Assi Rahbani

Assi Rahbani
Assi Rahbani and Fairuz on their wedding day
Background information
Born	(1923-05-04)May 4, 1923 Antelias, Lebanon
Died	June 21, 1986(1986-06-21) (aged 63) Beruit, Lebanon
Years active	1951–1986

Assi Rahbani (Arabic: عاصي الرحباني; May 4, 1923 - June 21, 1986) was a Lebanese composer, musician and producer. He was part of the Rahbani Brothers (Arabic: الأخوان رحباني), with his brother Mansour Rahbani (Arabic: منصور الرحباني). He married Lebanese singer Nouhad Haddad, more famous by her stage name, Fairuz. His son Ziad Rahbani also became to be known as a very successful artist in music and theatre and as an influential political activist.

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" ("Blame"). 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 Assi 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. The trio would eventually rise to become one of the most prominent groups in both the Lebanese and Middle Eastern music markets. In 1957, the trio performed for the first time at the Baalbeck International Festival.

By the 1960s, the Rahbani Brothers had become one of the most famous musical figures in the Arab World, and were sought after by many Arab singers. In addition to productions that featured Fairuz, they also wrote and directed hundreds of theatrical and TV productions. Assi Rahbani also co-starred with Fairuz in the Lebanese movies Safar Barlek (The Exile, 1967) and Bint El-Hares (The Guardian's Daughter, 1968).