Francesco Rista is a guitarist and composer whose work blends a rich spectrum of colors and textures, pushing the boundaries of modern crossover music. His passion for baroque music led him to create an original arrangement of Bach’s Second Partita for violin, released by the label Stradivarius and his second album, MAGNIFICAT. This album is a vibrant dialogue between tradition and innovation, released by Con Fuoco Records. Francesco has been the dedicatee of compositions by composers such as Finnur Karlsson, Kevin Swierkosz-Lenart, Nick Martin, and Evagoras Solias Apokidis, and he premiered the guitar concerto by English composer Oliver Davis. With the electric guitar, he has performed Steve Reich’s Electric Counterpoint on various occasions and recorded DREAM by John Cage and Garcia Counterpoint by Bryce Dessner with his label, Fresh Ribes. Founder of the ensemble ELECTRIO, he was awarded the Klima Klang Festival Award for his performance of STABAT MATER at Koncertkirken in Copenhagen in October 2023. The following year, he successfully presented the project at the prestigious Norðurljós Recital Hall at Harpa in Reykjavik. During his formative years, Francesco had the privilege of studying under renowned teachers such as Carmelo Lacertosa, Christian Saggese, Davide Ficco, and Oscar Ghiglia at the Chigiana Academy. He later pursued postgraduate studies at the Royal Danish Academy of Music. He also attended a second Master degree at the Malmö Music Academy (Lund University) under the guidance of Göran Söllscher and David Hansson. In 2024, he received an award from De Sono in Italy and from the Kungl. Musikaliska Akademien in Sweden. Francesco is an endorser of Aquila Corde Armoniche.