The Two Bulgarian Dances (Presto, Allegro molto) performed at this concert are the second and third pieces of his cycle, Five Bulgarian Dances. They were composed in 2010 and premiered on March 25th , 2011 by the National Radio Symphony Orchestra under the composer’s baton, after which they were performed in Greece, Turkey and Russia. In 2017 and on the occasion of Tabakov’s 70th anniversary, the dances were premiered at the Varna Summer Festival. The Five Bulgarian Dances, together with Tabakov’s Eighth Symphony, were published by the English company Toccata Classics in 2016. They have been released by the record companies Naxos, Gega, Balkanton, have won awards and are frequently performed in Bulgaria, Germany, Portugal, USA, Japan, Finland, France, Austria, Turkey, etc.
They were performed in New York in 2020. On May 13th, 2022 they were also performed by the chamber ensemble Sofia Soloists under the direction of the composer.
The Dances also exist in transcriptions: a version for quartet made by Rumen Balyozov, and a version for two pianos performed on April 27th, 2021.