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"Music acts like a magic key, to which the most tightly closed heart opens." - Maria von Trapp

Ilse Huizinga

Amsterdam based singer Ilse Huizinga is one of The Netherlands’ renowned jazz singers.  After recording six critically acclaimed albums - featuring selections of jazz standards – she just issued her seventh album presenting entirely new compositions by Erik van der Luijt.
The album marks a new path for Ilse, as this is the first time she recorded new material exclusively.
Ilse and Erik’s story is not just a story of music.  They met in Amsterdam, in 1995, during a vocal jazz session in De Heeren van Aemstel, when Ilse soon needed a replacement for her regular pianist, who fell ill. Erik filled the position right away. The two have not parted since. They married in 1998 and their daughter, Ellen, was born in 2000.
Ilse’s talent almost remained a secret to the outer world. If it weren’t for her parents, who gently urged her to sign up for an education in Public Administration at the University of Amsterdam, she wouldn’t have found the way to the stage at night club Casablanca. It was there that she realized more than ever that music was her destiny and after finishing her degree, without hesitation she continued to study at the Amsterdam Conservatory.