Bridge the distance

“The most sultry voice of the Netherlands probably belongs to Monika Akihary. Together with guitarist Niels Brouwer she works on an intriguing and elusive body of work that crosses all musical and geographical borders in every aspect”, newspaper Parool writes. We need fewer words, they must have thought at Volkskrant. It wrote: “Boi Akih is a world-class act.”

Relief in times of fake news: both rave reviews are entirely true. Boi Akih brilliantly blends musical traditions of the Moluccan Islands and Bali with Dutch jazz, improvised music, Indian classical music, latin and traditional African music.

This boundlessness is not their only asset. Their mix of timbres is particularly strong, like the sound of a rainbow: Monica Akihary’s warm voice, Niels Brouwer’s inventive guitar skills; the innovative flute of Hungarian performer Dodó Kis and the grooves of percussionist Kim Weemhoff.

Boi Akih performed at North Sea Jazz, Berlin Jazz Festival, Bimhuis, VPRO and BBC. Their musical curiosity led to collaborations with cellist Ernst Reijseger, bass player Ernst Glerum and trombone player Wolter Wierbos, among others.

More than a footnote: singer Monica Akihary sings in het father’s mother tongue – from the small Moluccan island of Haruku – which is on the list of endangered languages.