Emil Tabakov, who used to be an excellent double bass player, now successfully combines the rôles of conductor and composer. In the latter capacity he has written seven symphonies, a Requiem (based on the Latin text of the Mass), a cantata dedicated to the old Bulgarian capital Veliko Tarnovo, concert pieces, works for various ensembles, as well as instrumental concertos, in which he presents a personal vision of the contemporary image and function of the solo performer. In his symphonic music, he insists on the selection and further development of brief, but highly concentrated thematic ideas that lend themselves to a development closer to the classical symphonic conceptions of the first half of the twentieth century. Many of his compositions have been awarded prizes by the Union of Bulgarian Composers and have been frequently performed in Bulgaria and abroad.
