Four Pianists turned Politicians

Charles Dickens played the accordion, Neil Armstrong played the Baritone Horn, Thomas Jefferson played the violin, and Basketball great Wayman Tisdale played the bass guitar. These are only a few well known people who play a musical instrument. Although these are all worthy stories, let’s focus on the piano. As you might imagine, there are a lot of people you may have heard of who have played piano. (We’ll skip people like Elton John, Billie Joel, and Little Richard for obvious reasons) Today, we’re focused on people who have made a name for themselves as a political figure.

Condoleezza Rice

Condoleezza Rice was the first African American woman as well as the second woman to serve as the United States Secretary of State. She served in this position from 2005-2009 under President George W. Bush. She now serves as a faculty member of Stanford University.

Ms. Rice is a highly accomplished piano player. When she was 15, she played with the Denver Symphony Orchestra which was an award for a piano competition she had won. Today, Ms. Rice plays a few times a month with a string quartet in Washington with a group of lawyers in her apartment. Many of her quartet members, like her, are highly trained with one being a former college cello teacher. In addition she has performed with Yo-yo Ma as well as solo performances at embassies and for Queen Elizabeth II.

Bill Clinton

Most people who remember the Bill Clinton presidential era know that his Saxophone was an integral part of who he was. He didn’t have the virtuoso ability of Condoleezza Rice but he did have a talent that allowed him to play and enjoy the saxophone and music in general. He was even presented with a custom made presidential saxophone that was later donated to a museum.

Harry Truman

As a young boy Harry Truman woke up at 5am every day and practiced piano for two hours. He once said that if he was good enough, he would have never been president but instead a professional pianist. His mother was his first teacher and later, he had teachers in his town. At age 15 he quit taking piano lessons telling his mother that he would never be good enough to play full time.

According to the Truman library, in 1945 he played piano for a group of Methodist women, winked at them and said, “When I played this, Stalin signed the Potsdam Agreement.”

Richard Nixon

President Nixon is known for bigger things than his musical talent but most people don’t know that not only was Richard Nixon a pianist but he was also a composer. In fact, a concerto that he wrote was so good that he performed it on the Jack Parr show and five years later, he became President of the United States.

Although we mention only four American political figures, the world is filled with many more. Brittish Prime ministers and Indian peace movement leaders are just a few examples of the many around the world who have made the piano their instrument of choice.

People like this are proof that music is very accommodating. You don’t have to play music full time to enjoy the benefits of playing.