Dobri Hristov (1875-1941)
Dobri Hristov (14 December 1875 – 23 January 1941) born in Varna, Bulgaria, he was one of the major Bulgarian composers of the 20th century. In 1903, Hristov graduated from the Prague Conservatory, where he studied piano and composition under the renowned Czech composer, Antonin Dvorak in the last years before Dvorak died. Returning to Bulgaria, he served as an assistant conductor of the Nedelya Church Choir in Sofia, during which time he composed some of the movements of his Liturgy No. 1 of St. John Chrysostom. In either 1911 or 1913, he became the conductor of the St. Sedmochislenitsi Church choir in Sofia, where he spent the most fruitful years of his career as as church musician, giving frequent public concerts. In 1935, Hristov was invited by the Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church to become the conductor of the St. Alexander Nevsky Memorial Cathedral in Sofia, a post he held until his death.
