Le mètre et le tâl dans la musique de l'Inde du Nord (Metre and tal in North Indian music)

This paper discusses the relationship between the concept of tal in North Indian (Hindustani) music, and that of metre in Western music and in ethnomusicology, drawing together strands of research from several different branches of music studies. What do we mean by metre, what is tal, and to what extent do the two concepts overlap? Can studies in musicology, ethnomusicology and music psychology provide insights into Indian music, and can the study of tal contribute to an understanding of metre as a widespread musical phenomenon? Besides discussing some of the theoretical issues generated by such questions, this paper also provides some concrete illustrations of the benefits of interdisciplinarity and methodical comparison.