Spanish teacher, orchestra and choir conductor, folklorist and composer. Son of José María Benedito Mendoza, taxidermist; and brother of José María, Luis, and Manuel, the latter being a painter.

He studied with Amancio Amorós and Pedro Sosa at the Conservatory of Valencia and at the Royal Conservatory of Music and Declamation of Madrid since 1904 with Vicente Arregui, of whom he was a pupil. He continued his studies in Germany, specializing in conducting choirs and orchestras. He was granted a pension by the Ministry of Public Instruction to study music pedagogy and organization of orchestras and choral groups in France and Germany.

Sure of the educational and cultural value of music, he devoted himself from an early age to the formation of orchestras and choirs such as the Amigos de la Música (1915), later called Orquesta Benedito, or the Masa Coral de Madrid (1919), the first choir of mixed voices in the capital of Spain. With these formations, their morning concerts scheduled for disseminate the music of Spanish composers became famous, as well as the international repertoire with the cycle of the 9 Beethoven symphonies.

He devoted a large part of his activities to musical education: he was a music teacher at the San Isidoro and San Ildefonso schools and at the Principe de Asturias reformatory; as well as at the Central University of Madrid from 1927, the year in which he created the university choirs. His music dissemination conferences, music pedagogy courses and teachings on Spanish popular songs turned the Instituto-Escuela of Madrid the most modern pedagogical centre of the time.

Since 1925 he held the position of General Inspector of Musical Education of the Madrid City Council. In Geneva, he attended one of the practical rhythmic courses taught by Jacques Dalcroze, while in the 1er Congrès du rythme (1926). In 1927 he organized and ran the Coros Municipales Lucentinos, performing many concerts in Lucena (Córdoba), Córdoba and Málaga; he held a practical rhythmic course (1929) and created the Orquesta Universitaria Escolar. The Ministry of Public Instruction named him associate professor in 1931. He founded the Escuela Coral Municipal in Madrid and was a music adviser for the Women's Section of the Falange since 1937.

His work as a composer was mainly limited to the research and harmonization of Spanish folklore. He published several collections of Spanish popular songs and children's songs in Unión Musical Española, Ediciones Hispania and the Sección Femenina. He was the author of numerous articles in newspapers and magazines devoted to the initiation, knowledge and understanding of music, such as the Revista de Pedagogía; as well as being chief editor of Lira Española and advisor and collaborator of the Diccionario Enciclopédico de la Música.

In 1944, the Ministry of National Education awarded him the Cruz de Alfonso X el Sabio, he also received the Cruz de Isabel la Católica and the Medalla de Madrid.

Una parte de su archivo personal, con documentos de 1907 a 1966, se encuentra depositada en la Asociación para la investigación musical Rafael Benedito Vives (Salamanca). Cuenta con correspondencia, manuscritos, prensa y programas de mano, además de documentación personal y profesional.

En la Biblioteca Musical Víctor Espinós del Ayuntamiento de Madrid se conserva el fondo documental de la Masa Coral de Madrid, creada en 1919 por Rafael Benedito.