Many Egyptians associate the tabla drum with belly dancers and seedy nightclubs but, despite its image problem, percussionists are giving the ancient instrument a new lease of life. And it is often ...

If people insist on categorizing Tabla Beat Science as world music, you have to ask, "What world are they talking about?" The Bill Laswell organized co-op is in the business of exploring the music of ...

World-famous tabla player Zakir Hussain was a child prodigy. His father, Alla Rakha, started teaching him to play the small, membranous hand drums when he was just three years old. Hussain was a ...

At dusk, the narrow lanes of Dal Mandi in downtown Varanasi spring to life. Rows of shops in the northern Indian city offer colourful wares, from the famous Banarasi silk saris, costume jewellery and ...

And it is often women who are now playing the goblet-shaped traditional drum, an early version of which has been found in the ancient temple of the Goddess Hathor in Qena, southern Egypt. The beat of ...

Tabla drum instructor Mostafa Bakkar gives a lesson at his studio in Egypt’s capital Cairo. Many Egyptians associate the tabla drum with belly dancers and seedy nightclubs Many Egyptians associate the ...