Tabla

Tabla is among the popular percussion instruments of India, belonging to the family of membranophone like that of bongos and is a part of the classical music of Hindustani style and played during devotional renditions in the subcontinent. There is included a pair of drums beaten with hand but of different timbres and sizes. The word table has been derived from tabl, which is a word in Arabic and means simply a drum.

Origin of Tabla

Although it was in india that the invention of table was done, but the history still is uncertain and plenty of debates go into this subject. From the Bhaja Caves carvings, found in Maharashtra, there is a scene of a table being played by a woman with another one doing a dance sequence, which dates back to about 200 BC. According to Rebecca Stewart, it is probably a result of experimentation with drums in the present days, such as Mridang, pakhawaj, naqqara and dholak. The way the table technique and repertoire is existing, might probably be present in all these as well as there is a similarity in the elements of physical structure. Dayan is for the small sized head of pakhawaj, bayan for the kettledrum shape of naqqara and the dholak has a flexible use due to its bass.

According to a legend, it is said that Amir Khusrau, a poet from 13th century india had invented the table. He probably divided the pakhawaj or mridangam into two parts which in accordance with the famous hindu pun of ‘thoda, tab bhi bola – tabla’, which meant, ‘when broke, it still spoke’. But strangely, his writings didn’t mention anything about the drum. Still, keeping up with this habit of inventing things quite late and in the scenario of lack of this kind of musical instrument in the musical world of south india, and also because the tabla appear like a divided mridanga, along with the resemblance to timpani and clay drums of the western world, it is possible to say that tabla has been a development in Indian music scenario of the north in recent years. Some stories also say that the instrument of tabla was invented in the 18th century, with Ustab Suddhar Khan from Delhi being the first known player of tabla. But such theories have been questioned by the presence of Bhaja caves carvings which prove strongly that the Tabla was present in ancient India, since the 200BC.

Design

The drum which is small in size, is drummed with the hand which is dominant and this is called dayan or right, although the proper term would be tabla. It is prepared from rosewood or teak in a conical shape which has been hollowed till half length deep. The drum is made to tune for a note that is specific, which is the tonic and the dominant or sometimes the sub dominant part of the key of the soloist, which is complimentary to the melody. Even though the range of tuning is limited, different notes are produced according to the sizes, prepared for different ranges. Small blocks in cylindrical shapes are prepared by the name of ghatta, which then get inserted within the shell and strap, building up tension which can be adjusted by vertical position. In order to fine tune, the braids on the head can be hammered vertically.

There is also another drum which is larger in shape and struck with the other hand, known as bayan or left as well as named duggi, dagga or the dhama. This drum has a tone which has bass quite deep, somewhat like the kettle drum. This can be built from various materials. For these drums, brass is common material although copper can also be used but it becomes costlier, and also steel and aluminium can be used for inexpensive makes. It can also be seen that wood is used for the larger drum, mostly seen with the bayan which are prepared in Punjab. Although clay has also been known to be used, but are not common because of low durability, mostly seen in the Bengal North East region.

Some of the areas of the head are

• chat, chanti, keenar, kinar, ki
• sur, maidan, lao, luv
• center: syahi, siaahi, gob

the shells of both the drums have coverings on the head made of cow or goat skin. There is a ring on the outerside made of skin, which is laid over the primary skin and used mostly for the natural overtone suppression. Both these skins are bound with the help of a braid which is complexly woven, giving strength adequately for the shell to remain in tension. Over the drum shell, the head is fixated with single strap of camel or cow hide, lacing inbetween the braid of the head and an outer ring prepared from the same material, positioned on the bottom side of the drum.

Both the drums have an area on the centre over the head which is known as the syahi. This portion is prepared by multilayering the area with starch paste, along with black material derived from various places. The exact manner in which this area is prepared will be responsible for the changes in the natural overtones of the drum, which gives a pitch clarity and also makes it possible for different tones to be elicited found only with this kind of instrument, which is mostly bell like. It is a refined skill for constructing this particular area and the most important factor differentiating this particular instrument.

Playing Positions

The most important consideration for playing the tabla is the manner in which the position of playing is done. Generally, the body should be relaxed with easy breathing and the hands and arms resting in natural positions on the pudi. No bending of the hands or the wrists and elbows is done, since this will restrict the power and the speed of the strokes, also causing a stress related injury due to repetitive motion. One can sit in three different wyas such as kneeling, cross legged and in qawwali type, although personal variations can be different.

The technique of playing tabla is usually with finger and palm usage in different settings to help in the creation of different sounds, which is also termed as the syllables of mnemonic. Heel is used to give pressure or it is slid on the bigger drum for changing the pitch when the sound is getting decayed.

In order to achieve stability during the play, drums are placed on a bundle of toroidal, which is known as guddi or chutta, made from fibre of plant and some materials which can be wrapped inside cloth.

Notable Players

Zakir Hussain

Zakir Hussain was born in 1951 on March 9th, and has earned reputations as a player of tabla, producer of music, actor and composer. It was in Bombay that he was born, to Alla Rakha who himself was a great tabla player. Zakir Hussain went to school in Mahim to St. Michael’s High school and from St. Xavier in Mumbai he did his graduation. His younger siblings, Fazal Qureshi, Taufiq Qureshi and Maral Qureshi are well known percussionists. At Zakir’s time of birth, his father was very ill. It is said that, a hermit came to their abode and made a prediction that Zakir would take the illness of his father and remain so for four years. This happened exactly and he recovered after four years of the same illness that his father was suffering.

Alla Rakha

Alla Rakha was the popular name of Qureshi Alla Rakha Khan, who lived from 1919 to 2000, who was a famous player of tabla in India. He used to accompany Ravi Shankar. Alla Rakha took birth in Jammu area of British India in Paghwal and dogri was his mother tongue. By the age of 12, he was completely impressed by the rhythm and sound of tabla, when he was at his uncle’s house in Gurdaspur. At this young age, he went away from his home and studied tabla, by becoming the student of Mian Kader Baksh who belonged to the gharana of Punjab. Then he mastered raag Vidy and voice from Ashiq Ali Khan from the gharana of Patiala. The way he practiced is said to be the test of his practice and dedication, spending hours and hours on the tabla, due to which he was able to play so well. Bavi Begum was his wife from whom he had four children, Khurshid Aulia was the daughter while Fazal Qureshi, Zakir Hussain and Taufiq Qureshi were three sons. Alla Rakha also had one more daughter, who died about 24 hours prior to his death.

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