Taron Egerton spent "six to eight weeks" learning to play the piano for ‘Rocketman’.
The 29-year-old actor took on the role of Sir Elton John in the recently released biopic of the musical legend’s life, and although having to sing came easy to the actor, he didn’t know how to play the piano before being cast.
Taron was trained by Michael L. Roberts – a multi-instrumentalist who served as the vocal, piano, and performance coach on ‘Rocketman’ – who taught him to play the instrument through intense training sessions which ran for eight weeks during the pre-production stages of the movie.
When asked how long he worked with Taron on the piano, Michael said: "It worked out as about two to three hours a day, five days a week, for six to eight weeks in pre-production. And then I was there on set with him every time he was at the piano to to give reminders and help structure each scene."
And Michael said the most challenging song to learn was ‘Crocodile Rock’, which sees Taron suspended on wires as he plays the piano.
Speaking about the most difficult song, he said: "I think when you when you watch it through the sheer volume of movement, things to remember, and being suspended on wires, it’s got to be ‘Crocodile Rock’ in terms of just sheer incredible feat of performance."
Whilst Taron doesn’t play the piano on every track in the film, Michael said there are several moments that are "pretty much entirely Taron".
Speaking to ScreenRant.com, he said: "So whilst the sound that you’re hearing is is recorded afterwards, obviously, ‘Crocodile Rock’ is pretty much entirely Taron. Everything you see him hitting is for real. And ‘Your Song’, ‘Benny and the Jets’, when he’s in the Queen costume, all of that is for real. And leading into "I’m Still Standing" at the end. Whenever you see his hand reach out, he knows he knows exactly where he was going for."
Taron Egerton learnt piano for ‘eight weeks’ for Rocketman
