Can Harry Styles Play The Piano?

Harry Styles is a superstar musician with numerous albums and awards. He is known for his magnificent voice, but can he actually play the piano?

Harry Styles can play the piano. However, he only started learning to play after becoming famous. He has become a decent piano player but still strives to improve.

Harry Could Not Play Piano When He Became Famous

Harry Styles rose to fame after his band One Direction appeared in the seventh series of The X Factor. The boys did not play instruments on the show and sang to background music instead. Harry Styles gained recognition for his singing talent through One Direction’s appearance on the show and subsequent global stardom.

Fans have always wondered about the instruments Harry Styles could play. When a fan asked Harry about his musical talents in 2011, the star bashfully replied that he could only play the kazoo.

Harry Persevered Through Difficult Piano Lessons

In a 2013 interview, Harry Styles revealed that his piano lessons were “going good” even though he was “bad” at it. He always expected that piano would not be easy to learn, and these early lessons proved that he had a long way to go.

However, Harry did not let his initial struggles stop him. In that same interview he affirmed that he was “taking the positives” and learning from his challenging piano lessons. 

Harry Is Not a Piano Prodigy

Even after taking lessons, Harry Styles did not seem very confident in his piano playing. He made fun of his lack of skill on Saturday Night Live in 2019. He initially spoke directly to the crowd in his opening monologue before moving to sit at a piano because “nothing says serious musician like talking while playing the piano.”

He delivered jokes while appearing to pluck away at smooth piano melodies. After a few minutes he said that the crowd may not be convinced of his musicianship and question whether or not he is really playing the piano music they hear. 

Harry reassured the audience to look at the B cam footage for proof of his piano skills. However, the video showed a pair of dark skinned hands playing the beautiful piano music; clearly Harry’s hands were not actually playing the song.

Harry returned to the joke later when he took a drink during his monologue. The piano music continued without a pause, even though both of his hands were visible on top of the instrument. 

Harry Proves He Can Play Piano

Although Harry Styles joked about not playing piano on SNL, other footage shows his ability to tickle the ivories. A 2018 video shows him noodling around on the piano while other musicians warmed up for a performance.

Harry may seem to be plucking a few random notes. However, a closer listen reveals that he concludes his melody with a tonic chord ending on the root. He may not play impressive, rapid notes or complex passages, but he does know his music theory and demonstrates his understanding of the pitches laid out on the piano.

Harry also plays piano in his “Falling” music video. Unlike the 2018 video of a raw, unplanned little piano song, this video is highly produced and shows the singer drowning while playing his piano.

Despite Praise of his Playing, Harry Strives to Improve on Piano

Harry Styles’ fellow musicians have verified that the pop sensation can play piano. Tom Hull, the music director for Harry’s 2017 solo tour, stated that Harry is “very musical” and plays piano in addition to singing and writing his own songs.

Even though Harry has made great progress in learning piano, he admits that he still wants to develop his skills. In 2020 he explained that he feels he “should be playing piano more” in quarantine. Harry elaborated that the piano is a very important instrument in music and he wants to improve his playing.

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