Mauricio "Moris" Birabent (born 19 November 1942) is an

Argentine rock Argentine rock (known locally as ''rock nacional'' , "national rock" in the sense of "local", "not international") is rock music composed or performed by Argentina, Argentine bands or artists mostly in Spanish. Argentine rock was the earliest inc ...

musician and pioneer of Spanish-language rock

Biography

Mauricio Birabent was born in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

in 1942. He took

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

lessons at age 12 and, in subsequent years, began frequenting local piano bars and

jazz club A jazz club is a venue where the primary entertainment is the performance of live jazz music, although some jazz clubs primarily focus on the study and/or promotion of jazz-music. Jazz clubs are usually a type of nightclub or bar, which is licens ...

s. The son of an engineer, he enrolled at the Otto Krause Technical School. He maintained his musical interests, however, and, in 1965, began performing at ''La Cueva'', a

Balvanera Balvanera is a Barrios of Buenos Aires, barrio or neighborhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Origin of name and alternative names The official name, Balvanera, is the name of the ''parroquia'' (parish) centered around the church of ''Nuestra Seño ...

-neighborhood disco. Birabent relocated to seaside Villa Gesell in early 1966 and opened the Juan Sebastián Bar, where he formed '' Los Beatniks''.Grinberg, Miguel. ''Rock Superstar'': Moris. 1979. Los Beatniks obtained a

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

recording contract for their single, ''Rebelde'', within months of their formation. The release of the single coincided, however, with the overthrow of the moderate President Arturo Illia and his replacement with the repressive General Juan Carlos Onganía, who, upon learning that the album's insert contained shirtless photos of the band, had the release immediately banned, and the group soon disbanded. He continued composing and performing, and though he struggled, his single, ''Ayer nomás'' (''Only Yesterday'') was made into a local hit by Los Gatos. With his wife, Inés, and two children to look after, however, Birabent signed on as a soloist with Mandioca Records in 1969, and the following year, released ''30 minutos de vida'' (''30 Minutes in the Life''). His second album, ''Ciudad de guitarras callejeras'' (''City of Street Guitars'', 1973) was a departure from his earlier,

folk rock Folk rock is a fusion genre of rock music with heavy influences from pop, English and American folk music. It arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music re ...

style, and drew more from the

Argentine tango Argentine tango is a musical genre and accompanying social dance originating at the end of the 19th century in the suburbs of Buenos Aires. It typically has a Time signature, or rhythmic time signature, and two or three parts repeating in pat ...

. The worsening political and economic climate in Argentina led Birabent to leave for

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

in 1977. There, he recorded ''Fiebre de Vivir'' (''A Fever for Living''), whose 1979 release included his version of

Carl Perkins Carl Lee Perkins (April 9, 1932 – January 19, 1998)#nytimesobit, Pareles. was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. A rockabilly great and pioneer of rock and roll, he began his recording career at the Sun Studio, in Memphis, Tennes ...

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre, it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western musi ...

standard, ''

Blue Suede Shoes "Blue Suede Shoes" is a rock and roll standard (music), standard written and first recorded by American singer, songwriter and guitarist Carl Perkins in 1955. It is considered one of the first rockabilly records, incorporating elements of blues ...

'', and his hit single, ''Sábado a la noche'' (''Saturday Night''). Its success prompted him to return for an April 1980 concert at Buenos Aires' Obras Stadium.''Página/12'' (11/10/1995) Birabent returned to Argentina for debut concerts for each of his subsequent albums, though his popularity gradually declined. He was joined in the band by his son, Antonio Birabent, in 1989 (the younger Birabent later entered acting, and became well known for his lead role as the villain in the thriller series, '' Epitafios''). His 1995 release, ''Sur y después'' (''South, and then''), was notable for its being recorded in Buenos Aires and performed in the Cervantes Theatre with the Argentine National Symphony Orchestra.

Discography

*''30 Minutos de Vida'' (1970) *''Ciudad de Guitarras Callejeras'' (1973) *''Fiebre de Vivir (1979) *''Mundo Moderno''(1980) *''Las Obras de Moris''(1981) *''¿Dónde están las Canciones?'' (1982) *''Señor Rock, Presente'' (1985) *''Moris y Amigos ''(1987) *''Sur y Después (1995) *''Cintas Secretas'' (2005) *''Familia Canción'' (2011) - Recorded with Antonio Birabent.

References

{{Authority control Rock guitarists Argentine rock singers Spanish-language singers of Argentina 1942 births Living people 20th-century Argentine male singers Argentine male guitarists Singers from Buenos Aires Argentine expatriates in Spain Argentine people of French descent