Yuri Charyguine is a professional Russian musician who has been living in Malta since 1999. He started playing accordion at an early age and won various competitions in Russia. In 1993 he graduated from Murmansk Music College as a performer and music teacher and later attended the Moscow University of Culture and Arts to further his studies in conducting and orchestration. Thanks to his working for more than 20 years as a soloist and to performing with different orchestras and ensembles Yuri developed an excellent knowledge of accordion repertoire. As a performer he has travelled to more than 15 countries, including Norway, Vietnam, Canada, Australia and India. In Malta he performs regularly with classical and folk ensembles and jazz bands. He has appeared on several TV programmes and CD recordings of local artists. Before he started teaching accordion at Malta School of Music, Yuri taught for eight years at the Russian Boarding School in Malta. Yuri continues to develop his musical abilities: he plays several other instruments and also obtained a degree in composition from the University of Malta.