It was never enough for Chaz just to learn Tabla: he wanted to learn a style that was underrepresented within the United States.  In India there are six primary styles of Tabla, called gharanas, each named after the city or state where they originated.  These gharanas are: Delhi; Ajrara; Farrukhabad; Lucknow; Benares; and Punjab.  Chaz is part of a very small minority of musicians outside of India who have chosen to focus on Delhi/Ajrara Tabla.  The Delhi gharana was the first Tabla gharana, and provided the basis for all the other modern styles of tabla, while Ajrara is a closely related gharana from the town of - you guessed it - Ajrara.  These two gharanas can be distinguished by their focus on compositions known as kaidas.  A kaida is a simple composition with two rhyming halves that serves as the foundation for extensive improvisation on tabla.  While kaidas are played throughout all the tabla gharanas, Delhi and Ajrara are best known for their expert development, and extensive repertoire, of kaidas.  

Kaidas are unique to tabla.  Some tabla players go so far as to say that kaida is tabla, insomuch as without kaidas, there is little to distinguish tabla repertoire from that of other drums in India.  Kaidas are in some way analagous to raga in Indian music because just like raga, there are certain rules to how a kaida should be developed.  It is a wonderful challenge to take a kaida and attempt to improvise variations on the spot within the established rules and boundaries.  It is a challenge that Chaz has been enjoying for many years, and it requires true mastery of the tabla language as well as an ability to think fast and problem-solve.  

Chaz has sought out those masters in India who could teach him about the subtle art of Kaida development.  The first such master was Pandit Vishal Nagar, a brilliant tabla player from Delhi.  Vishal ji first trained under the great Ustad Latif Ahmed Khan and later learned under Ustad Shamim Khan, both masters of the Delhi gharana.  Vishal inducted Chaz into the world of Delhi and Ajrara tabla, and over the course of years taught Chaz many rare and uncommon Delhi compositions.  But more importantly, he greatly encouraged Chaz’s love for improvisation and creative thinking.  Chaz traveled to India to study with Vishal ji in 2006 and again in 2008.

In 2011, Chaz traveled to Mumbai to pursue additional training with the venerable master of Tabla Pandit Sudhir Mainkar.  Among the great musicians in India, Pandit Sudhir Mainkar is greatly respected for his extensive knowledge of music in general and his uncompromising standards when it comes to the teaching and performing of tabla.  Sudhir ji was a shagird disciple of Ustad Inam Ali Khan, the khalifa of the Delhi gharana, and in addition he studied under Pandit Sudhir Kumar Saxena of the Ajrara gharana.  As such, Panditji is the keeper of a perhaps unparalleled knowledge of Delhi and Ajrara gharana repertoire.  According to Chaz, going to him is like going to the fountainhead of knowledge.  Pandit ji has authored several books on music, including The Aesthetics of Tabla (in English and Hindi) and Sangeet, Kala aani Shikshan (in Marathi).

Chaz has many other musicians and mentors to thank for his musical development, not limited to: Rik Masterson, who inducted Chaz into tabla with his first lessons in Portland; Doug Scheuerell, Chaz’s first guru of three years at the University of Oregon who provided Chaz with his musical foundation; Arijit Mahalanabis, with whom Chaz lived for a year studying and practicing the art of vocal accompaniment; Pandit Samir Chatterjee, who has provided Chaz with guidance, repertoire, and words of encouragement since they first met in 2004; and Pandit Yogesh Samsi, whose creativity, technical wizardry and brilliance is a constant source of inspiration.  Since 2014 Chaz has also been invited to attend annual workshops of Ustad Zakir Hussain, and he is very grateful for the inspiration and encouragement he draws from Tabla's living legend.