under:

Uthan >Peshkar > Kaida > Gat > Tukada > Chakradar > Rela

Ustaad Zakir Hussain on Indian Music

http://www.brightcove.tv/title.jsp?title=987243975

Scottish Networks International

Click on the image to enlarge

Sangeet Baithak - Dec 07

Gujarati Sugam Sangeet


Santoor & Tabla Jugalbandi

Dinner with the Flute maestro!

I had the fortune to have dinner with Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia in Rotterdam on the 21st June 2007. Julia, his disciple, whom I met at an Indian Restaurant (Maurya) while she was having a flute recital, had invited me to this dinner. Panditji teaches flute/music at the Rotterdam Music School (Codart), and spends few months in Rotterdam during the summers. This dinner is an annual event, wherein the entire Indian Music department gets together. The dinner this year was also to celebrate Panditji's 69th birthday on 1st July 07. Meeting the students was quite interesting. All, but one, students were non-Dutch; from Germany, Bulgaria, France, Mexico, Israel, India! Meeting Panditji, dining with him, and talking to him in such a casual environment was an unexpected but wonderful experience. We met at around 6.00 p.m at India Paradise, and were together for about 3 hours.

In the picture above, Hariji can be seen in a casual attire and a very relaxed mood.

The dinner in progress...

Tabla with Santoor

Santoor, typically a North Indian folk instrument, derives its name from 'san' - meaning hundred, and 'toor' - meaning strings. It is a 100-stringed instrument. Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma brought this folk instrument into the forefront of Indian classical music. An excellent treatise on Santoor can be read at http://www.santoor.com/.

Soham trying to accompany Shri Bharatbhai...

Soham curiously exploring the nuances of the 100-stringed Santoor from Shri Bharat Desai, disciple of Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma.

Compositions in Tabla

Tabla playing is characterized by a wide repertoire of compositions. These compositions can be broadly grouped under two mutually exclusive conceptual categories: Cyclic & Cadential (Non-Cyclic).

Cyclic:

Cyclic compositions roll-on with a sense of balance and repose. They establish the fundamental rhythmic pattern upon which the player builds up his performance and thus provide a sort of a musical framework for tabla solos and accompaniments.

E.g: Theka, Kaida, Rela, Peshkar

Cadential (Non-Cyclic):

Cadential compositions on the other hand possess a ‘tension-resolve’ mechanism. In other words, they create a sense of tension that resolves at a point, usually the SAM. They provide energy & momentum to the performance.

E.g: Mukhada, Tukda, Tihai, Chakradar, Paran, Gat

The alteration between cyclic and cadential compositions is the hallmark of tabla solos and accompaniments.

This alteration between cyclic and cadential compositions can be visualized as:

Here I explore two most commonly played forms each of cyclic and cadential compositions i.e. Theka and Kaida under Cyclic and Tihai and Tukada under Cadential.

Theka (Cyclic)

Theka, literally meaning ‘support’, is synonymous to the basic form of taal. It is extensively played in accompaniments with vocalists, instrumentalists or dancers to give the main artist a sense of cyclic rhythm, timing and beats within which he can perform. Variations/improvisations of a Theka are called ‘Prakars’. Theka is the most pure form of measure of time in Tabla. A beautifully played Theka is a treat to listen. During an accompaniment, even small but rightly timed improvisations in Theka add immense aesthetics to the music.



Kaida (Cyclic):

Structure:
Theka > Kaida > Variations > Tihai > Theka

Kaida is one of the most challenging aspect of Tabla playing. Kaida essentially means a ‘Rule’. The main theme of a Kaida comprises of a set of bols. The Tabla player is expected to use only the bols set out in the main theme and create improvised variations (‘Paltas’ or ’Vistars’) out of them. A continuity is generated in kaida where each phrase building the Palta is a variant of a preceding phrase.The virtuosity of a Tabla player is demonstrated by the number and type of Paltas played. The formation of Paltas is both an art and a science. Theoretically, innumerable Paltas could be created using different permutations and combinations of the bols in the main theme of the Kaida. However, the selection of logical variations is an art. Creating paltas is thus a creative challenge & depends largely on the tabla player’s virtuosity.

The kaida and the variations follow a ‘bharali-khali’ (‘Full-Empty’) pattern. The first part of the kaida/variation is call the ‘bharali’ and the second part, the ‘khali’. Bharali normally begins with baiya-predominant bols such as ‘Dha’, ‘Dhi’ or ‘Ge’. Khali normally begins with daya-predominant bol such as ‘Ta’ or ‘Ti’. However, some kaidas have khali beginning with flat bols such as ‘Ki’ or ‘Ke’ played on baiya.

Tihai (Cadential):

A Tihai (=’Three Times’) is a composition comprising of a phrase (pala) that is played three times. It may be set to one or more cycles of a Taal. A tihai normally ends on the first beat ( or Sam) of the rhythmic cycle. However, some tihai’s end before or after the Sam and are termed anagat tihai and atit tihai respectively.

The phrases of a tihai can be linked in one of two ways. One way is to use a time interval (pause) between the three palas (phrases). This is called a dumdar tihai. The second approach has no pause between phrases. This is referred to as bedum.

Tihais are one of the most frequently played rhythmic patterns in tabla and are an integral part of most forms of rhythmic compositions (i.e Kaida, Tukda, Rela etc). They have an equally important and irreplaceable role in all forms of Indian Classical music (i.e vocal, instrumental and dance).

Tukada (Cadential):

A Tukada (= ‘a piece’) is a short composition, generally comprising of heavy bols such as DhiTa’, Dhet, DhaGe, TeTa’ etc. As it is played with weighty strokes, Tukada is conspicuous by its absence in extremely light and folk styles of tabla playing. However, Tukadas are extensively played in solos and accompaniments with instruments and dance. Tukada could be plain or tihaidar/chakradar (ending with a tihai or having three palas).