I've seen tablas where the crack looked superficial but after six months the crack became substantial. Also make sure there are no surface cracks on the wood as this could be a 'growing' crack. These are also very hard to tune properly. Whatever you do, stay away from drums that have oval looking heads this is a sign of warping or just bad design. I have played tablas made out of tun and mango wood. The wood is heavy and the sound of the tabla is crisp and vibrant. The sheesham wood tablas are probably the best. I see clay tablas every now and then and they sound pretty good too but I cannot see myself trying to tune one lest my hammer finds an unintended mark :-) The most common types of materials used for a tabla areĬlay, sheesham wood, tun wood, and mango wood. The general feel of the drum will hint of quality! A good tabla will have a clean looking skin. Just remember if it looks bad it probably is. Some of these are not even worth mentioning.

Today the tabla can be purchased in many varieties of woods. With practice you can do this without problems and to reduce friction (often the cause of the rocking) use talcum powder. Especially if you try to make sliding bass sounds on the drum. The dagga tends to rock more as your hand moves over it. Heavier is sturdier.or 'heavy dagga drums are more stable to play.' This is true but technique is more important.Indeed you might have to special order one. This gives you the weight and keeps the resonance intact! But these are increasingly hard to find. The skilled maker of this drum will melt lead on the bottom of a thin wall tabla. heavier translates into lower volume! The heavier chassis kills the resonance gained from the drum walls. What I'm trying to say here is that an expensive set may seem to justify a heavier instrument if weight is what you were buying. Many of my students have bought into this, some over my objections, but then they find out why I'm against buying these. If you find a shopkeeper trying to sell you an expensive tabla set chances are that the Dagga of this set will be the extra heavy type. If you own one and have a specific question, email me and I'll try and help. Therefore I will not delve further into this. The Dagga Choices Material Choices: Clay, brass/copper (standard weight), brass/copper heavy weight.Ĭlay drums, although still around in certain parts of India, are more a novelty nowadays for the obvious reason that they are hard to care for.

Well, here are some tips to help you in your decision. So you are ready to spend your money on the best Tabla set this side of the Ganges -). Tabla Lesson Series by Ashwin Batish - RagaNet Magazine Pandit Shiv Dayal BatishĪ publication of the Batish Institute of Indian Music and Fine Arts

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