Pandit Mahapurush Mishra

When I was a teenager, I received a 46-minute tabla solo cassette performed by Pandit Mahapurush Mishra (accompanied by Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, which was one of the greatest masters of sarod). All his tabla solo pieces looked amazing to me, but the roopam taal in 8 1/2 matras (yes, eight and a half beats!) was another level of experience in rhythm excellence for me. The main rhythm cycle (theka) of roopam is:

Dhin na | dhin dhin na | tin na | dhi dhi na/2 |

This taal is also known as Upatal Jhampak. - Peyman Nasehpour

A Short Biography of Pandit Mahapurush Mishra

Pandit Mahapurush Mishra (1932-1987) was a disciple of Pandit Anokhelal Mishra, a revered master of tabla. Mahapurush was a famous tabla accompanist to many topmost musicians and a professor at the Ali Akbar College of Music in Kolkata, India. He spent most of his time during the late 1960s in the USA teaching, recording, and appearing widely in numerous classical music concerts. There are far too few of his tabla solos in circulation.

Longtime tabla master, sideman to the stars, and Ustad Ali Akbar Khan's main accompanist throughout the better part of three decades until his death, Pandit Mahapurush Mishra has also appeared on the Beatles b-side of Lady Madonna, George Harrison's The Inner Light (recorded in Bombay in January 1968 with the vocal tracks added in London the next month) as well as on Harrison's Wonderwall soundtrack.

See a list of tabla masters