Winner Boy Edgar Prize 2023

​The duo Boi Akih is conquering jazz festivals at home and abroad. Vocalist Monica Akihary won the prestigious Boy Edgar Prize in 2023—the most important award for jazz and improvised music in the Netherlands. Classical NOW! presents the award-winning duo at Theater de Vaillant.

Vocalist and lyricist Monica Akihary and guitarist/composer Niels Brouwer craft a musical language that transcends genres and cultures. They weave together jazz with classical European and Moluccan musical traditions, bringing contemporary sounds into dialogue with age-old cultural expressions. Poetic vocals—sometimes raw and intuitive—dance alongside intricate guitar compositions, creating a conversation between different worlds, sung in English and Haruku (a Moluccan language).

From the North Sea Jazz Festival and Jazzfest Berlin to the Freedom Concert in Ambon performed for 20,000 people, Boi Akih has garnered international acclaim, earning praise from renowned media outlets including BBC Radio, VPRO Vrije Geluiden, and Radio France.