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(As escritas de José Domingos Raffaelli)


A life-long resident of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, José was born October 15, 1928 and his writings about Jazz have been read, enjoyed, and appreciated throughout the world.



Born:  October 15, 1928


Died:  April 26, 2014

Mauro Ferreira said "His knowledge was great, but his heart was even bigger."

Introduction

Who is José Domingos Raffaelli and why was he important to me? That's a very easy question for me to answer. He was a jazz writer and journalist as well as a super jazz enthusiast with a world-wide reputation that few others have known. He once told me that he "lives, thinks, and dreams" about jazz. He wrote articles for several jazz magazines around the world and spent most of his recent life working for newspapers and other publications. He worked years at the "O Globo" newspaper in Rio de Janeiro, where I first met him through the internet in April 2000.  He then worked writing for "O Tempo" newspaper, from Belo Horizonte, in the beautiful Minas Gerais State, and for "International Magazine", a monthly magazine from Rio.  Jose was active on the internet as well with his writing and participates in internet jazz forums, too. He's also written the liner notes for hundreds of jazz albums over the years and he covers the Chivas Jazz Festival in Brazil.   His credits also include teaching a class on jazz history and doing conferences about jazz in a local jazz club.  He never hesitated to impart any of his vast jazz knowledge to those willing to listen and learn.

I have tried to gather as much material JDR has written that I could find from various sources--including some of his weekly newspaper columns, some of his comments and posts in online jazz forums, some impressions of him from others who have known him over the years, some of his liner notes, and even from many of his daily emails to me. With his decades of writing and his personal contacts with so many musicians; his knowledge about music in general and jazz in particular, I felt his writings needed to be documented in some way. This man simply had so much to share and pass on to others. I hope that this site will enable others to continue to benefit from his years of experience and knowledge. I know that for the rest of my own life, I will not let him be forgotten. I sincerely hope that you enjoy this tribute to one of the finest people I have had the privilege of knowing in my entire life, José Domingos Raffaelli.

Addendum:

Sadly, I had to learn of José's passing by doing an online Google search, after not receiving a reply to an email I had sent José that was now many months old.  It is very disconcerting to find out that someone you cared about is no longer with us and that worse yet, that I had to find out in this way.  I wish that someone had let me know personally about this.  I will be forever grateful to José for sharing his immense wealth of jazz knowledge - and also grateful for his charm, graciousness, and gratitude to me for putting this site online.  You are missed, dear friend.

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--B.J. Major
Introduction amended on 06/26/14.

 

Index to Site

 WRITINGS: Books written by José Domingos Raffaelli--HERE
  Posts in Internet Jazz Forums Written by José Domingos Raffaelli (English)--HERE
 Newspaper Articles/Columns/Features Written by José Domingos Raffaelli
(Portuguese and English)--
HERE
 Article written to commemorate DownBeat's 70th Anniversary--HERE 
Articles written at THE CHIVAS JAZZ FESTIVAL, 2003 (Portuguese)--HERE
 Jazz CD Reviews--HERE
  Some Liner Notes Written by José Domingos Raffaelli--HERE
 J.D.R. Mentioned in Books--HERE
 J.D.R.'s Short Stories on Music and Music Personalities--HERE
 INTERVIEWS: Other perspectives on J.D.R.--begin HERE
Or go directly to a specific interview:
Louis-Victor Mialy interview, Joe Carter interview, Chico Curzio interview,
Alvaro Neder interview, Arnaldo DeSouteiro interview
 How B.J. met J.D.R.--HERE
 Daily Emails about Music and Jazz--HERE
Another Lost Album is Found--HERE
 

**  This site on José originally created in June 2000  **


Original site layout Copyright © 2000-2024, B.J. Major. Interview transcriptions have not been edited for content. Original emails included on this site have all been retained with full headers and some have been edited for the purpose of inclusion on this site. Pictured album cover photos and record label images are copyright of their respective record labels and are used here only for information and illustration purposes. Black and white photos which appear on the site were generously provided for use by Louis-Victor Mialy. José Domingos Raffaelli has contributed information and material for "The Writings of José Domingos Raffaelli" directly to this Webmaster. This is a private site and is not owned in part or whole by any company or corporation.

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