Glossary · glossary · 1 min read
Vilambit
विलंबित; slow tempo
Vilambit means slow tempo in Hindustani music, relative to madhya (medium) and drut (fast), rather than a fixed number of beats per minute. You will hear it in the opening bada khayal (vocal piece) of a concert, before the same raga (melodic framework) is taken up faster.
By John, Music lover from Bangalore · Reviewed by BRR · Last reviewed 29 Sept 2026
Vilambit
Vilambit means slow tempo in Hindustani music. It is the first of three named speeds. The other two are madhya, meaning medium, and drut, meaning fast. These names describe relative speeds, not fixed numbers of beats per minute.
At a vilambit pace, one cycle of teentaal, a repeating rhythmic pattern of 16 beats, can last a minute. That leaves space between beats for the singer to unfold the melody. The slow pace gives those spaces a place in your listening.
Where you will hear it
Listen for vilambit, the slow tempo in Hindustani music, in a concert's opening bada khayal (vocal piece). The singer unfolds the raga, the melodic framework, at this pace. The same raga is then taken up in drut, meaning fast tempo.
Teentaal, a repeating rhythmic cycle of 16 beats, offers a way to follow that opening. In a vilambit khayal, one cycle can last a minute. Those 16 beats give you a rhythmic frame for hearing the singer's phrases.
Keep going
- Taal for beginners: teentaal, keherwa and dadra with clap patterns · A taal is a repeating rhythmic cycle: count 16 beats for teentaal, eight for keherwa, and six for dadra. For teentaal, clap on 1, 5 and 13, wave on 9; for keherwa, clap on 1, wave on 5; for dadra, clap on 1, wave on 4.