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Mansour Rahbani

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Mansour Rahbani was a Lebanese composer, poet and producer, born in 1925. With his brother Assi he formed the Rahbani Brothers. From 1945 the two worked for Lebanese radio. There they introduced a new kind of song into a world dominated by the traditional Arabic music of the early twentieth century. Later they moved to Near East Radio, where they made a great deal of work, including the sketch series Sabeh and Makhoul.

Music and breakthrough

In 1955 Assi married Nouhad Haddad, better known as the singer Fairuz. With that the group became a trio. The brothers wrote songs and poems, which Fairuz sang with great craftsmanship. They also created a musical theatre of their own, which differs from international opera. In those productions the subject is dignity, truth and great questions about God, man and the country. For film they wrote the music of three films: Biyaa el Khawatem, Safar Barlek and Bent el Hares. Mansour wrote four volumes of poetry. Later came albums such as Saif 840 from 1988, Messe Solennelle from 1995 and The Last Days of Socrates from 2000, the music for a play.

Influence

The Rahbani Brothers brought pop songs and theatre together in Arabic, and with Fairuz as the voice their work became known throughout the Arab world. Mansour died in Beirut in 2009.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to a song by Fairuz that the Rahbani Brothers wrote and notice how her clear voice and the orchestra shape an Arabic melody with an almost cinematic arrangement.

Discography

Studio albums

Categories: Artists