A bol is a mnemonic syllable. It is used in Indian music

Music of India

The music of India includes multiple varieties of folk, popular, pop, classical music and R&B. India's classical music tradition, including Carnatic and Hindustani music, has a history spanning millennia and developed over several eras. It remains fundamental to the lives of Indians today as...

 to define the tala

Tala (music)

Tāla, Taal or Tal is the term used in Indian classical music for the rhythmic pattern of any composition and for the entire subject of rhythm, roughly corresponding to metre in Western music, though closer conceptual equivalents are to be found in other Asian classical systems such as the notion...

, or rhythmic pattern, and is one of the most important parts of Indian rhythm

Rhythm

Rhythm may be generally defined as a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions." This general meaning of regular recurrence or pattern in time may be applied to a wide variety of cyclical natural phenomena having a periodicity or...

. Bol is derived from the Hindi word bolna, which means "to speak."

Mnemonic syllables are used in a variety of classical drumming situations in India. They are found in the pakhawaj

Pakhavaj

The pakhavaj, pakhawaj, pakuaj, pakhvaj or pakavaj is an Indian barrel-shaped, two-headed drum, the North Indian equivalent to the Southern mridangam....

, tabla

Tabla

The tabla is a popular Indian percussion instrument used in Hindustani classical music and in popular and devotional music of the Indian subcontinent. The instrument consists of a pair of hand drums of contrasting sizes and timbres...

, and mridangam. However since terms such as "solkattu" are used for the mridangam, and the pakhawaj has become rather rare, the term bol is mostly thought to apply to the tabla.

There is only a very loose connection between the bols and their technique. Sometimes different techniques are used because different musicians represent different gharana

Gharana

In Hindustani music, a gharānā is a system of social organization linking musicians or dancers by lineage or apprenticeship, and by adherence to a particular musical style. A gharana also indicates a comprehensive musicological ideology. This ideology sometimes changes substantially from one...

s, or musical styles. Sometimes different techniques are used in order to get a technical advantage (e.g., playing very fast). Sometimes different techniques are used simply because a different artistic statement is being made. For these reasons, it is impossible to categorically say that a certain bol will be executed in any one fashion, but many of the more common ways in which some common bols are played on a tabla are outlined below.

In the tabla just as in the case of the mridingum and pakhawaj one who has learned the art of playing these drums is taught to recite what he is going to play. What is recited is said to the bol. The recitation contains various consonant vowel sequences. It is expected the actual rendering on the drum mimics the bol.

Simple tabla strokes

• Ga - A resonant stroke of the left hand while leaving the heel of the hand in contact with the drum.
• Ka - This is usually a flat, nonresonant stroke of the left hand. The heel of the hand is left on the drum, while the hand rotates to hit the drum, with the focus of the force being focused between the tips and first joints of the fingers.
• Khat - an explosive sounding strike in which the fingers spread out as descending and strike hard on the gub, or central black part of the duggi.
• Naa - A sharp stroke of the right hand, against the keenar, or outer ring of the drum.
• Ne - The technique of Ne varies. It is often a nonresonant stroke of the right hand.
• Re - a strike played on the smaller drum with the ring finger striking the middle circle, or soor.
• Taa - A sharp stroke of the right hand. This stroke is sometimes played the same as Naa.
• Tin - A more mellow stroke of the right hand.
• Tit - a sharp sounding strike played in the same way as Taa but with the index finger striking hard and not rising from the head.
• Ti-Te - Two similar strikes played in the center of the tabla usually used in drumroll type contexts but sometimes used to increase effect of music.
• Tr - This is a flam
  Flåm
  Flåm is a village at the inner end of the Aurlandsfjord, an arm of the Sognefjord. The village is located in the municipality of Aurland in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway...
  
  of the right hand.
• Tun - An open stroke of the right hand.

Derivative strokes and alternate stroke names

• Dhaa - A combination of Taa and Ga.
• Dhi - This stroke varies with the context. Sometimes it is synonymous with Dhin, which is a combination of Tin and Ga.
• Din - This is an older version of Dhin. It is commonly found in compositions which are derived from the pakhawaj.
• Dhe - Combinaison of Ga and Te or combinaison of Ga and another right hand stroke.
• Gha - Same as Ga.
• Ghe - Same as Ga.
• Ki - same as Ka.
• Ke - same as Ka.
• Kin - Generally held to be equivalent to Ka.
• Thun - Same as Tun or combinaison of Tun and Ka
• The - Combinaison of Ka and Te or combinaison of Ga and another right hand stroke.
• Na - Sometimes this is the same as Ne, sometimes it is the same as Naa.
• Ti - This stroke varies with the context. Sometimes it is synonymous with Tin.
• Tirikita - A combination of three bols: Ti-Te, Ka, and Te, played one after the other quickly.
• Tu - Same as Tun.

External links

• KKSongs Talamala - Tabla Bol Reference has recordings of tabla bols.
• Instruments in Depth: Tabla: Drums of North India, an online feature from Bloomingdale School of Music (March, 2008)
• Chandra & David's Tablasite contains detailed instructions on producing each bol.