| Rabiz | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins | |
| Cultural origins | Late 1960s,Soviet Armenia,Soviet Azerbaijan |
| Typical instruments | Duduk,Caucasian dhol,Clarinet,Synthesizer,Zurna,Kamancheh (rare) |
| Subgenres | |
| Pop rabiz | |
| Other topics | |
Rabiz orrabis (Armenian:ռաբիզ orArmenian:ռաբիս) is a genre of Armenianpopular music, distinguished by its lyrics and dance-oriented synthesized melodies in6
8 time signature with elements of Armenianfolk music. Rabiz first emerged inYerevan in the 1970-80s and was often associated with Armenian migrants fromBaku,Ganja,Tbilisi and rural regions of Armenia.[1][2] Rabiz singers are with few exceptions male. More recently, rabiz songs have been augmented with heavier arrangements andelectronic dance music elements in their instrumentation.
Though the singers and their audience primarily refer to rabiz as a music genre, the term is also used broadly to refer to a certain type ofsubculture with its particular fashion,Russian-derivedslang, and lifestyle. The genre has received criticism from various music critics due to its perceived similarities to Middle Eastern music.[2] Prominent performers of the genre includeAram Asatryan,Tatul Avoyan (known by the mononym Tatul), and Hayk Ghevondyan (known asSpitakci Hayko or more commonly by the mononym Hayko).
The musical language of the rabiz, being a blend of several musical traditions (primarily Armenian national music, calledashug. [Bardic-style] and Eastern in the style of the makam [classical court music]), it is marked by delicate Eastern harmony and an abundance of melisinas, which allow the musician to achieve the desired effect by purely musical means.[3]
Some performances of rabiz music are characterized bycode-switching in which rabiz performers such as Mingichauri Samo (Samvel Avanesyan) and Spitakci Hayko (Hayk Ghevondyan) – reminiscent of similarly multilingual pieces byashughs such asSayat-Nova – improvise simultaneously in different languages such asArmenian,Kurdish orRussian.
Outside of Armenia, rabiz also enjoys popularity in theArmenian diaspora, particularly inRussia andLos Angeles,California. Many of the performers of the genre are now greatly popular with Armenian diaspora listeners as well.
Despite the term's widespread use, the etymology or definition of the word "rabiz" is not clearly understood. According to some sources it stems from the Russian phrase "работникиискусства" (rabotnikiiskusstva) used duringSoviet times, meaning "Art Workers", in reference to unions which specialized in new music composition.[4] Others believe that the word has Arabic roots, since the wordrab (Arabic:رَبّ) means creator or god, while the Arabic nameaziz (Arabic:رَبّ;Armenian:ազիզ), which is used by many Armenians as meaning "darling" could perhaps be considered another root, thus referring to the genre performers as dear creators.[5]
Kef, a subgenre of rabiz music, unrelated to the homonymousArmenian-American kef music, concerns romantic love and partying, but also love of family or patriotism, similarly toRussian chanson orblatnyak.[4][2]
In 2016, rabiz music achieved international commercial success with the viral hit single "Mi Gna" released byArmenian AmericanrapperSuper Sako, on his albumLove Crimes. Although an earlier version of the song in Armenian was composed by Artak Aramyan, theremixed version of the song with additional English lyrics by Super Sako propelled it to success. The song features vocals by Hayk Ghevondyan. "Mi Gna" hit #1 onShazam Top 100 list, with itsYouTube video upload has garnered over 190 million views.[6][7] The song has been remixed numerous times since, as well as released in different language versions, including Albanian, Arabic, Bulgarian, Dutch, French, German, Hebrew, Kurdish (Sorani), Romanian, Russian, Serbian, and Turkish. A trilingual Armenian/English/French version, remixed by French-Congolese rapperMaître Gims, achieved success inFrance and the Francophone world.