Talas - the architecture of time

Carnatic rhythm is kept visibly: the tala lives in your hands. Every cycle is built from just three gestures, and once you can clap a tala steadily while singing, you own the music's time.

The three angas

Laghu

| 4

A clap followed by finger counts. Its length depends on the jati - 3, 4, 5, 7, or 9 beats. Chatusra (4) is the default you’ll meet first.

Drutam

O

Always two beats: a clap, then a wave of the open palm - the hand turning over is the second beat.

Anudrutam

U

A single clap, nothing more. It appears in only one of the seven talas: Jhampa.

The Artium Tala Tool

Pick any tala and jathi - all 35 combinations - set your tempo, press play, and clap along with the hand gestures. This is the same tala engine Artium's live classes use.

Chatusra Jathi Triputa Tala (Adi Tala)

8 beats · pattern | O O

Tap

Press play

Laghu

1234

Dhrutam

56

Dhrutam

78

Tala

Jathi

Tempo80 BPM

Volume

The sapta talas in depth

Dhruva Tala

14 beats - the first alankaram tala.Clap it in depth 10 beats

Matya Tala

10 beats, symmetric around its drutam.Clap it in depth 6 beats

Rupaka Tala

6 beats - carries many geethams and krithis.Clap it in depth 10 beats

Jhampa Tala

10 beats with a misra (7-count) laghu.Clap it in depth 7 beats

Triputa Tala

7 beats with a tisra (3-count) laghu.Clap it in depth 14 beats

Ata Tala

14 beats with two khanda (5-count) laghus.Clap it in depth 4 beats

Eka Tala

4 beats - the simplest cycle.Clap it in depth 8 beats

Adi Tala

8 beats - chatusra Triputa, the workhorse of Carnatic music.Clap it in depth

Practice varisai with tala ← Back to Carnatic

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