The best feel-good
story of the past year, in which the highs and lows have cancelled each other
out, is the remarkable story of the ten-year old Irish Lass from Northern
Ireland, Kaylee Rogers. It seems the
parent of a school friend quietly slipped into the viral world a recording from
a Special Needs choir performance at the school last Christmas that stunned the
world.
There are so many
amazing aspects of this story.
First there is the
incredible singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen from Canada who wrote an amazing
Jewish song, 'Hallelujah.' Cohen died barely a year ago, November 7,
2016, a month before the ten-year old performed her version of Hallelujah in
concert for the first time.
Cohen released his
song 'Hallelujah' in 1984 and slowly it became
popular, until 1991 when the first of 300 other artists released a version of
the Cohen sleeper, and it became a monster hit.
The song was voted one of the top 50 songs of the 1960’s and the 20th
Century and Cohen’s YouTube version has logged over 100 million views.
Then
the lyrics of the magical Cohen composition were changed from a Jewish to
Christian song, and the result was even greater magic. The altered lyrics were
originally devised by a Christian rock band called Cloverton in 2014, who
had their video taken down on YouTube due to a copyright infringement claim by
Sony. However, the lyrics are now being used to cover the song by the choir and
Kaylee, and a good thing too.
Kaylee
Rogers, a ten-year old Special Needs student from Northern Ireland, has autism and
attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.
She could
barely talk or communicate at age six when she began attending the Killard
House Special Needs school in Donaghadee, County Down, Northern Ireland.
She began
singing as a way to build her confidence.
In barely a year over 7.2 million people have seen the video though no
CD was made, it was just a school concert after all.
As
reported at the time:
"When
she took to the stage in her Killard House uniform an amazed silence engulfed
the room. The next four-and-a-half minutes were pure magic as she sang
beautifully to an entranced audience and brought grown men to tears."
We
salute Kaylee Rogers for her courage in fighting autism and attention-deficit/hyperactivity
disorder and battling her way back from the silence in the tomb of autism. What an amazing profile in courage and
determination.
To
then go and have the strength and courage to sing the lead part in a school
Christmas concert last year, which thanks to the Internet and YouTube have been
seen by over 7.2 million people, is simply astonishing.
Please
listen to her magical performance. The
Kaylee lyrics appear after the song since few people know there is a new version
of the song. Please double click the
screen for a full screen version.
Kaylee Rogers Video
Double click for full screen
Now, I've heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
It goes like this, the fourth, the fifth
The minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing hallelujah
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
It goes like this, the fourth, the fifth
The minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew ya
She tied you to a kitchen chair
She broke your throne, and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the hallelujah
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew ya
She tied you to a kitchen chair
She broke your throne, and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
You say I took the name in vain
I don't even know the name
But if I did, well really, what's it to you?
There's a blaze of light in every word
It doesn't matter which you heard
The holy or the broken hallelujah
I don't even know the name
But if I did, well really, what's it to you?
There's a blaze of light in every word
It doesn't matter which you heard
The holy or the broken hallelujah
Source: Musixmatch
Christmas version of Leonard Cohen's 'Hallelujah'
The alternative lyrics were
written by the Christian rock band Cloverton
Roisin O'Connor
22 December 2016
A 10-year-old girl from Northern Ireland has
gone viral after a video of her singing a variation on Leonard Cohen's
'Hallelujah' for her school choir performance was posted on Facebook.
Kaylee Rodgers, from Donaghadee, County Down,
has autism and ADHD, and began singing as a way to build her confidence.
The video of her singing the Killard House
school choir's version of 'Hallelujah' has attracted more than 100,000 (now 7.2 million)) views
from people around the world.
It was originally posted by parent Nichola
Martin, who was proud of her son Blake who also took part in the choir.
Kaylee told ITV that she
was excited just to be singing, but that it was also "amazing" that
the video had received so much attention.
"I just loved doing it," she said.
Colin Millar, head teacher at Killard House,
said: "For a child who came in P4 and would really talk, couldn't really
read out in class, to stand and perform in front of an audience is amazing.
 |
| American Oscar winner Susan Sarandon Kaylee fan |
"It takes a lot of effort on Kaylee's
part."
The alternative lyrics sung by Kaylee were
written by contemporary Christian rock band Cloverton, who are based in
Manhattan, Kansas.
Their version - which was posted on YouTube in
2014 but muted due to reported copyright issues with Sony Columbia - sparked a
debate at the time over whether it was disrespectful to change Cohen's lyrics
to suit a Christian message, since Cohen was Jewish.
Cohen's opening lyrics: "Well I heard
there was a secret chord/That David played and it pleased the Lord/But you
don't really care for music, do you?" were changed by the band to:
"I've heard about this baby boy/Who's come to earth to bring us joy/And I
just want to sing this song to you," and so on for the duration of the
song.
Frontman Lance
Stafford told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency at
the time that "no disrespect to Leonard Cohen was meant". "When we rewrote the lyrics, I had no
idea Leonard Cohen was Jewish," he said. "We didn't perceive it as a
song celebrating Jewish culture or written for Jewish people."
Leonard Cohen died in
his sleep aged 82 after a fall in the night on 7 November 2016, after a career
spanning five decades. He released his 14th studio album You Want
It Darker on 21 October of the same year.
