He Was “Supposed” to Be a Classical Pianist
His parents, who were Dutch and Indonesian, moved the family to the U.S. in the early ‘60s, settling in Pasadena, California. Eddie and his older brother Alex learned to play the piano before they ever made it to the States. Their parents wanted the boys to become classical pianists, just like their father, Jan, a Dutch jazz pianist, clarinetist, and saxophonist.
Eddie and Alex Van Halen with their parents. Source: Twitter
But Eddie was never taught to read music. Rather, he watched recitals of Bach or Mozart and learned to improvise. Even though he won first place in the annual piano competitions at Long Beach City College in the mid-‘60s, Eddie drifted away from classical music, preferring rock instead. Then, when his brother began playing the guitar, Eddie naturally gravitated toward the drums, buying his own drum kit.