‘I could have been a flutist’: Trump says he was once labelled ‘brilliant at music’; briefly played flute as a child

US President Donald Trump in a surprising revelation said he was once identified as a musical prodigy during a childhood aptitude test — a talent his father reportedly didn’t quite appreciate.In an interview, Trump recalled being taken by his parents to an aptitude centre at around the age of 11 or 12 to determine his skills and interests. “They came up to my father. They said, ‘Your son is brilliant at music. He’d be an incredible musician.’ This is not what my father wanted to hear,” Trump said. “But I do have an ear for music. I think music has played a big role.”Trump added that he still remembers being able to recognise and recall musical notes played hours earlier, describing his natural memory for pitch and tone. “They’d play a note, then later ask which one they played an hour ago, and I’d get it right.”When asked whether he ever played an instrument, Trump replied: “I played, like, for very short periods of time — the flute. Would you believe that?” He said he had a private instructor but admitted, “I didn’t particularly like it. It wasn’t for me.”Trump went on to recall his brief stint with a musical instrument. “I played, like, for very short periods of time. The flute. Would you believe that?… I had flute lessons. It’s the first person that’s ever asked me that crazy question. Yeah, I had flute. Can you believe it? I could have been a flutist,” he said. “And I didn’t particularly like it. I don’t know. It wasn’t for me… I had instructors. An instructor coming to teach me how to play the flute. Can you believe that? Who would think?”