Tala
The repeating rhythmic cycle. Tala supplies the frame in which beats, subdivisions, phrases, and landings are located.
In Theermani: choose this first.Beginner glossary
Name the rhythm.Then see it.
Carnatic rhythm uses several ideas at once: the cycle, its inner counts, the musical entry, and the shape that must resolve. This page separates them, then reconnects them in the order Theermani uses them.
All documented concepts
Find a term.
Avartana
One complete journey through the tala cycle. The next pulse after an avartana returns to the next samam.
Think: one full lap of the cycle.Akshara / beat
The main beat unit of the tala. A beat can contain several smaller matras according to the selected subdivision.
Adi tala has 8 beats in the common form.Matra
The smallest counting unit used for placement in this app. It lets Theermani say exactly where a phrase starts, pauses, and finishes.
Example: 8 beats x 4 matras = 32 matras.Working matra grid
The numbered placement grid used by Theermani for calculation and playback. This is a product term, not an additional Carnatic music category.
It is the horizontal tala map you see on screen.Grouping
How counted units are bundled for reading, accent, or feel. Grouping is especially useful for chapu talas and custom rhythmic layouts.
Example: Misra Chapu can be felt as 3 + 2 + 2.Chapu
A family of commonly grouped tala patterns with their own characteristic feel. Theermani models a chapu preset through its grouped counts and matras per count.
Do not assume chapu grouping is the same as nadai.Jathi
The count of a laghu inside a tala family. It changes the tala structure itself; it does not describe the subdivision inside every beat.
Jathi is the user-facing spelling used in the docs.Nadai / gati
The subdivision inside each beat. Chatusra gives 4 internal counts, tisra 3, khanda 5, misra 7, and sankeerna 9.
Jathi changes laghu; nadai changes subdivision.Kalai
A stretching factor for the tala count. Increasing kalai expands how long each tala unit lasts without changing the selected tala family.
It changes the working grid length.Kaalam
The speed of the sung or played material relative to the tala. It is distinct from kalai, which stretches the tala count itself.
In Theermani: use it to interpret phrase duration.Anga
A structural limb of a tala. Laghu, dhrutha, and anudrutam are angas; their ordered combination defines the formal tala structure.
The brace labels below the tala map show angas.Kriya
A physical hand action used to keep tala. The live hand guide shows the current kriya and its progress through the working matra grid.
Kriya is the general term for the hand cue.Laghu
An anga counted with one palm beat followed by finger counts. Its length is set by jathi: commonly 3, 4, 5, 7, or 9 counts.
Adi tala begins with a chatusra-jathi laghu of 4.Dhrutha
A two-count anga: a palm beat followed by an outward or upward wave. The two actions are shown separately in the hand guide.
The cue labels these Ghata, then Visarjitha.Anudrutam
A one-count anga represented by a single palm beat. The common three-count Rupaka practice form begins with anudrutam.
One action, then the two actions of dhrutha.Ghata / Visarjitha
Ghata names the palm-beat action in the cue; Visarjitha names the open wave used for the second action of a dhrutha.
These labels describe actions, while anga describes structure.Samam
The beginning of the tala cycle. When music and tala begin together, the entry is called sama eduppu or samagraha.
The first point of every new avartana.Eduppu / graha
The starting point of a composition, phrase, or line relative to samam. It may be on, after, or before the cycle start.
In Theermani: set direction and numerical offset.Sama eduppu
An entry exactly on samam, with music and tala beginning together. The corresponding traditional term is samagraha.
Offset: 0 matras.Anagata eduppu
An entry after samam. The tala has already begun, and the music enters after a measured delay.
In the app: choose After and enter the offset.Atita eduppu
An entry before samam. The musical phrase anticipates the next cycle start and must be prepared from the preceding matras.
In the app: choose Before and enter the offset.Landing
The destination a theermanam or korvai prepares. The final occupied matra may resolve into samam, eduppu, or another deliberate re-entry.
The destination is authoritative; the app works backward from it.Phrase
A measured musical or rhythmic unit. In a basic theermanam, the same phrase is commonly placed three times.
Phrase length is measured in matras.Repetition
How many times a phrase block is used. Three is common for a simple theermanam, but a korvai block may also appear once or another number of times.
Theermani keeps repetition editable per phrase block.Karvai
A deliberate pause, hold, breath-space, or sustained gap. Karvai occupies measured time even when no new sound attacks.
Example: phrase + 2 matras of karvai + phrase.Sollukattu
Spoken rhythmic syllables used to articulate and remember a pattern. The syllables help make a measured phrase audible and pronounceable.
Theermani maps a syllable skeleton across phrase duration.Count pattern
The app's numerical reading of a phrase duration. It is a practical visual label, not a separate Carnatic category.
Use it when syllable names are less useful than counts.Theermanam
A concluding cadence that combines mathematical placement with musical closure. A simple form is phrase + phrase + phrase, with optional karvai between repetitions.
Correct arithmetic is necessary, but musical closure still matters.Muktayi
A finishing phrase or cadential ending. In many practical learning settings, muktayi and theermanam overlap.
It can form the closing section of a korvai.Mora
A threefold rhythmic cadence, often heard as phrase + gap + phrase + gap + phrase. A mora-shaped ending can function as a theermanam.
Example arithmetic: 5 + 2 + 5 + 2 + 5.Korvai
A longer, ordered rhythmic or melodic-note composition. It can contain independent phrase blocks and a final muktayi or theermanam.
Theermani models it as an editable line of measured blocks.Poorvanga
The opening part of a korvai. It may carry melodic character, flowing notes, or motif development while remaining metrically measured.
Think: the opening thought.Uttaranga
The later part of a korvai, where patterning often becomes clearer. It can expand, contract, repeat, or prepare the final cadence.
Think: the structured answer and preparation.Yati
A numerical or rhythmic shape. Gopuccha tapers, srotovaha expands, damaru is wide-narrow-wide, and mridanga is narrow-wide-narrow.
Examples: 7+5+3, 3+5+7, 7+3+7, 3+7+3.No term matches that search. Try a broader word such as beat, entry, or phrase.