Eastwood's First Love: Jazz Piano

Love, not practice, evinced in movies and performance
By Victoria Floethe,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 15, 2008 3:09 PM CST

Growing up, Clint Eastwood had an affinity for piano but no money for lessons. He nurtured his passion for jazz throughout his life, Nick Tosches writes in Vanity Fair, and has written music for almost every picture he’s directed, including the theme for his recent Gran Torino. But, Eastwood says, “if I’ve had any regret in life, it was not paying more attention to it and not practice, practice, practice.”

Still, he did eventually get on stage at Carnegie Hall in 1996—despite his own lack of confidence in his performance. “All of a sudden, we’re playing away, I’m going along, and finally I’m seeing that maybe … I’m overstaying my welcome here,” he recounts. “I don’t play to perform, though I suppose I could work out some things if I needed to. It’s usually just for my own satisfaction and to get material.” (More Clint Eastwood stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X