Another hugely successful evening at Breinton; Katya Apekisheva gave a splendid performance to our full-house crowd. She was phenomenal, so exquisite and exceptional. I believe I am not the only one who was deeply impressed by quality of her sound – it showed many colours and different tones. Clarity, subtlety, sharpness and warmth, all of them expressed effectively throughout her performance.

Her programme was carefully put together with contrasting pieces. The first half consisted of my much-loved Schubert Sonata in A minor and Schumann's Kinderszenen. Schubert was a leading exponent of the early Romantic era, and Schumann, one of the greatest and most representative composers of the Romantic era. I felt so lucky to have heard both of those Romantic composers' works at Breinton this evening.

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At the end of the first half of Katya Apekisheva's recital, we held a fund raising event for the National Children's Orchestra.  Eleven-year old Purcell School student Erika Smith-Gordon performed Wieniawski's Legende on violin, accompanied by John Forster on piano.

Thank you to all our members for their thoughtful contributions.  With our doubling of members' donations, plus a further doubling by theBigGive's Christmas Campaign, we are pleased to announce a donation of £1,220 to the National Children's Orchestra which will help them to provide subsidies to children who otherwise would be unable to participate in their events.

Read more about the charitable activities of Breinton Recital Society and this event in particular.

Some kind notes received from our members after this recital:

  • memorable evening
  • my head is still full of Katya's outstanding recital
  • a virtuosic performer of the highest calibre
  • remarkable pianist combining immense power with delicacy, sensitivity and great passion
  • an exceptional pianist with a personality to match
  • a very enjoyable concert on Saturday and impeccable organisation
  • thoroughly enjoyed the concert last night and your programme notes were great to follow the music.

If you have any comments on this soiree or indeed anything that you might have seen on this website, we'd be delighted to hear from you. Please contact us by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

'… extremely original and rare music…'
John Adams, composer

Dobrinka Tabakova is an award-winning young British/Bulgarian composer who lives and works in London. Idiosyncratic rhythms, memorable melodies, post-tonal/modal harmonies and distinct orchestration all form her musical language. She graduated from the Guildhall School of Music & Drama and King's College London and now regularly works with many of today's leading musicians.

Aged 14, Dobrinka received the Jean-Frederic Perrenoud Prize and Medal at the 4th Vienna International Music Competition. Other prizes followed, including the GSMD Lutoslawski Composition Prize, the prize for an anthem for the Queen's Golden Jubilee in 2002 (performed at St. Paul's Cathedral) and the 2007 Adam Prize of King's College London for the song cycle Sonnets to Sundry Notes of Music. She was a finalist for the 2010 Gaudeamus prize in Amsterdam with her string septet Such different paths and recently was first prize winner at the 2011 Sorel Medallion in Choral Composition, New York.