BSEH SS Tabla flashcards
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32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.
- Tabla
- The pair of Hindustani drums: the wooden, pitched dayan (right hand) and the metal or clay bayan (left hand), used for solo and accompaniment.
- Pakhawaj
- A barrel-shaped, two-faced drum of the Hindustani dhrupad tradition, widely regarded as the structural ancestor of the tabla pair.
- Amir Khusrau
- 13th-century poet-musician traditionally credited with dividing the pakhawaj into two drums to create the tabla; the attribution is legend, not documented fact.
- Delhi gharana
- The earliest tabla school, known for resonant open strokes, clean bols and a restrained, vocal-derived style; associated with the Siddhars and later Inam Ali Khan.
- Ajrada gharana
- A tabla school noted for powerful, dense bayan work, strong gamak and extended, chalan-oriented compositions.
- Farrukhabad gharana
- A tabla school known for ornate, melodic bol patterns, fine delicate strokes and extensive use of rela; linked to Haji Vilayat Ali Khan.
- Banaras gharana
- A tabla school recognised for its rich, open, resonant na, the small high-pitched chanti stroke, and pakhawaj-derived bols.
- Punjab gharana
- A tabla school known for crisp, forceful playing, abundant rela and specific tihai patterns; associated with Bhairav Sahai's lineage.
- Dayan
- The right-hand tabla: a single wooden shell, usually of sheesham, with a goatskin head and central syahi giving it a pitched tone.
- Bayan
- The left-hand bass drum, with a metal or clay hemispherical shell, producing a low, bendable tone; also called dagga.
- Syahi
- The black central paste of iron oxide and rice paste applied to the drumhead, loading it to produce the tabla's characteristic pitched resonance.
- Tasma
- The leather lacing threaded through the drumhead and around the shell; adjusting its tension with gatta and hammer tunes the drum.
- Gatta
- The small wooden tuning blocks used with a hammer (hathodi) to move the tasma and adjust the tension and pitch of the tabla.
- Varna
- The classification of tabla strokes by manner of production, distinguishing open (khula) from closed (band) strokes and resonant from non-resonant sounds.
- Dha
- A compound bol combining a dayan stroke (na) with a bayan stroke (ge), played simultaneously to produce a full, resonant sound.
- Sam
- The first matra of a tala cycle, the point of resolution to which compositions and tihais return.
- Khali
- A wave (marked 0) indicating a vibhag where the theka uses lighter, open dayan strokes instead of the full resonant bol.
- Teental theka
- The 16-matra theka in four vibhags of 4: dha dhin dhin dha | dha dhin dhin dha | dha tin tin ta | ta dhin dhin dha.
- Jhaptal
- A 10-matra tala in vibhags of 2+3+2+3, with theka dhi na | dhi dhi na | ti na | dhi dhi na.
- Rupak
- A 7-matra tala in vibhags of 3+2+2, with khali on the first matra; theka tin tin na | dhin na | dhin na.
- Kayda
- A structured theme-and-variation composition built on a fixed bol pattern, developed through paltas and closed with a tihai.
- Palta
- A systematic variation of a kayda theme, reordering the bols while preserving the underlying structure and returning to sam.
- Rela
- A fast, continuous, flowing composition of rapid strokes, often built on a single dense pattern.
- Tukda
- A short, self-contained composition, usually ending with a tihai, often performed as a standalone solo item.
- Paran
- A powerful, pakhawaj-derived composition, typically longer and more forceful than a tukda, often closing with a tihai.
- Chakradar
- A composition in which a tihai is repeated three times, each repetition landing on sam of successive cycles.
- Layakari
- The art of playing in varied tempi - barabar, dugun, tigun, chaugun - against the underlying lay while keeping the tala cycle.
- Notation bar line
- In tabla notation, a vertical bar separates vibhags; sam is marked X or 1 and khali is marked 0 or a wave.
- Peshkar
- An opening solo composition, usually in slow lay, that introduces the tala and builds gradually toward the kayda.
- Sangat
- Accompaniment of a vocalist or instrumentalist, where the tabla player follows the soloist's lay and tala using the theka.
- Ahmed Jan Thirakwa
- A celebrated 20th-century tabla soloist of the Farrukhabad lineage, renowned for his extensive layakari and powerful solo style.
- Zakir Hussain
- A leading contemporary tabla player who extended the instrument into fusion and world music while maintaining classical solo and accompaniment work.