Interesting Facts on a Tabla Drum

A tabla is a percussion instrument.

According to Don Michael Randel in his book "The Harvard Dictionary of Music," the tabla is the main percussion instrument of North Indian music. It is a membranophone made of two cylindrical drums. A player sits on a flat surface and plays by striking both the drums with the hands.

History

The tabla appears to have been derived from the mridanga or pakhawaj, which were ancient instruments that had barrel shaped bodies with heads on both sides, according to David Courtney in his book "Learning the Tabla."

Use

According to Robert S. Gottlieb in his book "Solo Tabla Drumming of North India," the tabla drum played an important military function. They were employed during the 16th and 17th century military campaigns of the Mogul Emperors Akbar and Babur. Hundreds of drums were carried on the backs of horses and camels, with each rider beating them furiously with hard wooden sticks in an attempt to alarm enemy forces in battle. The tabla also accompanied female courtesan dancers and forms a major component of sarod and sitar classical music.

Parts of a Tabla

The two drums that form a tabla are called the dayan and bayan. The dayan is the smaller wooden drum played with the right hand, and the bayan is the larger metal drum played with the left hand.

Other parts of the tabla include the pudi, or the drumhead; the gatta or the wooden dowels and the tasma or the rawhide thong. There is also a lakadi, or a wooden shell and a pital, or a brass shell. The kundal is the counter hoop.

The pudi, or drumhead, has a black spot, (or syahi); the white membrane surrounding the black spot, called maidan; the chat, or annular membrane and the gajara, or rawhide braid.

Materials

The dayan is made of rosewood and the bayan is made of German silver, brass or copper. The heads of both drums are made of goatskin, and the black spot controls the vibration of the drum.

Play

The tabla is played in a sitting position, typically a cross-legged position, and stuck by the full palm of the hands or the fingertips to produce a variety of sounds. For instance, the rim of the dayan is called the kinar. Striking it with a firm fingertip produces a loud ping. The center of the drumhead is called the sur; striking it produces a gentler ringing tone.

Care

The syahi of the drumhead must always be kept dry. It is sensitive to moisture, including the sweat on a drummers hands. The syahi is sensitive to extreme temperatures and splits in excessive heat and sudden exposure to cold.

References

• "Solo Tabla Drumming of North India"; Robert S. Gottlieb; 1998
• "The Harvard Dictionary of Music"; Don Michael Randel; 2003
• "Learning the Tabla, Volume 2"; David Courtney; 2009