#i'm self-taught musically so know there's heaps i don't know so i could be waaay off base!

[shippingalongnicely]

One Direction, X Factor, and maintaining the fantasy that 'anyone can make it'

Something I've been thinking on ... during the X Factor and 1D days, apart from Niall playing guitar (like a baby rock god!), nothing was ever said much of the boys' musical/instrumental backgrounds .. I think I recall something being said about Liam and piano, but other than H and the others mucking around on drums or with percussion a few times, Louis 'only knowing two songs on piano', and some school-age musical/theatre performances, that's pretty much it.

During this time they all contributed to 1D's songwriting, a skill that could be made easier by (but maybe doesn't require) having at least basic musical theory and the ability to read/write musical scores.

Fast forward to a few years post-1D, and they're accompanying themselves either onstage or when writing on guitar and keyboard, and at least H is credited with playing multiple instruments on his recordings. Now I'm not saying you can't learn and be confident and good enough to play to an audience in a reasonable timeframe, and there's certainly pics of Niall teaching H, footage of all of them mucking around on guitar etc, and they were for sure in the environment to absorb plenty of musical skills, but I've always wondered if they came to X Factor with at least some formal musical training that was glossed over so the fantasy of 'any kid who can sing can be a star' could be maintained.