Jacques Zafra (*1986) is a Mexican composer based in Berlin, a member of the Sistema Nacional de Creadores Arte de México (National System of Art Creators), and chairman of the Contemporary Insights initiative. He completed his Ph.D. at the University of California San Diego (UCSD), working with Roger Reynolds. Before that, Zafra earned a Master’s degree and completed a post-master's program (Meisterklasse) at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Leipzig, studying under Claus-Steffen Mahnkopf and receiving private lessons from Johannes Kreidler.

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Earlier in his career, Zafra studied composition and music theory at the CIEM in Mexico with Victor Rasgado and Enrico Chapela. He also holds a Music Diploma in guitar performance from the Royal School of Music, London (2012).

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He is the creator of the YouTube channels Mexican Scores, where he publishes video-scores of contemporary Mexican composers, and Musica Teórica Online, focused on educational content about music theory. His works have been performed in countries like Mexico, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, the U.S., the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Portugal, and Germany, and have been featured in festivals such as Darmstadt, Gaudeamus, and Wittener Tage für Neue Kammermusik.

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Zafra earned second place in the "New Recorder Music" competition in 2016, held in Lausanne. His piece "Xochitepec desde mi cuarto" was chosen to represent Mexico at the UNESCO International Rostrum of Composers in 2012. He has been awarded several scholarships, including the Deutschlandstipendium and the Mexican grants Estudios en el Extranjero (2013) and Jóvenes Creadores (2016, 2021). In 2019, he was selected by the ULYSSES Network for the ULYSSES Journeys program.