E-Paper
Women set to enter another male bastion
Sitar and tanpura may become a thing of the past, as of now we must make up our minds to hear about 'female tabla maestros'. The new trend catching up in the city speaks of the inevitable results as female tabla players have slowly outnumbered their male counterparts.
Sitar and tanpura may become a thing of the past, as of now we must make up our minds to hear about 'female tabla maestros'.
The new trend catching up in the city speaks of the inevitable results as female tabla players have slowly outnumbered their male counterparts.
"In the coming years, we may not be surprised to hear the names of female accompanists in tabla if this practice continues further. This, of course, is a good sign," said Prabhakar Dayal who teaches tabla at Prayag Sangeet Samiti.
"We always related tabla with a male artiste and there are renowned artistes at present who enjoy the position of maestros in this field. They have managed to grab the attention worldwide. But now the interest of females in learning this musical instrument may change the entire scenario. However this change would be witnessed after a few years," he added.
Prabhakar admitted of teaching tabla to 15 girl students in the first year. "To be frank, it is wrong to acknowledge that tabla requires much strength to be mastered. There are techniques of bringing out the melodious beats and one has to concentrate on that. Regular 'riyaz' is necessary," he added.
Jyotika Singh, a student of Allahabad University explaining her affection for the instrument said: "Being a student of Music, I thought that I must learn something different and it was always inspirational to watch the maestros playing this traditional instrument. So without delay, I joined Prayag Sangeet Samiti to learn the instrument," she said.
Another student Priyanka Tripathi from Narayani Ashram Balika Inter College admitted that she always wanted to learn tabla. "Tabla is required to be played with almost all the traditional musical instruments and there is no denying the fact that I will always have something new to learn each day," she said.
"Besides, the skill also helps in getting job as a teacher in good institutes and it also supports in enhancing ones talent. I am sure, the crowd of students would multiply further," said Prabhakar.
