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
| 4A 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
OAlways two beats: a clap, then a wave of the open palm - the hand turning over is the second beat.
Anudrutam
UA 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
Press playThe sapta talas in depth
Dhruva Tala
14 beats - the first alankaram tala.
Clap it in depth →Matya Tala
10 beats, symmetric around its drutam.
Clap it in depth →Rupaka Tala
6 beats - carries many geethams and krithis.
Clap it in depth →Jhampa Tala
10 beats with a misra (7-count) laghu.
Clap it in depth →Triputa Tala
7 beats with a tisra (3-count) laghu.
Clap it in depth →Ata Tala
14 beats with two khanda (5-count) laghus.
Clap it in depth →Eka Tala
4 beats - the simplest cycle.
Clap it in depth →Adi Tala
8 beats - chatusra Triputa, the workhorse of Carnatic music.
Clap it in depth →