Member's statement: Freya Terris: Young Pianist
Member's statement by Mr Robbie Butler on .
- MLA
- Mr Robbie Butler
- Party at the time
- Ulster Unionist Party
- Date
- 30 June 2026
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- Freya Terris: Young Pianist
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5652758
Read the official Assembly record
Text
Today, I want to talk about a very talented young girl from Lisburn called Freya Terris. Freya, who is 17 years old, attends Friends' School and studies the piano under former Lisburn resident Rory Dowse. Freya is an incredibly accomplished young pianist and has performed in the Ulster Hall. She gave a keynote talk at the Northern Ireland Young Musician Competition in the Waterfront last year, and, earlier this year, she passed her grade 8 piano exam with distinction. What makes Freya unique is that she did it all using only her left hand. Freya had played piano since she was only four years of age. She loved it, and she immersed herself in it so much that it became a part of her identity. Sadly, a long-term injury and surgery left her unable to play with her right hand. Most would have given up, and no one would have blamed Freya had she done so, but Freya is cut from a different cloth, and she showed Herculean determination and steadfast patience, spending years building up her technique from the foundations and learning to play at a high standard with only her left hand. Freya then took the initiative and contacted the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) to see whether it was possible to sit a grade 8 exam using only her left hand. The board agreed, and, in January of this year, she sat and passed her grade 8 piano exam using only her left hand, becoming the first person ever to do so in 137 years of the ABRSM. The story does not stop there. Earlier this month, the ABRSM announced that, for the first time, its 2027-28 piano syllabus will include a dedicated list of piano music for one hand from grade 1 to grade 8. Anyone who knows anything about music will know that grade 8 is a phenomenal standard. For the first time in the board's history, pianists at every level can work towards a recognised qualification even if they have the use of only one hand. Freya has not let her restrictions define her or her piano ability. Her family are proud of her, I am proud of her, Lisburn is proud of her, Lagan Valley is proud of her, and I am sure that everyone in the Assembly will also say that they are proud of her, not just because of what she has achieved for herself but because of what she has achieved for others. I recommend to anyone who wants to take the time that they jump on to Rory Dowse's website to hear a fantastic recital played by Freya. Trust me: it will blow your mind.
450 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
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