Sergey Roldugin was born in Riga in 1951. He began playing the piano at the age of five and the cello at the age of eight. While he was at the Leningrad Conservatoire he successfully auditioned for a seat in the Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Evgeny Mravinsky.
After graduating from the Conservatoire he began postgraduate studies with Nikitin and later became his assistant at the Conservatoire as well as teaching the cello at the Special Music School.
In 1980 he won the bronze medal in the Prague Spring International Cello Competition.
In 1984 he became the principal solo cellist in the Kirov Opera Theatre Orchestra and in 1991 was appointed associate professor of cello at the St.-Petersburg Conservatoire.
From 2002 to 2004 Sergei Roldugin was rector of the St.-Petersburg State Conservatoire.
Sergei Roldugin has taken part as a soloist in many music festivals in Russia, Germany, Switzerland, France, Finland and Scotland. His solo repertoire is extensive, ranging from Bach to Schnittke. Much of it he has recorded for Russian radio, television and the Melodiya label. He currently also gives international masterclasses in Weikeersheim in Germany and in Savolinna in Finland.
