Hari Pal of Maple Ridge, BC, Canada, plays tabla in traditional North Indian style as well as his own contemporary style. He has developed an unconventional style of tabla solo, where he employs 7 tablas to amalgamate Eastern classical rhythms with melody and popular rhythms. His 6 tablas are tuned to a pentatonic scale and when played with a bass tabla (bayan), he creates an expression of rhythm in melody. Two examples are shown in sound clips.

He studied various North Indian styles of tabla at Marris College,  Lucknow, and Arrah Music Academy where he earned Visharad.

As a young tabla player he earned several prizes in open competitions and was later accepted as an artist at Lucknow Radio Station, India, where he played tabla for six years with professional musicians of Lucknow  in unrehearsed live radio broadcasts.

Parallel to his academic pursuits in industrial biotechnology, he has maintained routine tabla practice (riaz) in his many places of residence around the world.

Before coming to Canada in 1985, he has lived in UK, The Netherlands, USA and Kuwait, where he played and recorded his tabla performances in radio, television and public programs with several distinguished international composers and musicians such as Ton de Leeuw (Piano), Ustad Imrat Khan (sitar), Ustad Shahid Parvez (Sitar), Pandit V.G. Jog (Violin), Ustad Irshad Khan (Sitar) and Han Bennink (drum kit/percussion).

His exposure to the music of different continents has had a deep influence on his creative rhythmic impulses. Parallel to his proficiency in North Indian style of tabla, he also plays Dumbek and Djembe. He has conducted several percussion concerts in Canada and USA to emphasize inter-cultural fusion of rhythms with African, Latin American, Middle Eastern and North American drummers.

on March 15, Pal will be part of the Rhythms of the World concert at the Surrey Arts Centre on 13750 - 88 Avenue, 1 block east of King George Hwy. Join the fusion of world rhythm, music and dance! Drummers Pal, Fana Soro and Joseph Pepe Danza bring the rhythms of India, Africa and South America to the mix. Ta-Ki-Ta musicians Karen Graves, Jared Burrows and Hari fuse Indian rhythms with the melodies and harmonies of jazz. Rising young star of semi-classical Indian music Reecha Tripathi sings her unique North Indian compositions. The show also features folk and South Indian classical dances performed by Mayuri Kulkarni, Trisha Patidar and Risha Patidar, with a finale by African Dancing Queen Jacky  Essombe.