Nikola Chekardzhikov (b. 1978) is a Bulgarian award-winning classical guitarist and educator, currently residing in the United States. Nikola is a graduate of the National School for the Arts “Dobri Hristov” – Varna, where he studied guitar under one of the doyennes of the guitar in Bulgaria – professor Ljuben Haralambiev. During his high-school years along with his siblings – sister Petya and twin brothers Petar and Vasil, he had over 500 concerts, and numerous radio and TV appearances in Bulgaria and Western Europe, were the quartet completed two international tours, performing in some of the finest concert halls in Belgium, Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels being one of them.
In the early 2000’s Nikola relocated to Southern California, where he continued his guitar studies with the world renown guitarist, composer and then president of Guitar Foundation of America – Professor David Grimes. At that time, Nikola established, alongside with his brothers, TRIADA Guitar Trio, where he has been heavily invested in performing, arranging, promoting, and co-managing the group. The trio has been invited to share the stage with Grammy winning members from the LAGQ – USC professor Scott Tenant and composer Andrew York. World renown composers such as Roland Dyens (France), Maximo Diego Pujol (Argentina), Rossen Balkanski (Bulgaria) have written guitar trios dedicated to the group. The trio regularly performs at major guitar festivals and concert series in the US and has appeared in the past with Pacific Symphony, South Coast Symphony and Huntington Symphony Orchestras.
Besides TRIADA Guitar Trio, Nikola is very active in the OC guitar scene. He is a founding member of Campanella Guitar Quartet and the Orange County Guitar Orchestra releasing albums and performing with both groups. He is also a Guitar Division Chair of the Musical Arts Competition of Orange County – the oldest musical competition in So Cal, held annually at Cal State Long Beach and Nixon Library.
As an educator, besides privately, Nikola has thought guitar at the Orange County High School of the Arts and at Cal State University, Fullerton. Currently he is serving as the Music Department Chair at Encore High School for the Arts. Both his students and student ensembles have won many awards in local and international competitions. He led the Green Room Arts’ Senior Highschool Ensembles to concert tours in Bulgaria (2015) California (2016) and after winning second prize at the GFA’s Ist International Ensemble Competition to Italy (2017).