Melding offbeat pizzicato phrases with delicious harmonic dissonance one moment (Suite in Jazz Style, 2008) and evoking Renaissance music the next (Suite in Old Style, 2004), Dobrinka Tabakova is a versatile composer, known for her effective orchestrations, imaginative choral works, and string-focused chamber music. Born in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, in 1980, Tabakova moved to the UK as a child, studying at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama and King’s College London, from which she holds a PhD in composition. Her anthem “Praise,” scored for eight-part choir and organ, was premiered in St. Paul's Cathedral as part of HM The Queen's Golden Jubilee celebrations in 2002. Since then, Tabakova has had residencies with several ensembles, including Stratford-upon-Avon's Orchestra of the Swan, where she wrote Immortal Shakespeare, a cantata to mark Shakespeare's 400th anniversary in 2016, and the BBC Concert Orchestra, for whom she composed the 2022 Concerto for Orchestra.