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Spirit of Hong Kong Awards: Blind musician with rare birth disease plays her heart out

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Cite

Chow, J. (2026, October 10). Spirit of Hong Kong Awards: Blind musician with rare birth disease plays her heart out. South China Morning Post. https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3370302/spirit-hong-kong-awards-blind-musician-rare-birth-disease-plays-her-heart-out?utm_source=rss_feed

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

South China Morning Post · collected 2026-10-10 · by Jimmy Chow

Quick Summary

The Spirit of Hong Kong Awards featured 17-year-old Cassie Li Pui-ying, who was born with Hirschsprung's disease and has faced numerous health challenges throughout her life. After undergoing a seven-hour surgery in 2025, she performed at Queen Elizabeth Stadium before an audience of over 2,500 people, playing the drums and singing. The event was organized by Live Theatre, which Li’s mother Marine Mak helps run; the organization provides a platform for visually impaired students to perform. Cassie's faith, optimism, and cheerfulness despite her struggles were highlighted during the performance.
Written by AI on 2026-10-10, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Cassie Li Pui-ying, a 17-year-old blind musician born with Hirschsprung's disease, performed at the Spirit of Hong Kong Awards in March 2026 at Queen Elizabeth Stadium before an audience of over 2,500 people. A year earlier, she underwent a seven-hour surgery in Hong Kong. Although unable to see her supporters, Li heard and appreciated their applause as she played drums on stage. Her performance was organized by Live Theatre, which also assists visually impaired students like herself. Despite numerous health challenges, Li's faith, optimism, and positive spirit have inspired many.

Written for “Hong Kong Resistance Awards” on 2026-10-31, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Hong Kong Resistance Awards
Other · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

Nothing to compare against. No article is close enough to this one for the pipeline to have linked or judged the pair.
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
9
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
11%
1 of 9 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
64/100
South China Morning Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Other
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-10 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

South China Morning Post · 3480 article(s) · 6 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 6 correction(s)
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Who wrote this

Jimmy Chow
25 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 Alfred Lam says helping elderly people and disadvantaged communities allows him to look beyond symptoms and understand those he may one day treat Years of volunteering to serve elderly people and disadvantaged communities have informed medical student Alfred Lam’s approach to medicine, teaching the University of Hong Kong undergraduate to look beyond symptoms and understand the people he may one day treat. Lam is a finalist in the youth category of this year’s Spirit of Hong Kong Awards, which recognise the city’s unsung heroes and organisations whose work might otherwise escape public attention.
2026-10-19 · assertive framing · Spirit of Hong Kong Awards: medical student draws from experience of volunteer work
🔮 Claudia Chan Shu-ying, a medical student at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), is developing CancerCompanion, a digital companion designed to offer emotional support between appointments, including late at night when professional help may not be immediately available.
2026-10-17 · assertive framing · A companion between appointments: Hong Kong student’s AI tool for cancer patients
🔮 Founded in 2014, the organisation helps people who may not qualify for legal aid or cannot afford private representation.
2026-10-16 · assertive framing · Beyond legal advice: Hong Kong charity helps bridge the gap in access to justice
🔮 Spirit of Hong Kong Awards finalist Dr Ng Kwai-lun provides transparent funeral care and end-of-life planning through his social enterprise After years of teaching Hongkongers about death and end-of-life arrangements, Dr Ng Kwai-lun realised there was a gap between what people were told they could do and the services actually available to them.
2026-10-16 · assertive framing · It’s your funeral: former academic gives Hongkongers more end-of-life choices
🔮 Dream Compassioneers co-founder Chan Yik-yeung said the response also showed what students could achieve when trusted with responsibility.
2026-10-14 · assertive framing · Small acts, shared dreams: students find purpose in helping children in need
🔮 Born with a hearing impairment, Fung struggled with language subjects at school because he could not always hear clearly.
2026-10-14 · assertive framing · Unexpected path, lasting impact: hearing loss setback leads to decades of teaching
🔮 Mahtani, founder of OCD & Anxiety Support Hong Kong, said better referrals between hospitals, community mental health services and specialist charities could help people receive timely support while they wait for formal treatment.
2026-10-14 · speculative framing · Spirit of Hong Kong Awards: mental health advocate who saved suicidal teen
🔮 “If I had given up after losing six scholarship opportunities, I would not be here in Hong Kong teaching today,” he said.
2026-10-11 · assertive framing · Spirit of Hong Kong Awards: Gaza nurse’s obstacle-laden road to becoming a professor
🔮 She heard the applause but could not see who it came from.
2026-10-10 · assertive framing · Spirit of Hong Kong Awards: Blind musician with rare birth disease plays her heart out
Also by Jimmy Chow
The human touch behind the virtual technology for preparing child cancer patients
2026-10-19 · South China Morning Post
Spirit of Hong Kong Awards: medical student draws from experience of volunteer work
2026-10-19 · South China Morning Post
Banking on bricks: entrepreneur builds a business case for recycling plastic waste
2026-10-18 · South China Morning Post
Spirit of Hong Kong Awards finalist bridges the gap in accessible dental care
2026-10-18 · South China Morning Post
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 25 articles by Jimmy Chow →

Topics

Hong Kong Live Theatre

Subjects

Cassie Li PERSON · 1× Cassie Li Pui-ying PERSON · 1× Hong Kong GPE · 1× Live Theatre ORG · 1× Marine Mak PERSON · 1×

Narrative

But the 17-year-old continues to learn, perform and inspire others A year after a seven-hour surgery in Hong Kong in 2025, Cassie Li Pui-ying was on stage at Queen Elizabeth Stadium, playing the drums before an audience of more than 2,500 people.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-10
🔮 She heard the applause but could not see who it came from.
2026-10-10 · South China Morning Post
Spirit of Hong Kong Awards: Blind musician with rare birth disease plays her heart out · assertive framing

Claims (9 extracted, 1 hedged)

Blind musician with rare birth disease plays her heart out asserted
musician → play → heart
Born with Hirschsprung’s disease, Cassie Li has had a lifetime of health issues. asserted
Li → bear → issues
But the 17-year-old continues to learn, perform and inspire others A year after a seven-hour surgery in Hong Kong in 2025, Cassie Li Pui-ying was on stage at Queen Elizabeth Stadium, playing the drums before an audience of more than 2,500 people. asserted
ying → continue → people
She heard the applause but could not see who it came from. uncertain
it → hear → who
That March night was organised by Live Theatre, which her mother Marine Mak also helps run. asserted
mother → organise → which
Li sang, spoke and played the drums. asserted
Li → sing → drums
The group gives visually impaired students a stage to perform on. asserted
group → give → stage
Despite having been through several serious health scares, what comes across is Li’s faith, optimism and cheer. asserted
comes → come → scares
She moves people. asserted
She → move → people
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