Composer / AI Sound Artist
Lamtharn Hantrakul is an award-winning AI Sound Artist / AI Research Scientist reimagining Thai classical music through electronic music with a touch of generative AI. Known by his stage name “ญาบอยฮานอย yaboihanoi”, his dance music is unique in its uncompromising use of Thai tunings made possible through technologies like AI-based sound synthesis. His music challenges how technology can empower arts and culture from Southeast Asia, fusing his unique background as a composer and
8 years as a programmer in the tech industry (ex-Google/TikTok).
Based in Bangkok, Thailand, he recently returned from Spain playing SONAR 2025 alongside festival giants like Skrillex, Peggy Gou and Daito Manabe. He has been featured by international media including Deutschlandfunk, Scientific American, BLAQLYTE Magazine and Fast Company as well as festivals such as INTUR (ID) and Bangkok Arts Bienalle (TH).
at SONAR 2025 - Barcelona, Spain
yaboihanoi recently brough a tour-de-force of original Electronic Thai Bass Music and bespoke projections rooted in หนังใหญ Thai Shadow Theater to his live audio-visual performance at SONAR 2025. The show took listeners in SonarHall, the biggest stage in the SONAR DAY lineup, on a musical journey through thumping beats anchored in Thai classical rhythm and dance cycles. The ethereal melodies from instruments both real and imagined were written exclusively in Thai tuning systems instead of Western equal-tempered tuning. The showcase was the culmination of many years of exploration with a home-grown team of Thailand-based choreographers, dancers and designers alongside international friends and artists.
“ [yaboihanoi] blends deep tech with Souteast Asian culture, crafting bold sonic experiences at the intersection of tradition and machine learning” - Wallifornia Music + Tech Festival (2025)
— BLAQLYTE Magazine (2024)
“The use of AI to create the melody and the intonation and effectos that elecric oboe line ปี่ใน is a combination I have not seen before.’”
— Ajay Kapur, Jury AI Song Contest and Director Music Technology at CalArts (2022)
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at SONAR+D 2025 - Barcelona, Spain
In this groundbreaking hybrid format fusing a live performance and talk, yaboihanoi brought audiences on a voyage that celebrates, reimagines and challenges traditions from Thailand and Southeast Asia through art and technology. The session explored how state-of-the-art machine learning and AI can amplify the rich and unique heritage of melodies and rhythms from Thai classical dance music in the setting of modern electronic bass music. yaboihanoi shared his unique approach to writing electronic music in Thai tuning systems and his use of modern generative AI tools to generate imagined sounds and instruments from Southeast Asia.
Watch the full talk here.
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in Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
yaboihanoi is no stranger to the Vietnamese electronic music scene. In fact, his nickname “Hanoi” has a romantic connection with Vietnam: his dad proposed to his mom in Hanoi in 1991! yaboihanoi brought a distinctive live set of original Thai bass music and groovy electronic jazz to NEO:HBT and Visual084, taking a crowd of Vietnamese fans on a journey blending the sounds of Southeast Asia through sonic terriroties both familiar and unfamiliar.
Rewatch yaboihanoi’s full signature AV set at SONAR Festival 2025 in Barcelona, Spain!
Available for performances, talks and collaborative works
Projections/Visuals: Avneesh Sarwate (US), Wasawat Somno (TH), Theerawat Klangjaroenchai (TH), Chapawit Potigul (TH), Ta Kasitipradit (TH), lebactan (VN)
Video: Alvaro Gonzalez (ES)
Design: Salyn Mars (TH)