It is similar to western concept of a time measure. We shall explore the structure of the tala system and its complexities in future posts. However, what happens is that the tempo is not constant but varying tempo but it is still perfect while it is there.
Your email address will not be published. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Video Content. Or maybe I am over-reacting and this is just my drawback. Either way, really appreciate your website and your explanations. Best wishes, S. Can you reword your comment? Good explanation of Laya and Tala. Through its stresses the melodic line manifests time trough the actions of the hands; tala does the same.
The manifestation of time takes place only when there are events. Time appears as a chain which links different events separated from one another by periods of rest or absence of events [ 6 ]. In fact, but for periods of rest in between actions, time cannot give the impression of time. This is because, as said above, time itself is regarded as that which has been conceived to establish a relationship between different events or actions.
Or we can say that actions marked by periods of rest in between create the feeling of time. In music we see that the melodic line when infused with stresses creates a more perceptible time than one with fewer and irregurarly spaced breaks as in alapa.
Similarly, tala also, through the actions of the hands, literally creates time and in this respect, it is almost a clock. And it is this which measures the melodic line. Thus the time manifested by the melodic stresses is measured by the time created by tala. Firstly, the temporal aspects of the melodic line and tala are gripped together by the rhythmic flow stresses of the melody, regulated by the actions of tala.
Further, tala, time measure, measures the entire duration of the melodic line. In ancient music, the entire span of a song was matched by a tala time span of equal duration. In modern times a section of small duration is repeated a number of times to get a larger time span. This time span presents the framework or canvas on which the melodic line is painted. Perhaps, more than measuring, tala provides the temporal framework which gives the basic form to the melodic structure.
Link between the flow of melody and the flow of tala. For there to be some connection between the melodic flow and the tala flow, there have to be rythmic stresses in the melody. If for instance, we were to render a tala along with raga alapa, the two will flow without any mutual connection.
Even in khayal singing, quite often, in the beginning of the alapa portion, there does not appear to be any sustained link between the tala line expressed by the tabla and the melodic line [ 7 ].
On the other hand, we have certains forms in music where the melodic line does express a rhythm but there is no tala rendering along with it. For instance, during tanam in Karnataka, jod in gatkari and nomtom alapa in dhrupad in Hindustani music, there is no rendering of tala.
In these forms rhythm is projected through accenting of the tones. Mention has been made earlier of another function of tala, namely, that of co-ordinating different activities, which we shall examine now. Take the case where the three arts of dancing, drumming and music are combined in performance.
A dance recital consists of the dance executed by the movements of the limbs, accompanied by the playing of a drum mrdangam or tabla and singing. The movement of limbs creates beautiful figures in space, while the drumming produces a pattern of syllables and the singing contributes pleasing melodies. All these are different kind of action or events and are of entirely different nature. However, the common characteristic shared by the three is the rhythmic flow.
The steps in the dance, the syllabic structure of drum playing and the melodic stresses express rhythmic organisation.
At times the rhythmic organisation of all the three are regulated by the same time measure or tala. Thus the playing of the cymbals rightly called talam in a dance concerts marks the actions of the tala and regulates the dancing, drumming and singing and the attention of all the three performers is directed towards the cymbal player [ 8 ].
So also in a music concert, as for example, the singing and mrdangam playing in Karnataka or the singing and pakhavaj playing in dhrupad in Hindustani music, are mutually linked by their dependence on tala. Quite often the drum players provide a rhythm different from that of the melodic line to heighten it by contrast. Here tala keeps the two independent actions under control. In music itself tala coordinates the melody and rhythm. Sometimes for melodic reasons, there could be a tendency to extend the duration of a note a trifle more than admisible.
Tala arrests it, acting as regulator. We have so far tried to understand the notion of tala in a rather abstract way. We shall now take concrete examples from the music of various periods to see the practical application of tala. In the earliest system of music, namely Samagana, there is no mention of tala. The Natyasastra of Bharata pre-4th Cent. These works deal with an elaborate and intricate system of tala. In comparison with the Samagana which has no tala basis, the Gandharva musical forms present a different structural set-up altogheter, in which the tala framework is the dominant aspect.
It could be conjectured that prior to Gandharva, tala figured only in dance and its introduction into classical music began only with Gandharva.
Among the different kinds of musical forms in Gandharva, some varieties called Gitakas exhibit sectional divisions described in terms of tala sctructures. The action unit in tala was referred to by the term kala, and later, by the term kriya [ 9 ]. There were different types of kriyas. These were classified basically into two groups, sounded sasabda and soundless nihsabda. The snapping of two fingers, falling of the right palm on the left , striking the two palms together, were some of the sasabda kriyas.
Drawing an outstretched hand inwards with the palm facing up, moving an outstretched palm from left to right, etc. This rest adhering to a kriya or intervening between two kriya-s was technically called laya [ 11 ]. In fact it is laya or the duration between two kriyas which becomes the basic measuring unit [ 12 ]. The kriya as well as its duration was referred to by the term kala. Kala-s can be of uniform duration or of differing durations. Normally three kinds of units were used in Gandharva, namely, laghu, guru and pluta meaning short, long and prolated, respectively.
When all the kala-s are of uniform duration they will be of the duration of guru. These units are given equivalence with the time units used in day today life. A laghu is equal to one matra, a guru equal to two and a pluta to three matras [ 13 ]. Certain basic temporal sections are formed with reference. Some of the basic structures are made up of all the types of units, laghu, guru and pluta.
Some others of longer duration are made up uniformly of guru kala-s. At first, it is taught by counting and clapping to show the relevant beats but eventually it becomes part of the natural instinct of professional musicians as well as some of their audiences to know exactly where they are, physically, at any given time in any rhythm cycle.
One will often notice that even when there is an interruption in the recital, or the soloist has paused to speak to the audience or one of the accompanists, the taal itself continues uninterrupted — almost like a loop — in the background with the soloist resuming at the appropriate beat. There are several hundred kinds of rhythm cycles in Indian classical music with varying numbers of beats, but in the North it is more usual to hear the varieties that come in 16, 12, 10, 7, or 14 beats respectively - tintal, ektal, jhaptal, rupak taal, and dhamar, jhoomra, or deepchandi.
Taals also have a vocalised equivalent whereby beats are expressed as phonetic representations of various strokes played on different percussion instruments. Percussionists will often recite these phrases and then demonstrate the same on the tabla or mridangam.
This is known as bol in Hindustani music, and solkattu in the Carnatic tradition. Taals also have a 'low' point known as khali empty usually shown by waving the hand. But the most puzzling thing for those who are new to Indian classical music is that the completion of a rhythm cycle — its 'highest' point, known as sam — does not happen on the final beat of the cycle, as is typical for Western music, but on the first beat of the next cycle.
But, it is a very visual affair and easy to spot as musicians, as well as audiences, will be seen to nod, or clap or raise their hands when this beat is reached. The soloist has to sound an important note of the raag melodic structure as both the percussionist's and soloist's phrases culminate at the sam.
Both will often nod to each other with great satisfaction — as though to say "all is well, we are on track". The end of each rhythm cycle — particularly during the faster pieces — also forms a highpoint in that the soloist and accompanist seem to renew their bond and reaffirm their togetherness on the journey — the journey of gradually unfolding — and revealing — a raag. Listen to the music Pandit Yogesh Samsi learned the tabla from legendary percussion master Ustad Alla Rakha for over 20 years.
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