Trevor Finney is searching for guitarist Les Lees, his 1960s music teacher, and their lost folk song inspired by SA’s first heart transplant.
South Africa (28 August 2025) – Sometimes, history lives not only in textbooks but in the songs that accompany it. For Trevor Finney, one such song is New Hearts for Old, a folk piece composed in response to South Africa’s groundbreaking first human heart transplant in the late 1960s.
As a young student at the time, Trevor was taught guitar by a man named Les Lees. More than just a teacher, Lees was a mentor and fellow performer. Together, the two shared the stage to sing New Hearts for Old, a song that captured the hope and wonder surrounding Dr Christiaan Barnard’s pioneering surgery at Groote Schuur Hospital, a moment that placed South Africa firmly on the world stage.
But while the historic operation is well-documented, the song has slipped into obscurity. Decades later, Trevor still remembers the performance vividly, but his music books, once filled with lyrics and notes, were lost during his move out of South Africa in the late 1990s. What remains is a melody in his memory, and a longing to reconnect with either Les Lees or his family, who may still have the original music tucked away in an old notebook.
For Trevor, this search is deeply personal. It’s not only about finding the words of a song but about honouring the teacher who first shared it with him, and preserving a unique slice of South Africa’s cultural heritage. New Hearts for Old is more than a folk tune, it’s a reminder of a time when music and medicine intertwined to tell the story of a nation’s progress.
If you knew Les Lees, if you are a relative, or if you recall this piece of music, Trevor Finney would love to hear from you. Restoring the song would mean reviving a small but significant echo of South African history, one worth listening to again.
Please reach out to us if you have any information. You can pop us an email at [email protected], and the team will gladly connect you to Trevor.
Sources: Email Submission
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