Tala System and Rhythmic Notation
Domain 3 tests tala vocabulary and your ability to place tali, khali and sam correctly in the prescribed talas.
Core terms
Matra is one beat; vibhag is a bar of matras; tali is a clapped vibhag; khali is a waved, empty vibhag; sam is matra 1 and the point of resolution; avartan is one full cycle. Laya is vilambit, madhya or drut, and layakari includes dugun, tigun and chaugun. Jati counts matras per vibhag: tisra 3, chatushra 4, khand 5, mishra 7, sankirna 9.
Prescribed talas
Teentaal 16 = 4+4+4+4, tali 1, 5, 13, khali 9. Jhaptaal 10 = 2+3+2+3, tali 1, 3, 8, khali 6. Ektaal 12 = six vibhags of 2, tali 1, 3, 7, 9, 11, khali 5. Rupak 7 = 3+2+2 with khali on sam (1) and tali on 4 and 6. Dadra 6 = 3+3, khali 4. Chautaal 12 = 4+4+4. Deepchandi 14 = 3+4+3+4.
Worked example
Place tali and khali in Jhaptaal. Vibhags run 2, 3, 2, 3. Sam is matra 1. The first vibhag ends at 2, so the second begins on 3 (tali); adding 3 brings us to 5, so the third begins on 6 (khali); adding 2 gives 7, so the fourth begins on 8 (tali); adding the last 3 returns to 11, which is the next sam. Theka: Dhi na | Dhi dhi na | Ti na | Dhi dhi na.
Traps
Reciting Ektaal as 4+4+4; putting khali on matra 1 in every tala; counting vibhags instead of matras where vibhags are unequal; confusing Rupak's khali sam with Teentaal's tali sam.