Born and raised in Sofia, Bulgaria, Kristian grew up in a family of musicians and was surrounded by music from a very early age.  He was exposed to a variety of world music styles:  Bulgarian folk, Classical, Afro-Cuban and Contemporary Jazz.  Recognizing his talent, Kristian's parents enrolled him in classical piano classes at the age of four.  At six years old Kristian was accepted into the prestigious L. Pipkov School of Music where he completed his musical education, twelve years of intense training as a pianist and percussionist. During that time, Kristian had the opportunity to tour across much of Europe and to further his interest in foreign and exotic sounds and rhythms.  It was a natural progression for Kristian to come to Canada in 1995 at the tender age of nineteen to continue his musical quest in this cultural mosaic.

Since moving to Canada, Kristian has firmly entrenched himself in the Canadian music scene - as an active composer, performer, producer, clinician and studio musician.  One of the highlights is Kristian’s ten year musical involvement with Decidedly Jazz Danceworks’ as composer and musical director. Spring 2007, Kristian was once again at the helm of DJD’s latest touring extravaganza “Magnetic Consequences”, which received rave reviews across Canada. 
 
Onstage Kristian has worked alongside some tremendous Canadian and International musicians, including Randy Brecker, Eric Marienthal, Alain Caron, Bob Mintzer, Jens Lindemann, Guido Basso, Mike Murley, Sean Jones, Wycliff Gordon, Adam Rapa, George Koller, Joshua Hilberman, Senator Tommy Banks, Tap Tel Aviv, Shannon Gaye and Toronto’s own Jackie Richardson.

In the studio, Kristian has written and co-produced a number of original CD projects in genres ranging from soul, jazz, swing & Afro-Cuban to pop.  March 2008, Kristian was awarded "Pianist/Keyboardist of the Year" at the Canadian Smooth Jazz Awards for his work on Allistair Elliott’s debut CD “Urban Nights”, a project he also co-produced, recorded & mixed. In a fantastic run of good fortune, Allistair himself was awarded "Woodwind Instrumentalist of the Year" for that same project.

Having recently relocated to Vancouver, Kristian has just released his latest project “Akoustika”, a nod to his jazz roots.  “Akoustika” features original contemporary jazz compositions recorded old-school, live off the floor in an acoustic trio format at the Calgary Opera Centre.  The simplicity of the recording was inspired by the audio imagery of the old Blue Note albums – piano on the left, bass in the middle and drums on the right.  The spared down format provides the perfect backdrop for these beautiful and complex compositions, as Kristian effortlessly weaves through odd-metre signatures and Bulgarian modes.

He’s also in the midst of recording material for F.U.J.A., the ensemble led by Kristian recognized for their blistering grooves and creative energy live.   The F.U.J.A. CD will feature original compositions exploring elements of Afro-Funk and Ethno-Jazz.