Eldar Tsalikov

Eldar Tsalikov (Russian: Эльдар Цаликов; * 1993 in Rostov-on-Don) is a Russian jazz musician (saxophone, clarinet, composition).

Tsalikov grew up in a family of musicians. At the age of eight, he began learning the saxophone at the children's jazz school named after Kim Nazaretov. After completing his first degree in Russia, he moved to Berlin in 2011. There he began studying instruments at the Jazz Institute Berlin (JIB). In 2018, after completing his bachelor's degree, he successfully graduated with a master's degree as an arranger and composer.

Tsalikov has worked with musicians such as Greg Cohen, Joey Baron, Laurie Anderson, Elias Stemeseder, Manlio Maresca, Anna Webber, The Haff and Fabiana Striffler, but also in the field of traditional jazz. He has performed at festivals such as the Copenhagen Jazz Festival, JazzAscona, the Glasgow Jazz Festival and the French Quarter Fest in New Orleans. He can be heard as a soloist on albums by Evi Filippou, New German Art Orchestra, Nick Dunston (Skultura), Friede Merz and Felix Henkelhausen (Misanthropic Tendencies).

Tsalikov has won several competitions, including the IV. International Jazz Competition in St. Petersburg (Russia), the International Jazz Festival of Ukraine in Kiev and the VIII. International Jazz Competition in Odesa. He was awarded the JIB Jazz Prize in 2014.