Elias Hanna Al Rahbani (Arabic: إلياس حنا الرحباني; 26 June 1938 – 4 January 2021) was a Lebanese musician, composer, songwriter, orchestra conductor, and reality television personality, sitting as judge on a number of talent shows.
In 1957, at the age of nineteen, Rahbani wanted to continue his musical studies in Moscow but injured his right hand, which meant the end of his dreams of becoming a major piano player.
In 1962, he wrote "Ma Ahlaha" (ما أحلاها) for Lebanese singer Nasri Shamseddine and became a program director and musical consultant for Radio Lebanon, where he also met his future wife, Nina Khalil.
Other Rahbani compositions have been sung by Wadih Safi, Melhem Barakat, Nasri Shamseddine, Majida El Roumi,[1] and contemporary singers including Julia Boutros, Pascale Sakr, and Haifa Wehbe.
[4] Rahbani has taken part in a number of televised talent shows in Lebanon and the Arab world, including being a judge on the singing competition SuperStar.
[6] He died on 4 January 2021, at the Rafik Hariri University Hospital,[7] from complications due to COVID-19 during the coronavirus pandemic in Lebanon.