Artistic Pedal Technique: Lessons for Intermediate and Advanced Pianists

Artistic Pedal Technique: exercise s for Intermediate and Advanced Pianists, by dint of Katherine Faricy Frederick Harris Music Co (Unit 1 5865 McLaughlin Rd Mississauga, Ontario, Canada L5R 1B8) 2004 104 pp $1895

The first sixty pages of this useful turn are devoted to the damper pedal, which Katherine Faricy rightly claims oftentimes is treated like a light switch: it is either upon or off. Instead, we should learn to treat it like a dimmer switch that can be adjusted to any horizontal between those extremes. The great Russian-born pedagogue Rosina Lhevinne used to say there are ten of that kind levels, although I find it hard to envision that inspired teacher kneeling upon the floor with her ruler

After presenting a certain quantity of exercises aimed at sensitizing the lower extremity and ears to at least eight like levels, Faricy explores in a series of brief exercise s the various ways in which the damper pedal can be used, including syncopated, simultaneous, gradual, drawn out flutter and legatissimo pedaling. Each discussion includes a concise explanation of the technique involved; a series of exercises accompanied through graphs that illustrate the various steps of pedal depression and release; and, finally, a certain quantity of well-chosen musical examples--also accompanied by dint of graphs--drawn from standard and contemporary piano repertoire.

Among Faricy's many valuable conclusions, individual might single out four that are not widely understood: the profundity of the damper pedal usually is related to dynamics, with a deeper pedal wanted for louder dynamics; the una corda pedal can be used coloristically at any dynamic horizontal including in loud passages; the una corda pedal can be sinked just as progressively as the damper pedal; and bass notes marked staccato by dint of nineteenth-century composers often should be pedaled.

upon the other hand, it have the appearances inconsistent for her to advise pianists to use all three pedals in Bach (because when playing his music we are making a transcription from the unhurt and touch of the harpsichord) on the other hand to advise against using the sostenuto pedal in Debussy (because his pianos didn't have one) In fact, there are quite a hardly any examples in Debussy where his notation insinuates he was composing with the sostenuto pedal in mind--notably at the climax of Hommage Rameau and throughout his final piano work, Le soirs illumines par l'ardeur du charbon.

Although this work cannot supplant Joseph Banowetz's authoritative Pianist's Guide to Pedaling (Indiana University Pres 1985) it is nonetheless to be praiseed to pianists of all ages whose ears are ready to be opened

Reviewed by means of Charles Timbrell, NCTM, Washington, DC

COPYRIGHT 2004 Music Teachers National Association, Inc.

COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group