Tabla Classes
Learn to play the Tabla – Tabla Classes in person and online.
I am now accepting new students in the bay area. I prefer at least a few in-person classes before we start online. Zoom or Skype makes it easy for everybody to keep a regular weekly schedule and reduces the impact on the environment because of less driving.
If you have a child that wants to get started early or if you start at a later moment in your life I will strive to help you accomplish the goal you have with playing this most beloved percussion instrument.
The foundation for the way I teach is a curriculum based on the North Indian classical styles of tabla. You will also learn to play lighter rhythms for accompanying singing, Kirtan, Bajans, or any other instrument. Tabla also has a solid place in fusion music.
To schedule a 1-hour class with Daniel click here
To schedule a 30 minutes beginners class click here
Daniel studied North Indian Tabla since 1981
His most important teachers: Sunit Kanjilal, Debu Chakraborty, Jatinder Thakur, Anindo Chatterjee
His main teacher is now Abhijit Banerjee, www.abhijitbanerjee.com
He has performed with various artists both in Europe and the US, playing north Indian classical, Bhajan, and Kirtan devotional and light classical singing. He has also participated in various world music and jazz projects. Daniel moved from Vienna, Austria to Arizona in 1992 and soon after started teaching in AZ and now moved to San Francisco, CA. During the pandemic, all classes went online. This is now the new standard and complemented with occasional in-person classes and weekend workshops as well as student concerts.
What are some of my students saying:
“Our older son has been learning Tabla from Daniel for over three years. We tried other teachers before, but there is absolutely no comparison between Daniel and others. He is very friendly with the children and at the same time works very effectively with them to ensure that they perform to their full potential. Inspired by his brother and Daniel, our younger son also started learning Tabla from Daniel in the last year. With great encouragement and support from Daniel, he also learned a lot in a short period. Daniel is a great musician and he is ever willing to pass his skills to his students. He is very accommodating of the needs of the parents and children and customizes the lesson plans accordingly We strongly recommend Daniel for anyone looking for a Tabla teacher.”- Seema and Kishore
“We have known Daniel for over 2 years. Our son started with him when he was 8 years old. He started with immense love for percussion music and since then, Daniel has nurtured his interest, inspires him, and continues to encourage with his child-friendly and disciplined learning approach. We sincerely wish Daniel the best and look forward to seeing his students’ great performances. We strongly recommend his teaching skills and musical talent to anyone interested.” – Kalyan & Geetha
“Daniel’s skill in teaching tabla is only exceeded by his skill in playing. He effectively enables the beginner to achieve a proper tone, and his exposure to various gharanas (schools, lineages) for the art of tabla allows the advancing student to explore the richness of these various styles. I have recommended Daniel’s instruction to a number of tabla aspirants.” – Adam Burke
No matter what your goals are, I will help you or your child to first develop clarity of sound, a solid sense of time, and a good understanding of rhythmic cycles. We also will spend time on how to practice to help you develop your skills quickly while enjoying it.
Daniel teaches the Dhwani Academy curriculum under the supervision of Abhijit Banerjee. Students register with the academy and will receive regular evaluations and certificates of accomplishments from senior faculty. Students also are encouraged to perform at Dhwani yearly events to apply what they learned in actual performance.
I mostly teach Skype or Zoom lessons because of the effects of the covid pandemic. Skype lessons can be a lot of fun and Daniel found a way to make them very effective and engaging.
To schedule a 1-hour class with Daniel click here
To schedule a 30 minutes beginners class click here
Here is the flyer from a recent tabla workshop with Abhijit:
For the past 9 years, I have been fortunate enough to not only learn tabla from Daniel, but also grow our friendship. Daniel is an amazing student of tabla himself and has been kind enough to pass on to me some of the knowledge he has accumulated over his 25+ years with tabla. Every Sunday I look forward to my classes with Daniel. Whether he is teaching me Djembe or Tabla, Daniel gives me his undivided attention, allowing me to flourish under his guidance. Daniel’s determination to succeed at various percussion techniques has rubbed off on me and I am looking forward to learning more and more under his tutelage!
Thank you Ved 🙂 It has been a long time and a lot of fun to see you grow up. Keep up the good work!
It started with my son attending the first class of his Daniel Sir around the middle of 2013. What struck me initially was that not only he is fantastic as a teacher, but he has tremendous knowledge and keen interest in going to the very depths of various aspects of Indian Classical music. My son really started improving. He had had some exposure as a beginner in India before, but believe me from the first day we knew this was a way better experience from day 1.
Primary reason for this improvement, was that Daniel Sir was always working on improving on the minutest of details and has an endless supply of patience regarding his students repeating mistakes. Not all students can put in 3-4 hours of practice every day and hence they will come back week after week with less than perfect practice and remembrance. You need a teacher like Daniel who would be willing to spend his energy to go over the tricks of the trade again and again, till you get it!
Interesting Note, but probably it says it all> I used to sit and watch my son taking the lessons, out of my own keen interest in this form of music. Then I myself joined his classes as well. Take that! At the age of 37, I was willing to start to play the catching game to my son (still trying to catch him!)! It was all because of Daniel and his great lessons, the sound of music just resonated. When I was growing up, classical music was omnipresent in my household. But still due to my own lethargy and inertia, I was not inspired enough. It is testimony to how inspiring Daniel’s classes can be, I just could n’t resist diving in!
Funny Anecdote: My father is an avid Indian classical enthusiast and used to be a tabla player himself in his youth. When they visited us in USA, a short while back, he was amazed and highly impressed to see a “Gora” guy imparting Indian classical lessons to both his son and grandson :). I can tell you he is extremely happy about this whole series of events. ALL credit to Daniel!
Thank you so much Siraj! I am humbled by your feedback and I promise to do my best not only in teaching you everything you know but to keep expanding my knowledge and to keep practicing!
I’ve been practicing with Daniel for almost two years. I love his enthusiasm for teaching and music. He does a great job at making each lesson unique and fun. It has been a wonderful experience gaining insight into music from someone with such a wealth of musical knowledge and talent. I’ve had a lot of fun playing with him over these two years and I look forward to many more jam sessions in the future!
Yes, it has been fun Josh! Thanks for your feedback!
I have been a student of Daniel’s for 7 years now, and in those 7 years I have learned so much about drumming. Daniels own love for music has helped me greatly develop my own. He has taught me not only tabla but also various world percussion instruments like djembe. Daniel’s classes are always fun, but also build up musical ability. Overall, Daniel has really opened my eyes to music and is a wonderful mentor and teacher.
Thanks Saaketh, I really appreciate your kind and well chosen words 🙂 I’m looking forward to many more classes and performances with you!
I met Daniel 1 year ago his teaching method is outstanding and in very beautiful manner, Iam very thankful to Daniel his teaching techniques with clear bols,helping me bring the best out of me . Shyam Chand
Thank you Shyam, it has been a lot of fun to have you as my student… I’m looking forward to continue to jam with you!
Great beginner class what I loved going and drilling a basic beat into my head and then counting to that till I could retrain myself into playing more complex beats.