[3] In 2018 he received his Doctor of Arts (Music) degree at the Ghent University, Belgium.

His doctoral thesis "Variations on a Rococo theme, Op.33: Pyotr Tchaikovsky and Karl Friedrich Wilhelm Fitzenhagen: a creative collaboration.

Moscow and Saint Petersburg violoncello schools in the light of European traditions: a historical and textological clarification" is in the field of historically informed performance practice and musicology.

[4] Sergei Istomin has performed solo and chamber music recitals in many European and North American Festivals.

His repertoire includes baroque, classical, romantic and contemporary music on both period and modern instruments.