Biography
Rafa Müller (2000*) is a brazilian drummer based in Hamburg, Germany. As an improviser and composer, he performs and records regularly in musical contexts that encompass Jazz, Brazilian music, Free improvisation, Classical, Chamber music. He integrates numerous projects in the northern european scene, since his arrival in 2021. His meditative and spiritual playing is to be heard with many artists such as Nils Landgren, Toninho Horta, NDR Big Band, Ben Street, Danilo Caymmi, Hayden Chisholm, Sophia Oster, Pouya Abdi, Gary Campbell among others.
Biography
Rafa Müller (2000*) is a brazilian drummer based in Hamburg, Germany. As an improviser and composer, he performs and records regularly in musical contexts that encompass Jazz, Brazilian music, Free improvisation, Classical, Chamber music. He integrates numerous projects in the northern european scene, since his arrival in 2021. His meditative and spiritual playing is to be heard with many artists such as Nils Landgren, Toninho Horta, NDR Big Band, Ben Street, Danilo Caymmi, Hayden Chisholm, Sophia Oster, Pouya Abdi, Gary Campbell among others.
Rafael Branco Müller (Rafa Müller) was born on September 1st, 2000 in Porto Alegre, Brazil. A drummer since early childhood, he was mentored by Ricardo Arenhaldt from the age of 4 years old. Being the youngest of two sons, he grew up playing in duo with his older brother, the pianist Benhur Müller. A diversity of influences encompassed his musical upbringing in the south of Brazil, where rhythms like Samba, Bossa Nova, Baião, Maracatu dialogue with Chacarera, Milonga, Chamamé, Vaneira. He acquired an affinity for improvised music and jazz through Paulo Dorfman, Kiko Freitas, Edu Martins and Julio Herrlein.
Rafael Branco Müller (Rafa Müller) was born on September 1st, 2000 in Porto Alegre, Brazil. A drummer since early childhood, he was mentored by Ricardo Arenhaldt from the age of 4 years old. Being the youngest of two sons, he grew up playing in duo with his older brother, the pianist Benhur Müller. A diversity of influences encompassed his musical upbringing in the south of Brazil, where rhythms like Samba, Bossa Nova, Baião, Maracatu dialogue with Chacarera, Milonga, Chamamé, Vaneira. He acquired an affinity for improvised music and jazz through Paulo Dorfman, Kiko Freitas, Edu Martins and Julio Herrlein.
Archive, circa 2003
Archive, circa 2003
During the final years of his high school education, from 2016 to 2017, he played in his first professional groups: the quartet Quinzê, focused on instrumental brazilian music featuring Lucas Etcheverria (guitar), Benhur Müller (piano) and Mateus Albornoz (bass), and the quartet Karmã, an improvised electronic jazz group with Yvan Etienne (tenor saxophone/effects), Lucas Etcheverria (guitar) and Felipe Schütz (bass). During this time, he also accompanied the singer/songwriter Camila Lopez in the successful group Arrastão: Tribute to Elis Regina, which toured extensively throughout the country, being nominated for the 2018 Prêmio Profissionais da Música in Brasília, where they performed with one of the founders of the Bossa Nova movement, Roberto Menescal.
In early 2020, he earned a scholarship for the renowned Oficina de Música in Curitiba, a week long music workshop accompanied by Edu Ribeiro, Vera Figueiredo and André Marques. The program concluded with a performance with Danilo Caymmi at the prestigious Teatro Guaíra.
Camila Lopez in São Paulo, 2018
In 2021, at the height of the pandemic, he moved to Hamburg, Germany to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in Jazz Drums at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg (HfMT), with the primary mentorship of Prof. Holger Nell. Additionally, he learned Timpani and Classical Snare drum from Daniel Hansen as a secondary subject and was able to take lessons from an array of accomplished musicians, such as Marcio Doctor, Wolf Kerschek, Adam Nussbaum, Gabriel Coburger, Vladyslav Sendecki, among others. This period of time galvanized his passion for jazz and classical music, and musical role-models such as Elvin Jones, Al Foster, Joe Chambers gained more presence in his sonority.
As an active member of the northern European Jazz scene, he has frequently collaborated with Giorgi Kiknadze, Gabriel Coburger, Paul Imm, Lisa Wulff, Sven Kerschek, Frank Delle, Lutz Krajenski, Dan Gottshall, Klaus Heidenreich, Nigel Hitchcock, Lars Duppler, Henk Kraaijeveld, Rony Barrak, Achim Seifert, Yelfris Valdés and others. His studies rendered a number of collaborations within his musical generation as well, most notably the partnerships with Pouya Abdi, Sophia Oster, Lucas Etcheverria, Samantha Wright, Timon Krämer, Lucas Brum and Cansu Arat.
Rafa Müller Quartet at ELBJAZZ 2026 (with Pouya Abdi, Frank Delle and Paul Imm) © Alex Kiausch
"Music is almost like a Sacrament"
Inspired by this quote from Olivier Messiaen, the drummer's musical output incorporates the lightness of brazilian percussive polyphony, the lyricism and sound profile of classical music, jazz feel and bop language, bound by a deep spiritual anchor that is reflected by his beliefs and catholic upringing. With a bachelor degree in performance and education, he has gathered experience as a teacher by ministring multiple group workshops on brazilian music, improvisation, jazz, and teaches one-to-one lessons on the matter.
