Don Jaffe (or Jaffé) (; born 24 January 1933) is a German-Israeli-Latvian musician and composer.

Biography

Family

Jaffe was born in 1933 in

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

, Latvia, to Ella Jaffe who had attended a German business school in Riga, and Jakov Jaffe, who had studied electrical engineering in Berlin. After his studies, Jakov Jaffe returned to Riga. In 1941, when the German Wehrmacht conquered Latvia, the Jaffe family – Jakov, Ella, Don, and his two siblings – had to flee to

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the Jaffes decided to return to Riga. All their relatives who couldn't escape to the Soviet Union were murdered. In 1956, Don Jaffe married Elza Jaffe, born Peterson. They have two children: Ramon (born 1962, a cellist) and Diana (born 1969), a book author and expert in

gender Gender is the range of social, psychological, cultural, and behavioral aspects of being a man (or boy), woman (or girl), or third gender. Although gender often corresponds to sex, a transgender person may identify with a gender other tha ...

marketing). Since 1975, Don Jaffe has lived in Bremen.

Career

At the age of fourteen, Jaffe started to learn Cello at the

Emīls Dārziņš Music School Emīls is a Latvian masculine given name and may refer to: *Emīls Dārziņš (1875–1910), Latvian composer, conductor and music critic *Emīls Ģēģeris (born 1999), Latvian ice hockey player *Emīls Liepiņš (born 1992), Latvian cyclist * ...

, the junior music conservatory in Riga. In 1951, he was the first string player to graduate from this music school. Jaffe finished his studies there in only four years instead of the regular ten. From 1951 to 1956 he studied Cello at the

Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music (), formerly the Riga Conservatory, is a higher music conservatory in Riga, Latvia. The junior institute is the Emīls Dārziņš Music School. History The Latvian Conservatory of Music was founded in ...

in Riga. After graduation, Jaffe worked as a soloist and chamber musician and gained international success. Jaffe also taught chamber music at the Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music and cello the Emīls Dārziņš Music School. Pushed by growing

antisemitism Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...

in the Soviet Union, Don Jaffe and his family emigrated to

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

in 1971. Jaffe immediately received a position at the

Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra The Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra (Hebrew: התזמורת הסימפונית ירושלים, ''ha-Tizmoret ha-Simfonit Yerushalayim'') is a major orchestra of Israel. Since the 1980s, the JSO has been based in the Henry Crown Symphony Hall, part o ...

and started teaching cello at the

Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance The Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance (), is a school for the music and the performing arts in Jerusalem. It is located on the Givat Ram campus of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. History The Jerusalem Conservatory of Music was founded in ...

(then Rubin Academy of Music). In the Yom-Kippur-War, Jaffe volunteered for the Israeli Defence Forces. In 1974, the Jaffes moved to Germany, where, as Don Jaffe put it, „their cultural roots lie“. Jaffe started to work as a solo cellist at the Berlin Symphony Orchestra. In 1975, Jaffe became a member of the Bremen Philharmonic Orchestra. From 1976 to 1992 he taught cello at the Bremen University of the Arts. In 1985, the

Senate of Bremen The Senate of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (German: Senat der Freien Hansestadt Bremen) is the government of the German city-state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen. Various senate-like institutions have existed in Bremen since medieval times. ...

, which is the state government of Bremen, appointed Jaffe as chamber musician.

Composer

In 1997, Jaffe started to work as a composer. His works are influenced by both his biography and Jewish history and often focus on the

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

and its victims. “It’s my mission to create musical monuments,“ Jaffe said. But he also stresses: “The generation of the grandchildren is not responsible for the evil deeds of their ancestors.“ Iris Heischer: ''Die Tonart der

Shoah The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

''. In:

Weser-Kurier The Bremer Tageszeitung AG (BTAG) (Bremer newspaper AG) is a publishing house that publishes various regional newspapers in the city of Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (, ), ...

, 3 February 2016, p. 24.

Works

* ''Passionen'', Sonata for violoncello solo, 1997 * ''Shoa'', Sonata for violoncello solo, 1997 * ''Serefinas Träume'', Sonatino for violoncello and piano, 1998 * ''Darum siehe, die Zeit wird kommen'', String trio, 1999 * ''Todesfuge'', Poem by Paul Celan, for violoncello, organ, and choir, 200 * ''Lior'', Sonatino for violoncello and piano, 2002 * ''Prolog zu Rabbi von Bacherach after Heinrich Heine'', for violoncello and voice, 2002 * ''Saulkrasti'', fantasy suite for violoncello and harp, 2003 * ''Die letzten Tage'', Suite for violoncello and violin, 2004 * ''Ballade über die Forelle und das Leben des Franz Schuberts'', for violoncello, violin, and harp, 2006 * ''Via dolorosa ebraica'', Sonata for violoncello and piano, 2007 * ''Durch die Zeit'', for violoncello and organ, 2008 * ''Choro-Symphonie'', for choir and violoncello, 2008 * ''Anni horribili'', chamber symphony, 2010 * ''Symphonie El sueno de la razón produce monstruos'' (The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters) after Francisco de Goya, symphony orchestra, 2011 * ''Exodus 1971'', chamber symphony for cello, piano, and string orchestra, 2011 * ''Symphonischer Roman'', double concert for viola, cello, and orchestra, 2012 * ''Perlenlicht'', Sonatina for harp solo, 2014 * Triple Concerto for Violin, cello, and piano, 2016 * ''"Gefühle mit Brahms“'', Viola, cello, and piano, 2017 * Concerto for Harp and cello, 2018

Notes

References

* Baltische Rundschau: ''Der deutsch-jüdische Cellist und Komponist Don Jaffé im Interview'': 2013. * Sigrid Schuer: ''Geburtstagskonzert für Don Jaffé im Sendesaal''.

, 24 January 2013. {{DEFAULTSORT:Jaffe, Don Israeli cellists Latvian cellists Jewish classical musicians 20th-century German classical composers 21st-century German classical composers German composers Israeli composers Latvian composers Musicians from Bremen (city) Musicians from Riga 20th-century German Jews Israeli Jews Latvian Jews Naturalized citizens of Germany Citizens of Israel through Law of Return Holocaust survivors 1933 births Living people 20th-century German cellists 21st-century cellists