UPHESC Assistant Professor Music Tabla 2025 PYQs

Concept: Authors and their texts.

1. Maharana Kumbha – Sangeet Raj (ii).
2. Nanyadeva – Bharata Bhashya (iv).
3. Srikantha – Rasa Kaumudi (i).
4. Srinivasa – Raga Tattva Vibodha (iii).

Short trick: Kumbha-Raj, Nanya-Bhashya, Srikantha-Kaumudi, Srinivas-Vibodh.

Concept: 'The Art of Tabla Rhythm: Essentials, Tradition and Creativity' is by Sudhir Kumar Saxena.

1. Sudhir Mainkar wrote 'Tabla Vadan Kala aur Shastra' (Marathi/Hindi).
2. The other two names are distractors.

Short trick: Art of (Tabla) Rhythm – Saxena.

Concept: In the pushkara (avanaddha) chapter Bharat lists the properties of drums, many of them in sets of three.

1. Tri-terms: tripushkara, trimarjana, triyati, trilaya, trigata (trigati), triprachara, trisamyoga, tripani.
2. That makes 8 terms beginning with 'tri'.

Short trick: Count the 'three-fold' qualities: 8.

Concept: Narada's Sangeet Makarand has two adhyayas (Sangeet and Nritya), each in four padas.

1. The first pada of the Nritya-adhyaya deals with tala; it is here that the ten pranas of tala are first enumerated.
2. Later padas deal with dance, gestures etc.

Short trick: Ten pranas first appear in Sangeet Makarand – Nritya-adhyaya, pada 1.

Concept: Kaku is the change of voice/intonation that conveys meaning and rasa.

1. Bharat gives six angas (alankaras) of kaku: uchcha, deepta, mandra, neecha, druta, vilambita.
2. These are combined with the 7 swaras, 3 sthanas etc. for expressive speech.

Short trick: Kaku angas = 6 (3 pitch pairs: high/bright, low/deep, fast/slow).

Concept: The earliest Indian vocabulary of beauty is found in the Rigveda.

1. Words like 'shri', 'charu', 'peshas', 'bhadra' describe beauty and the beautiful in Rigvedic hymns.
2. Hence the Rigveda is regarded as the first source of Indian aesthetic terms.

Short trick: Oldest text → oldest beauty words: Rigveda.

Concept: Alexander Gottlieb Baumgarten published 'Aesthetica' (1750).

1. He coined 'aesthetics' (from Greek aisthesis, sense perception) for the science of beauty and art.
2. Philosophy, psychology and musicology were not named by him.

Short trick: Baumgarten 1750 = Aesthetica.

Concept: Totak = four sagana (॥ऽ) – 12 syllables per line.

1. Each sagana = 1 + 1 + 2 = 4 matras.
2. Groups of 4 matras give a chatasra (four-fold) rhythmic jati.

Short trick: Totak: ‘la-la-GAA’ ×4 – every unit 4 matras → chatasra.

Concept: Bharat names four primary (mool) rasas, from which the other four arise.

1. Primary: Shringar, Raudra, Veer, Bibhatsa.
2. Derived: Hasya (from Shringar), Karun (from Raudra), Adbhut (from Veer), Bhayanak (from Bibhatsa).

Short trick: Karun is born of Raudra – not a primary rasa.

Concept: Bharat assigns a colour to each rasa.

1. Shringar – shyam (dark), Hasya – white, Karun – grey, Raudra – red.
2. Veer – gaur (fair), Bhayanak – black, Bibhatsa – blue, Adbhut – yellow (peet).

Short trick: Adbhut (wonder) = golden-yellow.

Concept: Each rasa has a presiding deity in the Natyashastra.

1. Shringar – Vishnu; Hasya – Pramatha; Raudra – Rudra; Karun – Yama.
2. Veer – Mahendra; Bhayanak – Kala; Bibhatsa – Mahakala; Adbhut – Brahma.

Short trick: Love = Vishnu; laughter = Pramatha; wonder = Brahma.

Concept: Bharat originally listed eight rasas; Shanta was accepted later as the ninth.

1. Mammata (Kavyaprakasha) writes: 'निर्वेदस्थायिभावोऽस्ति शान्तोऽपि नवमो रसः'.
2. Bhavabhuti is known for 'eko rasah karuna eva'.

Short trick: Mammat – ninth rasa Shanta; Bhavabhuti – only Karuna.

Concept: Ut. Shafaat Ahmed Khan (1954–2005), son and disciple of Ut. Chhamma Khan, was a leading Delhi-gharana soloist.

1. He received the Padma Shri in 2003.
2. Akram Khan belongs to Ajrada; the others did not receive the Padma Shri.

Short trick: Shafaat Ahmed Khan – Delhi – Padma Shri 2003.

Concept: Khaprumama Parvatkar (1879–1953) of Goa was a legendary laya expert, titled 'Laya Bhaskar'.

1. His real name was Laxman (Rao) Parvatkar; 'Khaprumama' was a nickname.
2. Pandharinath Nageshkar and Suresh Gaitonde were later tabla players (Gaitonde was trained in this laya tradition).

Short trick: Laya Bhaskar = Laxman Parvatkar.

Concept: Panchavadyam ('five instruments') is a temple orchestra of Kerala.

1. Instruments: timila, maddalam, ilathalam, idakka, kombu (plus shankh).
2. Famous at Thrissur Pooram.

Short trick: Thrissur Pooram → Panchavadyam → Kerala.

Concept: Sunadi (sanadi) is the double-reed wind instrument of Karnataka, similar to the shehnai/nadaswaram.

1. It is blown, so it is a sushir (air) instrument.
2. Ghana = solid, avanaddh = membrane, tat = string.

Short trick: Sunadi/Sanadi ≈ shehnai → sushir.

Concept: 'Going Solo' is a tabla-solo audio CD of Pt. Sharda Sahai of the Banaras gharana.

1. Sharda Sahai performed and taught widely abroad (UK, Canada, USA), and several of his solo recordings were issued there.
2. Anokhe Lal, Kishan Maharaj and Allarakha are not associated with this title.

Short trick: Sharda Sahai – 'Going Solo'.

Concept: Birth years.

1. Ut. Natthu Khan (Delhi) – 1875.
2. Pt. Kanthe Maharaj – 1880.
3. Ut. Ahmed Jan Thirakwa – 1892.
4. Ut. Habibuddin Khan (Ajrada) – 1899.

Short trick: 1875-1880-1892-1899 → b a c d.

Concept: Match each instrument with its exponent.

1. Rudra veena – Ut. Asad Ali Khan (iii).
2. Santoor – Pt. Bhajan Sopori (i).
3. Flute – Pt. Raghunath Seth (ii).
4. Nakkara – Ut. Dilawar Khan (iv).

Short trick: Asad-veena, Sopori-santoor.

Concept: Ghumat is Goa's earthen-pot drum with lizard/monitor skin on one end.

1. It is played in Ganesh festival songs and 'suvari' ensembles; recognised as Goa's heritage instrument.
2. Hudukka – Uttarakhand/Kerala; Naal – Maharashtra; Kasale – Maharashtra cymbals.

Short trick: Goa's pot drum = Ghumat.