Alexander Tselyakov has been professor of piano at Brandon University since 2003. Born in Baku in the former Soviet Union in 1954, Alexander was studying at the prestigious Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow with Lev Naumov by the time he reached his late teens. In the mid-1980s, Alexander was combining a busy teaching career at two Russian music institutes, as well as winning awards such as the Tokyo International Piano Competition (1983) and at the famed International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow (1986). He was also appointed concert piano soloist to the Byelorussian State Philharmonic Orchestra.

In 1991, Alexander and his family left Russia for Israel. There, too, he made a tremendous impression, winning the Israel Piano Competition in 1993. In 1994, he immigrated to Canada. He made his debut in Toronto in December 1994 to great acclaim. Recent concerts have included a highly successful performance at Carnegie Recital Hall in New York, a critically acclaimed concert at Wigmore Hall in London, performances at The Corcoran Gallery of Art (Washington), The Centre Culturel (Paris, France), the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the University of Chicago, the University of Leicester (London), the International Piano Festival in Istanbul, and Koffler Centre (Toronto). He is a frequent guest artist on the Virtuosi Concert stage.