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    Teentaal practice

    Choose tabla, spoken bols, or both. Set the pace and press play.

    Taal: Teentaal16 matras

    Interactive Teentaal player

    Tap or click a matra to change its bol.

    Vibhag 1
    Vibhag 1X · Sam · Clap
    Vibhag 2
    Vibhag 22 · Tali · Clap
    Vibhag 3
    Vibhag 30 · Khali · Wave
    Vibhag 4
    Vibhag 43 · Tali · Clap

    Teentaal structure

    Teentaal (also written Teen Taal or Tintal) has 16 matras grouped into vibhags of 4, 4, 4, 4. The most widely taught taal in Kathak, and the one most students learn first. A theka is the bol pattern played over the cycle.

    Bol patterns vary by teacher and tradition. Follow your teacher’s version for class.

    Sam, tali, and khali

    Sam · matra 1
    The first matra and the cycle’s return point. Mark it with a clap.
    Tali · matras 5 and 13
    Clap on the first matra of each of these vibhags.
    Khali · matra 9
    Wave at the start of the vibhag; keep counting every matra.

    Teentaal theka

    One familiar written version, with each bol placed on a matra:

    1. Matras 1–4Dha · Dhin · Dhin · Dha
    2. Matras 5–8Dha · Dhin · Dhin · Dha
    3. Matras 9–12Dha · Tin · Tin · Ta
    4. Matras 13–16Ta · Dhin · Dhin · Dha

    Some versions use Na instead of Dha on matra 9.

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    Tabla audio: Subodh Deolekar, Tabla strokes dataset (2020), used under CC BY 4.0.

    Hindi voice: AI-generated. Follow your teacher’s pronunciation.