Rababi is a music tradition of the Sikh religion. They played the rebec instrument. Three types of Sikh musician - rababis, ragis, and dhadhis - flourished during the period of the Sikh gurus. The descendants remained rababis to all the 10 gurus, keeping alive the rabab tradition
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History
Guru Nanak started the rababi tradition by engaging Bhai Mardana as his accompanist. The Muslim singers formerly called mirasis, Nanak called "rababis", because they played on the rabab or rebec. The last of the line of rababis was Bhai Chand. During the 20th century CE the instrument's use in Sikh kirtan was eclipsed by the harmonium but it has been revived.
Rababis used to perform kirtan regularly at Amritsar before the partition in 1947, after which the rababis migrated to Pakistan.
Notable performers
Some notable rababis after Mardana were his son Shahjada, Balwand and Satta, Babak, son of Satta, Chatra, son of Babak, and Saddu and Baddu, Tari Khan.