Benares,
known also as Varanasi, or by its ancient name, Kashi, is
the holiest city of Hinduism. It is located on a northward
curve of the Ganges river as it cuts through the plains
of the province of Uttar Pradesh.
The tabla baj that is today associated with
the city of Benares was developed over two hundred years ago
by the legendary Pandit Ram Sahai. A child prodigy in his
native city, he became a disciple of Ustad Modhu Khan (grandson
of Sidhar Khan of Delhi) a musician in the royal court of
Nawab Asafuddaula in Lucknow. During his twelve year apprenticeship
with Modhu Khan, Ram Sahai amassed a prodigious repertoire
of compositions and mastered the art of improvised elaborations
on a given theme. When he was 21 years of age he made his
debut performance at the court of Nawab Wazir Ali and accomplished
the astounding feat of playing a tabla solo which continued
uninterrupted for seven consecutive nights without repetition
of a single piece.
In the middle of his career Ram Sahai retired
from public life and turned his attention to the creation
of a new style of tabla playing. Through major changes in
the position of the hand on the drum and a more efficient
use of the fingers he increased the tabla's range of tone
and dynamics. In addition to composing numerous pieces in
the existing forms he introduced several new types of compositions
which have come to be associated exclusively with the Benares
baj.
The new style was eminently suitable not
only for solo playing, but for any type of music from heavy
classical dhrupad singing (usually accompanied by the pakhawaj
drum), to the lighter forms of thumri and tappa, to all styles
of instrumental music, and lastly, to Kathak dance.
Ram Sahai's innovations and the devotion
to musical excellence of his descendants has produced what
is today one of the most respected and popular tabla styles
in India. The names of Pandit Durga Sahai, Pandit Kanthe Maharaj
and Pandit Anokhelal Misra are remembered with awe and reverence
by Indian musicians as being among the greatest virtuosi of
recent times. Since their passing the high standards of the
tradition have been preserved by the present generation of
Benares players which includes such contemporary greats as
Pandit Sharda Sahai, Pandit Kishan Maharaj and the late Pandit
Shamta Prasad. A genealogical chart showing some of the outstanding
members of the Benares baj is presented below.
Click for larger version
In the Benares baj, the art of solo tabla
performance is greatly respected and very highly developed.
There are more than twenty forms of composition in use, many
of them unique to this tradition. Some are theme and variation
forms which require spontaneous composition by the performer,
while many others involve sophisticated compositional techniques
with finished pieces handed down from generation to generation.
In addition, there is a well defined procedure for joining
the various types of compositions to form a logical and pleasing
performance.
A tabla solo is traditionally played in
a sixteen beat tala, a rhythmic cycle, known as tin tal. Throughout
a performance an aural outline of this tala is maintained
by means of a cyclic melody known as a lahara.
