The Prince of Wales is apparently keen to bring Prince George, Charlotte and Louis up with a skill that he sadly lost over the years. He made the intriguing revelation during a visit to The Oasis Village earlier this month.
Prince William was there to hear more about the work of Spiral Skills. This Lambeth-based charity has received funding from the Royal Foundation’s Homewards Fund to expand their community-led approach to tackling youth homelessness.
During his time there, he went to Symphony Studios where he saw first-hand the impact music has upon young people. As per Hello!, Prince William sadly admitted that he’s unable to read music, but it’s something he “make[s] sure” his kids can do.
“It’s brilliant you guys have clearly done a lot of practising, well done, that’s not easy doing that in front of everyone – that’s brilliant,” the Prince reportedly told the young musicians taking part in a workshop. “You’ve all got amazing rhythm and it sounds fantastic, I wish I started when I was your age. I couldn’t read music so that was my biggest weakness.”
Although he “started off playing piano, trumpet and the drums” he then “realised [he]I had to memorise every tune” as he couldn’t read the notes. Because of this, Prince William’s music-playing “just fell away”.
“I make sure my children learn music because I love music and it’s crucial, really important,” the senior royal added, revealing he doesn’t want this to happen to George, Charlotte and Louis.
(Image credit: Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images)
When asked if he wanted to have a go on the drums, Prince William politely declined, but confirmed that his youngest child is very much still playing this instrument.
He declared, “I’m definitely not a drummer. I’m happy to see you do it, if my youngest was here, he’d have a go, because he’s practicing at the moment, but I’d love to hear you do it.”
Earlier this year the Prince of Wales shared that Prince Louis was learning the drums, joking that it’s why he spends his “whole life” with his fingers in his ears. Meanwhile, Prince George is understood to be taking guitar lessons and Charlotte is following in their mum’s footsteps and is learning the piano.
The Princess of Wales spoke with pianist Lang Lang at the Royal Variety Performance in 2023 and, as per Hello!, talk turned to Charlotte.
“Her Royal Highness said to me that she said to Princess Charlotte ‘Hey, look, if you practise a lot you can be like him’,” the musician explained. “So I’m happy to be helpful a little bit. It’s really funny, I was like, wow, I’m sure she will do well at the piano. I think she is practising.”
Unlike her husband, the Princess of Wales does seem to be able to read music and has played the piano at two high-profile occasions in the past few years. The first of these was when she accompanied singer Tom Walker on his song For Those Who Can’t Be Here at her inaugural Together at Christmas carol service.
Kate also demonstrated her skills in a pre-recorded performance at the beginning of the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest. She’s clearly kept up her piano playing and will likely have a few music-reading tips for all three of her children to ensure they have this “crucial” skill.
