Among the few Bulgarian conductors with a high-profile international career, Emil Tabakov is also noted as a composer. He has written ten symphonies as well as a variety of concertos, chamber music, and choral works. Tabakov was born on August 21, 1947, in Ruse, Bulgaria. He attended the Bulgarian State Music Academy in the capital city of Sofia, studying conducting with Vladi Simeonov, double bass with Todor Toshev, and composition with Marin Goleminov. By 1978, Tabakov had earned diplomas in all three fields. He served as conductor of the Rousse (Ruse) Philharmonic Orchestra from 1976 to 1979, moving on to the Sofia Soloists Chamber Orchestra as music director from 1979 to 1987. In 1985, Tabakov began conducting the Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra; he was named principal conductor in 1987. He moved to the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra in Serbia from 1994 to 1999, and for several years during this period, he also served as Bulgaria's Minister of Culture. In 1998, he returned to the Sofia Philharmonic as music director and chief conductor, remaining there until 2000. Tabakov's association with the Sofia Philharmonic resulted in several recordings, including a complete cycle of Mahler's symphonies for the Capriccio label, issued on 15 CDs. He is also recognized for his interpretations of Shostakovich, whose symphonies he has recorded several times. Tabakov continued to hold permanent conductor positions; in 2002, he was music director of the Bilkent Symphony Orchestra in Ankara, Turkey, and from 2008 to 2015, he served as principal conductor of the Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra. He was equally visible as a guest conductor with numerous ensembles ranging far beyond Eastern Europe. Among these were the Orchestre National de France, the Moscow Philharmonic, and the Tokyo City Philharmonic Orchestra. Tabakov has appeared all over eastern and western Europe, around East Asia, the U.S., South America, and South Africa. In the midst of this busy schedule, Tabakov has found time to compose a large catalog of works. He led the Bulgarian National Radio Symphony in several recordings of his symphonies on the Toccata Classics label. In 2022, he led the Bilkent Symphony Orchestra in a recording of works by Scriabin and Rimsky-Korsakov, featuring pianist Jean-Philippe Collard. ~ James Manheim, Rovi