Description

“Learning Tabla with Alla Rakha”  is an archival document as well as a valuble teaching tool for those who wish to play tabla in the style of the Punjab Gharana as taught by Ustad Alla Rakha, one of the very top tier of Indian classical musicians and certainly the worldwide shining star of tabla in the mid through latter part of the 20th century. Many hundreds of students of tabla have sat before Ustad Alla Rakha for lessons and learning through watching and listening. For those who did not have that chance, there is very little in the way of archival material to view. Although the video was made on a tight budget it is in black and white with obvious signs of age, the sound is clear and the picture good enough to get the essence of the great Ustad in his early 50’s, when he was still a powerhouse of tabla and a mystical magician of rhythm. You will hear the master play compositions accompanied by sarod lehara, the melodic anchor of the rhythm cycle in the traditional manner, while the “bols” are written on the bottom of the screen. A “bouncing ball” is synched to the exact timing of the compositions as Ustad Alla Rakha plays, making it easy for the intermediate student to follow. The practitioner must keep in mind that the video was made in the early seventies, and was lost for many years. For the serious student or musicologist, this is a unique and well conceived package to help to understand and learn tabla. In my opinion, those who criticize the production of the video are missing the point. There is currently nothing available similar to this anywhere.