One of far too many jazz musicians who passed away prematurely (in his case due to high blood pressure),
Nat Jaffe was a talented swing pianist who was just coming into his own at the time of his death. He lived in Berlin with his family during 1921-32, taking extensive classical piano lessons.
Jaffe discovered jazz after moving back to the U.S. when he was 14. He accompanied Noel Francis, played with the Emery Deutsch Orchestra and often worked as a soloist on 52nd Street.
Jaffe played with
Jan Savitt and Joe Marsalis, recorded with
Louis Armstrong in 1938, worked and recorded with the big bands of
Charlie Barnet (1938-39) and
Jack Teagarden (1939-40), led his own trio and in 1945 was on a recording date with
Sarah Vaughan. As a leader,
Nat Jaffe recorded three piano solos in 1938 (released by Onyx), four duets in 1944 (for Signature) and four trio numbers also in 1944 (for Black & White). ~ Scott Yanow