Assi Rahbani (; May 4, 1923 – June 21, 1986) was a Lebanese

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

musician A musician is someone who Composer, composes, Conducting, conducts, or Performing arts#Performers, performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general Terminology, term used to designate a person who fol ...

, and producer. He was part of the Rahbani Brothers (), with his brother Mansour Rahbani. He married Lebanese singer Nouhad Haddad, more famous by her stage name, Fairuz. Their son

Ziad Rahbani Ziad Rahbani (, born 1956) is a Lebanese composer, pianist, playwright, and political commentator. He is the son of Fairouz, one of Lebanon and the Arab world's most famous singers, and Assi Rahbani, one of the founders of modern Arabic music ...

is also an artist in music, theatre, and a political activist.

Career

The early years

Assi Rahbani's musical career began when he obtained a job at the Near East Radio channel (إذاعة الشرق الأدنى). In 1951, Nouhad Haddad (later known as Fairuz), one of the singers in the radio station's chorus, came to the attention of Halim El Roumi, the musical director. Assi composed her very first song, "Itab" ("Reproach"). El Roumi attended the recording session and asked Assi to compose additional songs for her. The trio released about 50 songs for the station. In 1956, during the

Suez Crisis The Suez Crisis, also known as the Second Arab–Israeli War, the Tripartite Aggression in the Arab world and the Sinai War in Israel, was a British–French–Israeli invasion of Egypt in 1956. Israel invaded on 29 October, having done so w ...

, the Rahbani brothers, along with Fairuz, left the Near East Radio Station due to its alleged bias and anti-Arab propaganda in its coverage of the Crisis. The Rahbani Brothers and Fairuz became an independent musical group. Both of the Rahbani Brothers composed and both of them wrote lyrics as they always clarified in interviews and as attested by their family members as well as by artists who collaborated and worked with them. In 1957, the trio performed for the first time at the Baalbeck International Festival.

Lebanese Civil War

After the

Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War ( ) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon. The religious diversity of the ...

erupted, the Rahbanis continued to use political satire and sharp criticism in their plays. In 1977, their musical ''Petra'' was shown in both the Muslim western and

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

eastern portions of

Beirut Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...

. In 1978, the trio toured

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and the

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Personal life and health

Aside from Rahbani's professional relationship with Fairuz, the two were also a couple. In 1953, Rahbani proposed to Fairuz and the couple married a year later. On September 22, 1972, Rahbani suffered a brain hemorrhage and was hospitalized at Rizk Hospital in Beirut, Lebanon. After three surgeries, the hemorrhage was halted. By the late 1970s, Rahbani's mental health began to deteriorate. Fairuz and the Rahbani Brothers agreed to end their professional and personal relationship in 1979, which also included Fairuz separating from Assi Rahbani.

References

External links

FairuzFan - The Web Site of Every Fairuz Fan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rahbani, Assi 1923 births 1986 deaths Lebanese composers Lebanese musicians Lebanese songwriters Greek Orthodox Christians from Lebanon