From the desk of Jan Hommel, Museum Director:

Q: Which president rose early to practice the piano?

A: Harry Truman. Truman often said that if he had been good enough to be a professional pianist, he never would have become president. From the age of 10, he was a devoted music student, rising at 5 a.m. to play for two hours before school. He stopped taking lessons at the age of 15, when he realized that he did not have the talent to make it as a concert musician. Still, Truman loved to play. At the National Press Club canteen in 1945, when he was still vice president, Truman was photographed at the keyboard, serenading actress Lauren Bacall. (Smithsonian Presidential Trivia)