Rafa’s spiritual and meditative playing-style can be heard in over 15 recordings and he has performed on many stages nationwide in Brazil, Great Britain (e.g. Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival), Germany (e.g. ELBJAZZ, Jazz Open, Multiphonics Cologne) as well as with many artists worldwide, such as Nils Landgren, Toninho Horta, Ben Street, Guinga, Julian Sartorius, Florian Weber, Vinicius Gomes, Danilo Caymmi, NDR Big Band, Gary Campbell, Nailor Proveta, Frederik Köster, Nils Wogram, Hayden Chisholm, Sophia Oster and many others.
During the final years of his high school education, from 2016 to 2017, he integrated his first music groups: the quartet Quinzê, focused on instrumental brazilian music featuring Lucas Etcheverria (guitar), Benhur Müller (piano) and Mateus Albornoz (bass), and the quartet Karmã, an improvised electronic jazz group with Yvan Etienne (tenor saxophone), Lucas Etcheverria (guitar) and Felipe Schütz (bass). During this time, he also accompanied the singer/songwriter Camila Lopez in the successful group Arrastão: Tribute to Elis Regina, which toured extensively throughout the country, being nominated for the 2018 Prêmio Profissionais da Música in Brasília, where they performed with one of the founders of the Bossa Nova movement, Roberto Menescal.
In early 2020, he earned a scholarship for the renowned Oficina de Música in Curitiba, a week long music workshop accompanied by Edu Ribeiro, Vera Figueiredo and André Marques. The program concluded with a performance with Danilo Caymmi at the prestigious Teatro Guaíra.
Camila Lopez in São Paulo, 2018
In 2021, at the height of the pandemic, he moved to Hamburg, Germany to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in Jazz Drums at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg (HfMT), with the primary mentorship of Prof. Holger Nell. Additionally, he learned Timpani and Classical Snare drum from Daniel Hansen as a secondary subject and was able to take lessons from an array of accomplished musicians, such as Marcio Doctor, Wolf Kerschek, Adam Nussbaum, Gabriel Coburger, Vladyslav Sendecki, among others. This period of time galvanized his passion for jazz and classical music, and musical role-models such as Elvin Jones, Al Foster, Joe Chambers gained more presence in his sonority.
As an active member of the northern European Jazz scene, he has frequently collaborated with Giorgi Kiknadze, Gabriel Coburger, Paul Imm, Lisa Wulff, Sven Kerschek, Frank Delle, Lutz Krajenski, Dan Gottshall, Klaus Heidenreich, Nigel Hitchcock, Lars Duppler, Henk Kraaijeveld, Rony Barrak, Achim Seifert, Yelfris Valdés and others. His studies rendered a number of collaborations within his musical generation as well, most notably the partnerships with Pouya Abdi, Sophia Oster, Lucas Etcheverria, Samantha Wright, Lucas Brum and Cansu Arat.
Rafa Müller Quartet at ELBJAZZ 2026 (with Pouya Abdi, Frank Delle and Paul Imm) ©Alex Kiausch
In October 2025, he released his debut album with his quintet, entitled "Live at Brückenstern". The group counts with Swedish trumpet player Björn Atle Anfinsen, russian tenor Saxophonist Kamil Khusyainov and Hamburg-natives Jonas Oppermann on piano and Lucas Kolbe on bass. The album features 6 original compositions presenting the melodic mysticism from south Brazil in a Hard-Bop context along with elements of free jazz.
After earning his Bachelor in 2025, he continued his studies at the HfMT with a Master’s degree in Jazz Drums with emphasis in composition, which he is currently attending. Through this program, he had the opportunity to learn from Thomas Strønen, Christian Lillinger, Robert Landfermann, Ruta Paidere, and Gregor Hübner.
"Music is almost like a Sacrament"
Inspired by this quote from Olivier Messiaen, the drummer's musical output incorporates the lightness of brazilian percussive polyphony, the lyricism and sound profile of classical music, jazz feel and bop language, bound by a deep spiritual anchor that is reflected by his beliefs and catholic upringing. With a bachelor degree in performance and education, he has gathered experience as a teacher by ministring multiple group workshops on brazilian music, improvisation, jazz, and teaches one-to-one lessons on the matter.
2021 © Niklas Stadler
Rafa’s spiritual and meditative playing-style can be heard in over 15 recordings and he has performed on many stages nationwide in Brazil, Great Britain (e.g. Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival), Germany (e.g. ELBJAZZ, Jazz Open, Multiphonics Cologne) as well as with many artists worldwide, such as Nils Landgren, Toninho Horta, Ben Street, Guinga, Julian Sartorius, Florian Weber, Vinicius Gomes, Danilo Caymmi, NDR Big Band, Gary Campbell, Nailor Proveta, Frederik Köster, Nils Wogram, Hayden Chisholm, Sophia Oster and many others.
2021 © Niklas Stadler
In October 2025, he released his debut album with his quintet, entitled "Live at Brückenstern". The group counts with Swedish trumpet player Björn Atle Anfinsen, russian tenor Saxophonist Kamil Khusyainov and Hamburg-natives Jonas Oppermann on piano and Lucas Kolbe on bass. The album features 6 original compositions presenting the melodic mysticism from south Brazil in a Hard-Bop context along with elements of free jazz.
After earning his Bachelor in 2025, he continued his studies at the HfMT with a Master’s degree in Jazz Drums with emphasis in composition, which he is currently attending. Through this program, he had the opportunity to learn from Thomas Strønen, Christian Lillinger, Robert Landfermann, Ruta Paidere, and Gregor Hübner.
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