Claudio Jaffe
CLAUDIO JAFFÉ, cellist
Hailed by The New York Times as “an elegant and accomplished artist” of “taste, technique,
musicianship, and a contagious youthful enthusiasm”, Claudio Jaffé fascinates his audiences
with his colorful and passionate virtuosity.
As a recitalist and chamber musician, Jaffé has performed in some of the most prestigious concert
halls around the world, including the Weill Recital Hall, Town Hall, and Merkin Concert Hall in New
York City; the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC; the Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires; Sala Cecilia
Meireles in Rio de Janeiro; Sociedade Cultura Artistica in São Paulo; Wigmore Hall in London;
Suntory Hall in Tokyo; and the National Arts Centre in Ottawa. His performance was found to be
“eloquent with pathos and tenderness” bythe New London Day, which further commented on Jaffé’s
“superb intonation, robust sound, and overall musical command”.
Jaffé made his orchestral debut at the age of 11, performing a concerto written for him by Brazilian
composer Radames Gnattali. At the age of 18, he made his first appearance as a soloist with a major
symphony orchestra. A winner of the International Villa-Lobos Cello Competition, Jaffé has performed
with international orchestras such as the Slovak Philharmonic, the Calgary Symphony, and the
Brazilian orchestras of Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Paraíba, and Goiânia. He has also performed
throughout the United States with the Delaware, Lexington, Elgin, Greenville, Augusta, Rockford,
Missouri,Olympia, Bridgeport,Pensacola, Jackson,Owensboro,Paducah, and Columbus symphony
orchestras to name just a few.
Chosen to perform in the Select Debut Series, Jaffé made his New York City debut recital at Town
Hall. He performed throughout his native country as the winner of the Young Artists of Brazil
Competition. As a prizewinner of numerous competitions, Jaffé won first place in the Villa-Lobos
International Cello Competition, the East and West Young Artists Competition that awarded him a solo
recital at Carnegie Recital Hall, and several symphony orchestra competitions where he was invited to
perform as soloist (New London, CT; Poughkeepsie, NY; Pasadena, CA).He was a semi-finalist in
major International competitions including the Tchaikovsky International Competition in Moscow,
Russia; the Gaspar Cassadó International Cello Competition in Florence, Italy; the Naumburg
Competition in New York; the Maria Canals International Competition in Barcelona, Spain; and the
Viña del Mar International Music Competition in Chile. Jaffé was also selected as Musical America’s
Young Artists of 1987.
In addition to performing in over 40 U.S. states, Jaffé has been an active educator. He has conducted
master classes around the world and has served on the faculty at several music festivals. He was a
faculty member at Florida International University and Florida Atlantic University, and for 4 years
served as Dean of the Conservatory of Music at Lynn University. He created and directs the String
program at Saint Andrew’s School in Boca Raton, FL and has been the Resident Conductor of the
Florida Youth Orchestra for over 14 years.
Born in São Paulo, Brazil, Jaffé began his cello studies at the age of seven and gave his first public
concert at the age of eleven. His early teachers included Iberê Gomes Grosso,his father Alberto
Jaffé, Antonio Guerra Vicente, and Juarez Johnson. At the age of fifteen, he received an invitation by
the distinguished Yale professor of cello Aldo Parisot to study in the United States. Subsequently,
Jaffé earned his undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees from Yale University under Parisot’s
tutelage. Jaffé studied in Masterclasses and special workshops with great masters of the cello
including Yo-Yo Ma, Lynn Harrell, Paul Tortelier, Tokyo String Quartet, Janos Starker, Nathaniel
Rosen, and Ralph Kirshbaum.
claudiojaffe@comcast.net www.claudiojaffe.com
Joanne Rile Artists Management www.rilearts.com