Solkattu Lesson - Mora Series 1 (Ken Shorley)

The first in a series of four solkattu lessons focusing on the Mora, presented by Canadian percussionist, Ken Shorley (with deep gratitude and love to Ken's guru of Carnatic rhythm and drumming, Vidwan Professor Trichy Sankaran). Enjoy!
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#solkattulesson #konakol #percussion #kenshorley #carnaticrhythm

[@RonanSkillen8]

The Solkattu Method is endless fun. Thanks for sharing your version. Very inspiring !

[@kenshorley]

Thanks for watching!

[@juliemarguerittetaquin]

Thank you for this!!!!

[@kenshorley]

Thanks for watching!

[@MaxSenitt]

YES! I'll take more-ah of these please! So great to see how you explain this beautiful repertoire. Thank-you!

[@kenshorley]

Thanks for watching, Max!

[@raghav1976007]

Nice explanation Sir. Salutations to our master

[@kenshorley]

Thank you sir!

[@Ricardomartinez-vi2tx]

thanks

[@kenshorley]

Thanks for watching!

[@nicumobilgps6876]

Nice to discover .

[@lo.onlylove]

🙏🏼

[@danmusiceasy]

Nice, but I'm still a bit in the dark regarding how Solkatu is used in the context of drumming. I'm curious, in the first example, if the rhythm has 16 beats, why would one choose this TA DIN GI NA TOM phrase, and not a prase that has fours syllables, so it divides exactly? I assume it depends on what you want to do, but not sure what the possibilities would be.
And I wonder, is the phrase KITA TAKA TARI KITA different from TAKA TARI KITA TAKA in terms of how you would play it?

[@kenshorley]

Hi Dan. Solkattu in its original context is connected directly with the drumming tradition of Carnatic (South Indian classical) music. Every phrase has a corresponding pattern on the mrdangam. So to answer your question, yes 'kita taka tari kita tom' is different than 'taka tari kita taka tom' when played on mrdangam. These solkattu lessons I'm presenting are infused with the aesthetics of Carnatic rhythm - directing the rhythmic energy towards 'sam' (the first beat of the Tala) for instance. Or creating layers of rhythmic tension and release by using phrases which don't line up with every beat (like the 5-pulse ta din gi na tom). Every use of solkattu outside of the Carnatic tradition is adaptation, although most musicians who incorporate solkattu into their practice (like me) do so because they have studied Carnatic music. Hope this makes sense!

[@danmihaescu4687]

@@kenshorley Thanks! I hope I get to understand it better one day :)

[@McPlays123]

Whats the difference between a mora and a tihai? Love the videos!

[@kenshorley]

Thanks for watching! The Mora and the Tihai are conceptually very similar. Tihai is the term which is used in Hindustani (North Indian classical) music, for these types of thrice-repeating rhythmic cadences played on tabla. Mora is the term which is used in Carnatic (South Indian classical) music, when these are played on mrdangam, kanjira or ghatam.

[@McPlays123]

@@kenshorley Oh awesome! Thanks for the quick response.