Exercises — Applied practice
Drills clean your bols. Apply them here: TiRaKiTa speed work, call-and-response, bass independence, mini tihai, and song grooves (Keherwa, Dadra, Teentaal pocket). ▶ loops a row; click a bol to audition.
TiRaKiTa application Roll
Four quick strokes in one cell, then land on Na. Start ~60 BPM; climb when even.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| TiRaKiTa | Na | TiRaKiTa | Na |
- Even spacing inside the roll
- Na lands on time
TiRaKiTa speed pyramid Warm-up
Same cell as above: 4× slow → 4× medium → 4× fast → down. Or BPM ladder 60 → 72 → 84 → 96.
- Roll stays even at the top tempo
Call & response Ears
Call on the first half; answer on the second. Don’t fill rests.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dha | – | Ge | Na | Te | Te | Na | – |
Mini tihai Cadence
Seed phrase — say it, then play. Grow to three repetitions into sam later.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dha | TiRaKiTa | Dha | – | Dha | TiRaKiTa | Dha | – |
Bass ostinato (Ge / Ka) Bayan
Steady bayan pulse; dayan stays light. Bass must not follow the treble.
| 1 | & | 2 | & | 3 | & | 4 | & |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ge | Na | Ge | Tin | Ge | Na | Ka | Tin |
Keherwa song-groove 8-beat
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dha | Ge | Na | Ti | Na | Ka | Dhi | Na |
- 2 minutes without losing beat 1
Dadra song-groove 6-beat
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dha | Dhin | Na | Dha | Tin | Na |
Teentaal — four vibhags 16-beat
Lock each 4-beat group, then loop the full cycle. Khali is vibhag 3 (no bass feel).
Vibhag 1 (sam)
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dha | Dhin | Dhin | Dha |
Vibhag 2
| 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dha | Dhin | Dhin | Dha |
Vibhag 3 (khali)
| 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dha | Tin | Tin | Ta |
Vibhag 4
| 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ta | Dhin | Dhin | Dha |
Full theka (one row)
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dha | Dhin | Dhin | Dha | Dha | Dhin | Dhin | Dha | Dha | Tin | Tin | Ta | Ta | Dhin | Dhin | Dha |
- Can loop vibhag 1 ×4, then full 16 without rushing
- Khali half feels lighter (lift bayan)
Rupak — 7 beats Odd
Starts on the khali feel. Count 3+2+2. Target 60 → 100 BPM.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tin | Tin | Na | Dhin | Na | Dhin | Na |
- Cycle turns cleanly without adding an 8th beat
Groove switch Musical
4 cycles Keherwa → 4 Dadra → back, same BPM. Sam must stay clear.