Lucknow gharana (tabla)


Lucknow gharānā, also known as "Purab gharâna", is one of the six main gharānās or styles in tabla.
It is characterized by the full usage of the palm besides the fingers, resonant sounds, and the use of ring and little fingers on the Dayan.
The Gharana branched out of the Delhi gharānā when the two brothers Modu Khan and Bakshu Khan, the third generation of the lineage of Delhi's Mia Siddhar Khan, moved to Lucknow, due to political disturbances in Delhi, while one brother Makkhu Khan stayed on in Delhi. In Lucknow, the Nawabs mainly patronised Kathak, a classical dance form of the North accompanied by the pakhavaj, the still living ancestor of tabla.
Modu and Bakshu Khan collaborated with the performers of these arts and ended up in creating a unique style of tabla playing adapted from Kathak and pakhavaj compositions, the style now being termed as "Khula Baaj" or "Hatheli ka Baaj". Among these upgrades, "Gat" and "Paran" are two types of compositions that are very common in Lucknow gharānā. Lucknow style has also conceived its very own item, known as "Raon": it consists of extremely fast, delicate and colourful fillings within broad and bold rhythmic designs working as a framework.

Features

Lucknow Gharana is one of the six main gharanas or styles in tabla. This gharana is characterized by the full usage of the palm besides the fingers, resonant sounds, and the use of ring and little fingers on the Dayan.

Notable musicians

  1. S R Chishti
  2. Pandit Swapan Chaudhuri