Franco Cerri

Franco Cerri (born January 29, 1926) is an Italian guitarist. He is considered one of the most important European jazz musicians.

Cerri was born in Milan and learned to play guitar when he was 17. In 1945 he became a member of the group Gorni Kramer and joined the orchestra of the television show Buone vacanze. He has played with many established jazz musicians, including Django Reinhardt, Chet Baker, Gerry Mulligan, Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday, and Lee Konitz. He also led quartets and quintets with Tullio De Piscopo, Pino Presti, Gianluigi Trovesi, Flavio Ambrosetti, and Jean-Luc Ponty,

On January 1, 2006 he was knighted by President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi.