Rafael Cortés

The journey of the exceptional musician Rafael Cortés begins in 1973 in the Ruhr area. He is born on December 21 and if you believe the legend, either a bandit or a musician is born on that day. Since Rafael comes from southern Spain and the heart of Flamecos, it doesn’t take long for his grandfather to build his first guitar. Young Rafael Cortés is obsessed with his new instrument, disturbing neighbors and friends with the loud sounds at any time of the day or night. What nobody could have known until then: He will soon become one of the most gifted guitarists of our time!

Born in the shadow of legend, Rafael decides against the bandit and lets the music become his destiny. He started his career at the age of 9 when he started to work with various musicians on stage. In 1985, the then 11-year-old Rafael made his first little “breakthrough”. Now only he and his guitar are in demand: the first solo concert!

From now on, Rafael’s career developed rapidly. Numerous concerts, studio recordings and even collaborations in Hollywood productions adorn Rafael’s vita. But that’s not all: Many big names in the music scene, such as Carles Benavent, Al Di Meola, Tommy Emmanuel and many more, become aware of Rafael and ask him to cooperate.

He himself sees it as an advantage not to have grown up in Spain because, unlike in the Ruhr area, they don’t have as many different cultures on their own doorstep. Characterized by their own and the surrounding culture, Rafael Cortés is asked to fly to Paris in 2010 as a cultural ambassador to play a concert there at UNESCO.

FLook forward to the future milestones that will mark Rafael Cortés’ legacy.