Fancy footwork

Pedalling is such a huge topic, you could write a book about it. In fact, people have, among them the pianist Alexander Bukhovtsev who, in 1896, wrote Guide to the Proper Use of the Pianoforte Pedals (Dover Publications, ISBN 0-486-42782-X), using examples of the great pianist Anton Rubinstein’s performances to illustrate his points. Just skimming Bukhovtsev’s chapter headings alone opens one’s mind to the possibilities and challenges of the pedals: Use of the pedal with single notes or chords; The action and effect of the pedal on rests or pauses; The management of the pedals in passages of thirds; The use of the (right) pedal in chord passages, chromatic and otherwise.

Among the ideas discussed in Bukhovtsev’s guide is the new legato or syncopated pedalling technique that was then emerging where the pedal is pressed after the note is struck and when the finger has left it, then released before the following note is played, and so on. This supplanted the rhythmic pedalling technique in which the pedal was depressed and released as the note was played, and is common practice today.

Even so, despite this and all the other techniques discussed in the book, for many pianists pedalling remains an instinctive act. As long as the notes and harmonies aren’t blurred,