Eldar Saparayev

is an artist of Thomastik-Infeld, Professor at the Academy of Music in Ljubljana, and an outstanding Kazakh-German cellist and conductor. Born in Kazakhstan, he is widely regarded as one of the leading cellists of Central Asia. He currently serves as a soloist with the Astana Philharmonic Orchestra and the Zagreb Chamber Orchestra. He is a laureate of numerous international competitions, including the prestigious Antonio Janigro International Cello Competition (Croatia). The legendary artist manager Jacques Leiser, who worked with such icons as Maria Callas, Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli, David Oistrakh, Daniil Shafran, and Sviatoslav Richter, once said about Eldar Saparayev: “Eldar is not merely a virtuoso in the spirit of the great masters of past eras, but a true musician and poet, performing with immense passion and individuality.” As a soloist, he has appeared with leading orchestras worldwide under the baton of distinguished conductors such as Kent Nagano, Peter Eötvös, Sir Roger Norrington, Krzysztof Penderecki, Claus Peter Flor, Heinrich Schiff, Reinhard Goebel, Ari Rasilainen, Dmitry Sitkovetsky, and Bernard Haitink. He has collaborated with ensembles including the Bavarian State Opera, Zurich Chamber Orchestra, Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, Southwest German Philharmonic, MÁV Symphony Orchestra (Budapest), North Czech Philharmonic, Astana Opera Orchestra, National Philharmonic Orchestra of Kazakhstan, New European Strings, and Lucerne Festival Strings. As a chamber musician, he has performed on major stages across Europe, Asia, and the Americas with artists such as Dmitry Sitkovetsky, Radu Lupu, Alena Baeva, Eldar Nebolsin, Andrey Baranov, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Bobby McFerrin, David Geringas, Yulianna Avdeeva, Kolja Blacher, and Gerhard Schulz, among others. He has appeared as a soloist in renowned venues including Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles (where he substituted for Lynn Harrell in Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations), Carnegie Hall in New York, Musikverein in Vienna, Smetana Hall in Prague, Tonhalle Zürich, and at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. Eldar Saparayev performs on a rare Nicolo Amati cello (1679), whose voice is noted for its depth, warmth, and expressive richness – qualities that closely reflect his artistic personality. He is also deeply engaged in pedagogy. In his teaching, he seeks to pass on the traditions of the great artistic schools and the spirit of the legendary musicians with whom he had the privilege to collaborate. He believes that the essence of music lies in creating character, conveying emotional truth, and expressing the composer’s inner world. In today’s performance culture, often focused on technical perfection and precision of intonation, he emphasizes the importance of spiritual depth and the ability to enter the imaginative world of the great composers.