Rafael Costa de Souza was born in 1983 in Porto Alegre, Brazil. In 2001 he entered the Music University of Porto Alegre (UFRGS). He graduated with Bachelor of Music degree in piano from the class of Ney Fialkow. In 2004 and 2005 he participated in the Curitiba Chamber Music Festival, where he studied in the masterclasses of professors as Ricardo Castro and Eduardo Monteiro. Also in 2004 and 2005 he obtained a scholarship to participate in the Campos do Jordao Winter Music Festival, where he worked with the following professors: Sonia Rubinsky, Jean-Louis Steuerman.

            He has won awards in different piano competitions: 13th Arnaldo Estrella Piano Competition (Brazil - 2004), Young Soloists Competition of the Symphonic Orchestra from Porto Alegre (Brazil - 2006) and 14th Maria Campina International Piano Competition (Portugal – 2008). In 2006 he had the opportunity of being a soloist in the season of the Symphonic Orchestra of Porto Alegre.

            From 2006 until 2009 Rafael studied at the Franz Liszt Music Academy in Weimar, Germany. After completing these studies he obtained an artistic diploma in piano and then studied in a specialization course for one semester further. During his years in Weimar, Rafael was a student in the class of Prof. Peter Waas. In this period he participated in several masterclasses with professors such as Ferenc Rados, Staffan Scheja and Lilya Zilberstein. In 2007 he took classes with Péter Nagy in the Bartók Festival in Szombáthely, Hungary.

            From 2009 until 2011 Rafael was a student of the master’s program at the Music Academy in Stuttgart in the class of Kirill Gerstein, obtaining then a master of music degree. From 2011 until 2013 he studied further in Stuttgart in a master’s program for chamber music in the class of Péter Nagy.

            Rafael performs regularly both in Germany and Brazil. In Weimar he played several solo and chamber music recitals in the Liszt Museum and in the Salon Altenburg. In Stuttgart he performed in a concert series from the State Museum and in the Music University. 2013 he was invited to play in the International Piano Festival of Belo Horizonte.