Rafael Méndez

Rafael Méndez began his flute studies under the guidance of Alaima González at the Conservatorio Nacional de Música in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He continued his education at the Frost School of Music in Miami, Florida, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Music degree in 2024, studying with Jennifer Grim. He is currently pursuing his Master of Music degree at the Yale School of Music under the mentorship of Tara O'Connor.

Rafael has received numerous awards, including a Graduate Presser Award in 2025, the Burkart Resona Piccolo Award in 2022, and the Gemeinhardt Galway Crusader Silver Flute Award at the Galway Flute Festival in 2019; First Prize in the Young Professional Category at the Young Musician of the Caribbean Award 2022; and First Prize in the Florida Flute Association College Young Artist Competition 2022. In 2024, he was a semifinalist in the prestigious Young Concert Artist competition. He has also been recognized with the Mary Hilem Taylor Competition Scholarship, the President Scholarship at the Frost School of Music, and the Henry & Lucy Moses Fellowship at the Yale School of Music.

Rafael has performed as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral flutist with ensembles such as the Yale Philharmonia, Frost Symphony Orchestra, Opera Naples, Festival Orchestra Napa, and the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional of the Dominican Republic. He has appeared in renowned venues including Carnegie Hall Stern Auditorium with the Yale Philharmonia, Weill Recital Hall as a winner of the Yale Chamber Music Competition in 2025, and the Konzerthaus Berlin with the Orquesta Sinfónica Nacional of the Dominican Republic in 2019.

As a chamber musician, Rafael has collaborated with a wide range of musicians in diverse ensemble settings, including performances with the Miami Bach Society Chamber Orchestra and a trio for flute, viola, and harp with members of the Palm Beach Symphony. He has also participated in prestigious festivals such as the Galway Flute Festival, Festival Napa Valley, Oxford Summer Flute School, and Young Euro Classic in Berlin.

Rafael has honed his craft through master classes with leading flutists, including Nadine Asin, Silvia Careddu, Hélène Boulègue, Nicola Mazzanti, Robert Langevin, Lorna McGhee, Lady Jeanne Galway, among others.

Rafael plays a Brannen silver flute with a Mancke headjoint.