Composers

He contemporaneously studied both flute and composition at the G. Verdi Conservatory of Milan, with Giuliano Zosi and Giacomo Manzoni, respectively. He went on to advanced studies with Franco Donatoni at the Civica Scuola di Musica in Milan and at the Accademia Chigiana in Siena, where he obtained a merit diploma in 1989. He also studied South Indian music in Bangalore (Karnataka) with M. T. Raja Kesari (a former student of T.A. Mani).

 In 1995 he was awarded the summer session by IRCAM's "Comité de lecture", and also received commissions from the Ensemble L'Itinéraire, the "Centre International de Percussion" of Geneva, AGON Acustica Informatica Musica, "Milano Musica" and other chamber groups. His music has been performed on important concert series, including the "Ars Musica" Festival in Brussels, the "Wien Modern" Festival in Vienna, the "Festival Présences" sponsored by Radio France, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation in Lisbon, the "Festival Archipel" of Geneva, the Tokyo New Music Festival, the Festival Pontino, the season of Pomeriggi Musicali in Milan, Ensemble InterContemporain in Paris, Milano Musica and Società del Quartetto of Milan.

Since 1993 he has been periodically living in South India, where he cooperates with a group of percussionists specialized in the karnathic music repertory. Nova's music has been performed by all the major european ensembles, including: Ensemble L'Itinéraire and Ensemble 2e2m (Paris), Avanti Chamber Orchestra (Helsinki), Caput Ensemble (Reykjavik), Nederlands Blazers Ensemble (Amsterdam, Capricorn Ensemble (London), Alpha Centauri Ensemble (Sydney), Xenakis Ensemble (Middelburg), Ensemble Recherche (Fribourg), Ensemble Nuove Sincronie (Milan), Tamborrino Ensemble (Laterza).
Several of his chamber works and works for percussion, reflections of his studies on polyrhythm, have been recorded on two CDs for the Stradivarius label, in performances respectively by the Caput Ensemble of Reykjavik and the Tamborrino ensemble.
Riccardo Nova's music is published by Edizioni Suvini Zerboni of Milan.