Duet: Lowvelder sings ‘Hallelujah’ like you haven’t heard it before
"This is what happens when you open your heart to life itself." - Sais du Plooy.
“How does this video make you feel?”
After 250 hours’ filming, this is what Lee Berg and Sais du Plooy want to know.
The duo’s video tells a South African story – one with immeasurable depth. “It is by South Africans, for South Africa,” says Sais – a Lowvelder.
The idea originated from Lee’s life story, but reflects the emotions and revelations experienced by many a South African.
Lee lost his mother at a young age. “He would stand at his mother’s grave – bereaved, trying to connect with her somehow – to feel her close to him once again. Through music, he felt connected once again. Not only to the treasured memories of his mother, but to life itself,” said Sais.
The video attests to the struggles and revelations experienced by our youth, many of whom are orphans. The song evokes strong emotions, opening wounds and healing it.
Sais and Lee’s interpretation of the Leonard Cohen hit is unique. From their combination of orchestral music and electric guitar to the evident meaning they find in every word – the song has never been performed like this before.
Musical and interpretational views aside, the music video itself is also one-of-a-kind. “We did everything ourselves. While filming, we crisscrossed the Western Cape and found parts of ourselves we will forever treasure,” said Sais.
He has come a long way since publishing this video on YouTube three months ago:
Since then, his positivity has been tested during a mugging. Left without his cell phone’s GPS and contacts, he found himself lost in Mitchell’s Plain. “I had endured horrors,” he recalls. In reaction, he decided to open his heart to life – the good and the bad. Doing so, he says, has forever changed him.
“And I can share my newfound peace with music,” he says.
So… tell the duo how this video makes you feel.
E-mail Lee at: leebergmusic@gmail.com
