Rein De Graaff

A self-taught pianist from the Netherlands, De Graaff rose to become one of Europe’s foremost session musicians. He directed a trio between 1959 and 1962, spent the following year with The Jazzopters, and afterward guided his own quartet through 1964 while also working alongside Erwin Some and Gijs Hendriks. That same year he assembled a fresh ensemble that remained active into the 1980s. Over the years he accompanied an array of visiting American players that included Hank Mobley, Lee Morgan, Johnny Griffin, Art Taylor, Clifford Jordan, Cecil Payne, Dexter Gordon, Clark Terry, Sonny Stitt, Philly Joe Jones, and Arnett Cobb. Several engagements brought him to New York, where the Dutch National Jazz Prize was presented to him in 1980.