Northern Ireland singing sensation Kaylee wows black tie Boston ball with rendition of Hallelujah
Kaylee Rogers
sings at the Boston Winter Ball
By Brett
Campbell
February
16 2017
A singing schoolgirl from Co
Down has stunned an American audience at the Boston Winter Ball after she stole
the show with a live performance of Hallelujah.
Kaylee Rogers (10) received a
standing ovation when she reduced those attending the lavish ceremony to tears.
When Kaylee moved to Killard
House in primary four, she struggled to talk and read out loud in class because
she has autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but it
quickly became apparent that she had no problem singing.
The primary seven pupil
captured hearts around the world in December when a video of her singing in the
school's Christmas concert went viral.
The recording of her
adaptation of Hallelujah has been viewed by millions of people online.
Principal of Killard House,
Colin Millar, said Kaylee's cover of the Leonard Cohen song evoked a lot of emotion
in the grand ballroom of the Fairmont Copley Plaza hotel.
He said: "When she took
to the stage in her Killard House uniform an amazed silence engulfed the room.
The next four-and-a-half minutes were pure magic as she sang beautifully to an
entranced audience and brought grown men to tears."
Mr Millar described the
audience's reaction as "the perfect tribute to the angelic voice of this
10-year-old Killard House pupil".
The Boston Winter Ball caters
to socially-minded young professionals in the city and has established itself
as one of the most anticipated events in its social calendar.
The beneficiary of this year's
ninth annual black tie event was the Corey C Griffin Foundation, a charity
which supports philanthropic causes, particularly those that serve young
people.
Mr Steven Greeley, a friend of
the Griffin family, was one of the many people around the world who watched
Kaylee's video at Christmas. He believed she represented the guiding principles
of the foundation so he quickly contacted the school to arrange for Kaylee to
sing live at the ball.
The Corey C Griffin Foundation
was launched in the summer of 2014 when 27-year-old Corey Griffin died in a
tragic accident in Nantucket - a small isolated island off Cape Cod in
Massachusetts - just a day after he had raised $100,000 (£80,300) for his
Boston College friend Pete Frates' initiative to raise money for amyotrophic
lateral sclerosis (ALS).
Pete, who was diagnosed with
the disease in March 2012, is credited as the person who started the ALS Ice
Bucket Challenge and Corey has been referred to as the co-founder of the
phenomenon which went viral on social media during the summer in which he died.
Boston businessman, Arthur S DeMoulas, was recognised at the event and received
an award celebrating his focus on philanthropic work.
Executive director of the
Corey C Griffin Foundation, Melissa Bowman, said: "Mr DeMoulas greatly
admires Kaylee's courage and perseverance to overcome adversity and sharing the
evidence of that through her beautiful voice was one of the highlights of the
evening.
"We understand that she
hasn't performed publicly outside her school in Northern Ireland and we were
delighted to welcome her to the United States to share her talent here."
Kaylee, who is normally very
shy, has been growing in confidence through singing and has been praised by her
school principal for embodying the ethos of the special needs school in
Donaghadee.
Killard House Special School
Killard House Special School choir singing
Hallelujah
Kaylee Rogers
After coming across this
video on Christmas day, I just have to share it. Kaylee is a special
child. She has autism and
attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, but when she sings…be prepared to be
touched by an angel! It brings tears to my eyes every time I
listen to her rendition of the song, such was the power of little Kaylee’s
voice and interpretation of the lyrics of Hallelujah.
I have a young niece who can’t
speak at all, even at 5 years old, but is such sweet and mild-tempered girl
and such a joy to all of us. Seeing the milestones that Kaylee has
achieved even with her disorders, I am heartened to know that En En may one day
be able to overcome her own disorders, to learn to speak and do things on her
own like Kaylee does, and perhaps unleash her special ability.
This Christmas-themed
remake of Hallelujah consists of lyrics by American Christian rock
band Cloverton.
Welcome to the website for Killard
House School in Donaghadee.
Killard House School is a co-educational Controlled School providing for children and young people with additional special educational needs. These include Moderate Learning Difficulties, Speech and Language Difficulties and Autistic Spectrum Disorder.
Here at Killard House we provide education in a friendly, happy, supportive and caring environment with regard for the personal well being of our pupils.
We promote the personal and social development and a feeling of self-worth for all of our children and young people. The school is based upon good relations between children and young people, staff and those with parental responsibility.
Killard
House School embraces an inspiring school motto of ‘Together We Can’ and the
school prides itself with providing personalised multisensory learning
experiences for the pupils in a safe and caring family environment. In fact
everyone in the school refers to it as the ‘Killard House family’.
The school was founded
over fifty years ago in Newtownards and in 2009, it relocated to the
Donaghadee High School site. It provides education for over 200 pupils
aged 3 to 18 years as well as providing Outreach Support for 30 pupils,
aged between four and 11 years of age, as part of the South-Eastern Region (EA)
support for Special Educational Needs in mainstream schools (Speech and
Language and Moderate Learning Disability).
The school consists of a
Nursery, Primary and Post-Primary Department along with 6 Social
Communication Units (P1 - P7) providing a specialised programme for pupils on
the Autistic Spectrum. The Primary Department also provides education for
pupils with moderate and complex learning profiles in eight MLD classes P1- P7
aged pupils. The Nursery classes are two daily sessions a morning
session and afternoon session with 4 pupils in each session.
.
