Juilliard graduate helping dedicated adult pianists who love challenging repertoire practice less while learning more.
ππ¦ΆWatch my foot, not my hands
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Your score tells you when to pedal down and when to release. That gap is where most of your pedaling decisions are happening on autopilot and you don't even know it. In this YouTube short from the recent 50 Shades of the Damper Pedal workshop, I'm playing 24 seconds of Debussy Reflets dans l'eau. {Come back here after you've watched the short excerpt.} In Mozart and early Beethoven, I pedal fast as the texture demands clarity. In Chopin and Debussy, I often pedal slow, creating a veiled sound before it clears. The score never told me that. That's you making an interpretive decision instead of just executing one. Want to learn how to let your ear guide you when pedaling? The full workshop replay is available for $27 today, it goes up to $37 tomorrow. ps Reply and let me know which music you chose to experiment with pedaling on. |
Lisa Spector, Piano Ninja
Juilliard graduate helping dedicated adult pianists who love challenging repertoire practice less while learning more.
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Last week I told you the score is lying to you about pedal. This week I want to show you what it sounds like when you stop following the score and start listening instead. Are you using the damper pedal the same way every time? Down to connect. Up to clear. Repeat. πIt keeps things smooth. It keeps things safe. And it keeps your playing from ever sounding like anything other than competent. Pedal isn't a connector. It's a color. π¨ And the moment you hear the difference, you can't go back. In...