Tabla
By: Ciana Azzolino
What Is a Tabla?
- Tabla is a musical instrument and is similar to the drums. It is mainly played in the Indian subcontinent. Tabla is a noun and is defined as "A pair of small hand drums attached together, used in Indian music." The small drum on the left is called the dayan,and the right drum is called the bayan. The tabla is played with your hands, and not sticks because it has a delicate top.
- The picture to the left is a tabla.
What Is a Tabla Made Of?
- A tabla is made of many things. The dayan is usually made from wood. It can have a diameter of five or six inches. The bayan is usually made from iron, aluminum, copper, steel, clay, or brass with nickel, which is most common. In the tabla, there is a black spot in the middle called the syahi which is made from a mixture of gum, soot, and iron. It is made from these materials so the syahi will have a bell or timbre sound.
Who Invented the Tabla?
- The tabla was invented in the 13th century by Amir Khusro. He was born in Uttar Pradesh in 1253 and died in 1325 in Delhi. Amir was an Indian musician, poet, and scholar. He also invented an instrument called the sitar. When Amir invented the tabla, he only used eleven materials. He also came up with two styles of music called khayal and tarana and has hand written at least six pieces of music.
- The picture to the bottom is Amir Khusro.
Did you know?
- The tabla is usually the main beat to Indian music. It keeps the rhythm and flows the music well together. The tabla accompanies the sitar and tamburas, which are other Indian instruments invented by Amir Khsro.
Did you know?
- Ustad Alla Rakha was amazing at playing the tabla. He had offically published nine albums. He founded Ustad Allarakha Institute for Music. Ustad, was born on April 29, 1919 in Jammu and Kashmir. He died on February 3, 2000 in Mumbai. He had a wife named Bavi Begum and they had five children.
Works Cited
- http://www.ehow.com/about_6570005_interesting-tabla-drums.html
- http://chandrakantha.com/articles/indian_music/tabla.html
- http://www.poemhunter.com/amir-khusro/biography/
- http://www.poemhunter.com/amir-khusro/biography/
- http://sufipoetry.wordpress.com/poets/amir-khusro/
- http://www.mid-east.com/Info/tablas.html
- http://static.panjabilok.net/music/pun_gharana/biography_ustadalla.htm