Sangat: Accompaniment with Vocal, Instrumental and Kathak
Sangat is judged on restraint, sam placement and responsiveness - the tabla must support, not compete.
Vocal accompaniment
- Vilambit khayal in Ektal or Jhumra: sparse sath theka, slight khol variation, khali used to colour the antara.
- Drut khayal in Teental: steady theka with occasional mohra to mark a section change.
- Thumri, Dadra and other light forms: laggi and ladi, with the baya used expressively.
Instrumental and Kathak
- Sitar or sarod: theka in vilambit, drut Teental for the jhala; follow the soloist's gamak and laya rather than imposing your own.
- Kathak: theka for tatkar, ladi and laggi for tukda passages; the tabla must track the dancer's padhant and the nagma.
Sam handling
- Never anticipate sam. Place tihais so they resolve with the soloist, and use a mohra when a return to sam must be signalled.
Worked example
Accompanying a vilambit Ektal khayal near 40 bpm. Play a restrained theka, use khali on 3 and 7 to mark the vibhags without heaviness, leave space for the singer's bol-banao, and close the antara with a short mohra resolving on sam. Reasoning: in vilambit sangat, silence and restraint carry as much weight as bols.
Traps that cost marks
- Overplaying or adding paltas while a vocalist is developing a phrase.
- Changing laya without the soloist.
- Treating khali as a soft tali instead of a wave.
- Playing a tihai that lands before the soloist's sam.