“Small miracles / they’re making small miracles / from the birth of a child ’till he learns how to walk / small miracles / thank God I’m alive.…”
Bonita and the Hus Band believe in small miracles.
As they put it in the song “Small Miracles”, the group, which classifies its music as folk pop, said that having faith in small wonders makes dreams come true. In the same spirit, they formed the band in 2006.
With her husband, Petrus Briyanto Adi (Adoy) as lead guitarist, Bharata Eli Gullo (Bharata) on percussion and Jimmy Tobing (Jimmy) on saxophone, singer Bonita creates fresh acoustic folk songs.
Bonita comes from a strong musical background. Her powerful vocals won her the Southeast Asia singing contest, Asia Bagus, in 1994, which came as no surprise given her parents’ strong influence.
Her mother, Herdawati was a jazz singer when she married her father, legendary Indonesian emcee and singer, Koes Hendratmo. Her brother, Hendra Perdana or Anda is also a musician with a couple of hits that still echo with Indonesian music fans.
Getting married to Adoy brought deeper maturity to Bonita’s music.
“Adoy makes me see life in a more positive way. He helps me create positive lyrics,” she said. The group’s songs are mostly talk about hope, love and dreams.
As one of the founding members of indie band Cozy Street Corner in 1996, Adoy’s passion to create new tunes and fresh new Indonesian music has been a strong driving motivation throughout his life.
The band first got its name from popular host, Farhan, in a show at a cafe in Kemang, South Jakarta, at the end of 2006. Farhan introduced Bonita and her band, consisting of her husband and his two buddies, as Bonita and the Hus Band, a spontaneous play on her spouse’s participation in the band.
“To deliver a positive message through our songs is the reason we created the band,” said Adoy.
Their concert, titled Small Miracles, is scheduled for Feb. 1 at Graha Bhakti Budaya, Taman Ismail Marzuki, Central Jakarta. It will be the second for Bonita & the Hus Band after their first official concert last year in Salihara Theater, South Jakarta.
“We started with a dream and no money in our pocket, but it has gone well. It’s truly a small miracle,” said Bonita.
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