Hi all,

Just another post about me stressing about the importance of hard training and practicing tabla on a regular basis. I’m sure you’re aware of the old term ‘practice makes perfect’. Well that applies to learning tabla too. Whether you’re a beginner, intermediate or an expert, there’s one thing that’s common between them all besides playing tabla… and that is regular practice.

An intermediate tabla student may have practiced tirikit, or dhire dhire or any another beat thousands of times more compared to an advanced student. You will definitely see the difference in the sound and clarity of this when you listen to them both play.

I’m not saying that one should practice for hours on a daily basis, as this day and age it’s just not possible with the hectic lives that we live. However, 45mins to an hours practice daily will show the results and make you a stronger tabla player. In my tabla classes in Leicester, I make sure that all of the students understand the importance of Riaz (practice). First of all, the tabla lesson or composition needs to be memorised in your head, then spoken out aloud with the correct timing. I also recommend that in the tabla classes in Leicester that all of my students say the beats and play simultaneously with varying speed. The clearer and quicker you can speak, the same result will come through your hands to your tabla.