[1][2][3] Nikolai Lugansky was born on 26 April 1972 in Moscow, Russia, to research scientist parents.

At the same time he began to make recordings on the Melodiya (USSR) and Vanguard Classics (Netherlands) labels.

His performance at the Winners' Gala Concert of the 10th International Tchaikovsky Competition was recorded and released on the Pioneer Classics label, on both CD and video laser disc formats.

Lugansky has performed together with Vadim Repin, Alexander Kniazev, Anna Netrebko, Joshua Bell, Yuri Bashmet, Vadim Rudenko, Eliso Virsaladze, Mischa Maisky and Leonidas Kavakos, among others.

He has collaborated with conductors such as Riccardo Chailly, Christoph Eschenbach, Vladimir Fedoseyev, Valery Gergiev, Neeme Järvi, Kurt Masur, Mikhail Pletnev, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Yuri Simonov, Leonard Slatkin, Tugan Sokhiev, Vladimir Spivakov, Yevgeny Svetlanov, Yuri Temirkanov and Edo de Waart.