A heartbroken mother who lost her 12-year-old son in a freak farm accident while opening a gate has uncovered his ‘secret’ song – and been inundated by kind strangers wanting to play it at the young boy’s funeral.
Kyan Pennell, 12, was helping his father Ian on their property in Mary Valley, 169km north of Brisbane, about midday on January 31 when he was crushed.
The primary school student got out of his father’s car to open the gate at the steep property entrance on Chinaman’s Creek Road.
As Mr Pennell drove through the gate it partially closed, trapping Kyan between the car’s trailer and the gate.
Police said Mr Pennell heard a ‘bang’ and a ‘yell’ which sent him, Kyan’s little sister, his mother, and a neighbour running to help.
But sadly the young musician didn’t survive his severe injuries despite the efforts of paramedics.
Kyan Pennell (pictured), 12, was helping his father Ian on their property in Mary Valley, 169km north of Brisbane , about midday on January 31 when he was crushed
On February 3 Kyan’s mother Amanda Brierley shared a post to Facebook detailing how her son had been learning the piano for seven months and had seemingly half-written a classical song he had hoped to perform one day (pictured)
On February 3 Kyan’s mother Amanda Brierley shared a post to Facebook detailing how her son had been learning the piano for seven months and had seemingly half-written a classical song he had hoped to perform one day.
‘I found this. Kyan was composing his own classical (I could be wrong but I think he said ‘modern’ classical) and I never heard what he was composing,’ she said, sharing a photo of his musical score.
‘Is there anyone that can read music and play it and send it to us? If I remember rightly he told me about this and there were bits that repeated, and changed tempo, with light and shade, but he didn’t write that down. It would mean the world to us to hear his composition.’
Amanda could only find the introduction to Kyan’s song and knew he was planning on introducing a ‘grand mid section’ into the piece that would be played by both wind and string instruments, but he never got to finish it.
Amanda could only find the introduction to Kyan’s song and knew he was planning on introducing a ‘grand mid section’ into the piece that would be played by both wind and string instruments, but he never got to finish it
‘Piano was his calling, he was 12, and had seven months of learning, teaching himself music theory, performance and composition, and he had committed to memory multiple classical pieces and some modern pieces… but just so he could bring a crowd in, and then educate them with the beauty of classical he would say cheekily,’ she said.
‘He wanted to be a concert pianist and spent every waking hour on the piano he scraped and saved to buy.
‘He was diagnosed with Asperger’s and ADHD and used that superpower to become an incredibly beautiful and unique human who just wanted to learn and excel at everything he could, about everything there was.’
Incredibly Amanda received tens of videos from teenagers right across Australia playing Kyan’s song and 16 members of the Queensland Symphony Orchestra plan on recording a version to play at his funeral on Sunday.
‘He would have been so chuffed that all these wonderful people are now playing his music,’ Amanda added.
‘He did tell me that many people have to die to become famous, well my beautiful boy, here we are,’ his mother wrote
‘Little did he know he was actually composing his own funeral song.
‘He did tell me that many people have to die to become famous, well my beautiful boy, here we are.’
The Pennell family moved to the Gympie region two years earlier with the hope of living a quiet, country life.
Mr Pennell shared a heart-breaking tribute to his lost son in a Facebook post the day after his death.
‘As many may already know Amanda, Lauryn and I lost our beautiful, creative, quirky, smart, talented, funny, animal-loving son/brother Kyan yesterday in a freak accident,’ he wrote.
‘Just wanted to thank everyone for their heartfelt messages of love and support.
‘Also special thanks to the amazing flight doctors, paramedics, police personal and our neighbours who fought for over an hour in an attempt to save him. His injuries were simply too great.’
Several friends and family members commented on the post to leave their messages of support for the family.
Police said Ian Pennell (top left) heard a ‘bang’ and a ‘yell’ which sent him, Kyan’s little sister (bottom left), his mother (top right), and a neighbour running to help (Kyan bottom right)
‘I’m so deeply sorry for you all. I have very fond memories of you all and making up Haikus at the lake in Greece with Kyan is a great one,’ one person wrote.
‘He was a remarkable young man and a pleasure to be around – mature beyond his years. Again, words can never express my deepest sympathies.’
‘So many broken hearts for this wee man, made harder with closed borders still. The talent this kid had for music was unbelievable, certainly not from our side of the family, that was all Amanda. We will miss you so much Ky Xxx,’ a family member wrote.
Kyan’s grade five teacher from Gympie Central School Kerri Groves also shared a touching message.
‘It is a beautiful family. They are just lovely people and devoted parents. They moved from Sydney to the country for Kyan. He was such a sweetie,’ she said.
A study by the University of Sydney in July 2021 found 15 children under 15 die on farms each year with many more receiving serious injuries requiring hospitalisation.
Children under 14 made up 15 per cent of all farm deaths.
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