Teentaal Beats: Sam, Tali and Khali Explained for Kathak Dancers

Every Kathak class has a moment when the teacher claps, waves, and the room finds the same beat together. In Teentaal that shared beat is sam, and the whole cycle is built around it. This guide gives you the Teentaal beats, the bols for each one, and a way to drill them until the claps feel automatic.

What are the Teentaal beats?

Teentaal is a 16-beat cycle in four groups of four: 4+4+4+4. Say it as "Dha Dhin Dhin Dha | Dha Dhin Dhin Dha | Dha Tin Tin Ta | Ta Dhin Dhin Dha". Sam is beat 1, tali (claps) fall on beats 1, 5 and 13, and khali (the wave) is beat 9. Then it starts again on sam.

The name says it too: teen is three and taal is clap, the three claps of the cycle.

How it's counted: the theka, beat by beat

A taal is a repeating cycle. Its basic pattern of bols is the theka. Wikipedia's Teental entry describes 16 beats in four equal groups of 4, called vibhags, with the first beat of the cycle as sam and the claps on 1, 5 and 13. If you know what an 8-count is, picture it as four short groups of four rather than two groups of eight.

Sam, tali and khali

The tala reference on Wikipedia defines the three terms the way dancers use them, and its Teental example is a 16-beat cycle of four 4-beat groups:

• Sam is the first beat of the cycle, the most heavily emphasised, where phrases resolve. Beat 1, marked X.
• Tali is the clap that opens a group. In Teentaal the claps land on beats 1, 5 and 13, marked X, 2 and 3, as the Teental page charts them.
• Khali is the empty group, shown by a wave of the hand instead of a clap. In Teentaal it opens on beat 9, marked 0.

The bols change at khali: the third group is Dha Tin Tin Ta, where the first two groups were Dha Dhin Dhin Dha. Listen for Tin Tin and the wave together. They tell you that you have crossed the middle of the cycle.

Reading the notation

On paper, Teentaal is written as a row of signs above a row of bols: X, 2, 0, 3 over the groups, with the beat numbers 1 to 16 beneath. Learn to read it as a map. X marks where you start and finish, 2 and 3 are the two later claps, and 0 is the wave. When a teacher writes a composition in this notation, every syllable has a beat number, and the composition has to end on sam to close the cycle cleanly.

Bol variations exist. The syllables differ a little between teachers, mostly in the last two groups, so learn the version your own teacher recites and keep it consistent.

Where you'll hear it: avartan and laya

One full pass through the 16 beats is an avartan. A tala has no fixed tempo, so the same cycle can be slow, medium or fast. Hindustani performances usually move through three layas: vilambit (slow), madhya (medium) and drut (fast). The structure stays put. Only the speed changes, and with it how much you can fit inside each beat.

Kathak dancers meet Teentaal constantly, as the cycle under footwork, compositions and recitation. Whatever the layas, the sam, tali and khali positions are fixed, so you can use them as landmarks. If you lose your place mid-phrase, listen or look for the wave on 9 and rebuild from there. For the other counts used in the dance, see Kathak counts.

Common mistakes with Teentaal

• Clapping on beat 9. Beat 9 is the wave. A clap there turns khali into a fourth tali and flattens the shape of the cycle.
• Losing sam. After a long phrase, land exactly on beat 1. If you arrive early or late, count again from the nearest group of four.
• Counting two 8-counts. The claps sit at 1, 5 and 13, and 9 is empty, so the cycle is not two equal halves.
• Rushing the first beat of each group. Each group opens with a clap or a wave. Give it the same weight every time.

Practise it

Start slow and speak the bols aloud. This recitation is called padhant, and it is how you check that your body and your voice agree.

1. Say the theka slowly while you clap on 1, 5 and 13 and wave on 9. Do four cycles without stopping.
2. Say only the beat numbers in groups: "1 2 3 4, 5 6 7 8, 9 10 11 12, 13 14 15 16", and keep the claps.
3. Step on every beat, then add the bols again. Nothing should drift when your feet join in.
4. Pick up the pace only when the slow version is steady. Move toward madhya, then drut.

Count Studio has Teentaal in its library as 16 matras in 4+4+4+4, with sam on 1, tali on 5 and 13, khali on 9, and vilambit, madhya and drut layas. You can see it on the world counts page. Count Studio is coming November 27 to iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch.

A short example

Try one avartan out loud. Clap on "Dha" (1), say "Dhin Dhin Dha" (2 to 4), clap again on the next "Dha" (5), then "Dhin Dhin Dha" (6 to 8). Wave on "Dha" (9), say "Tin Tin Ta" (10 to 12), clap on "Ta" (13), and finish "Dhin Dhin Dha" (14 to 16). The next beat is sam again.

Bottom line

Teentaal is 16 beats in four groups of four, with sam on 1, tali on 5 and 13, and khali on 9. Learn the bols, keep the wave honest, and the cycle will hold at any speed.