The Beginner's Guide to Learning Piano
Chapter 9
Piano Pedals
The Beginner's Guide to Learning PianoPlaying piano isn’t just about what you do with your hands. Using your feet to work the pedals also plays a big part in enriching the sound. In this chapter, we explain what you’ll need to get started using piano pedals.
When you picture a piano in your mind, what do you see? It’s probably the keyboard, right? But if you shift your attention a little closer to the ground, there are some equally important parts of the instrument to be found: the pedals.
The two or three pedals on your piano open up more possibilities beyond the keyboard, allowing you to shape the sound and dynamics of your playing in different ways. In this article, you’ll learn what the pedals on a piano do, the proper technique for using them, and how to find pedal markings in musical notation.
Types of pedals on a piano
Pianos can have up to three different pedals: the soft pedal, the sostenuto pedal, and the sustain pedal. Acoustic pianos typically include two or three pedals. Digital pianos usually come with inputs for anywhere between one to three pedals, which are often sold separately.
When to start using piano pedals?
If you’re an absolute beginner, you don’t have to worry much about pedals yet. It’s a slightly more advanced technique—but not too advanced! Once you can play a song confidently with both hands, you’ll be ready to start experimenting with pedals.
Sustain pedal (Right)
The sustain pedal is the most commonly used pedal. It allows the notes to “sustain” (or keep sounding out) after your fingers release the keys. This allows you to seamlessly connect one note or chord to the next, without a break in the sound.
In acoustic pianos, the sustain pedal controls the dampers: felt pads that rest against the piano’s strings. This is why it’s also called the “damper” pedal. When you press down the sustain pedal, it lifts all the dampers off the strings at once—allowing the strings (and thus the notes) to resonate for longer. Musically speaking, this action blends notes together, creating a rich, resonant wash of sound.
Legendary pianist Artur Rubinstein even called the sustain pedal the “soul of the piano”. So if you are learning on a keyboard that doesn’t have built in pedals, this is one that you should acquire first. For more on how to pick a sustain pedal, check out Chapter 1 - Choosing a Piano or Keyboard.
Sostenuto pedal (Middle)
The sostenuto pedal holds notes that are already being played at the moment when the pedal is pressed down. Any notes that begin after the pedal is down are not affected. This produces a selective sustain effect, holding down only the notes that you want to sustain. It allows a long note or chord to continue to resonate while your hands are busy playing other notes.
Other functions of the third pedal
The middle pedal is not included on older pianos. But even if your piano does have three pedals, the middle pedal may not be a sostenuto pedal. Some pianos replace it with a bass sustain pedal that sustains only the lower (“bass”) notes. Other pianos have a practice pedal (aka “celeste pedal”) that softens the notes even quieter than a soft pedal. They often have a locking mechanism so you can practice without bothering people quite so much.
Soft pedal (Left)
The soft pedal, also called the “una corda” pedal, is the leftmost pedal on the piano. By pressing it, you’ll make the piano sound a little softer – just as its name suggests. In addition to reducing the volume, it also affects the quality of sound, making it more muted and ethereal. It does this in slightly different ways, depending on the kind of piano.
Strings in acoustic pianos are usually grouped in threes of the same note. When played without the soft pedal, the hammer strikes all three strings at the same time. On a modern grand piano, the soft pedal only moves the hammers, allowing them to strike one string fewer than usual, in turn softening its sound and resonance
On most upright pianos, the soft pedal moves the hammers closer to the strings. As the hammers have less distance to travel, this reduces the speed at which they hit the strings, softening the sound.
The origin of "una corda"
On older pianos, each note only had two strings per note instead of three (as is now common in modern pianos). Using the soft pedal shifted the keys so that they would only strike one string. This is where the pedal got its original name of “una corda”, which translates to "one string" in English.
How to use piano pedals
If you’re still fairly new to piano, focusing on just the sustain pedal is a great place to start. If you’ve been playing for some time, you can try experimenting with all the pedals to see how they affect the sound.
Generally, we recommend using your right foot for the sustain pedal, and left foot for both the soft and sostenuto pedals. You’ll usually only ever need to use one or maybe two pedals at a time, so you don’t have to worry about getting carried away with elaborate footwork!
Start by sitting at the piano as you usually do, making sure your feet are flat on the floor. Line them up so the big toes of both feet are in line with the left and right pedals. When you want to use a pedal, raise the front of your foot and move it forward. Place the ball of your foot on the rounded end of the pedal, in line with the big toe. Pivot down in a smooth motion, keeping your heel on the floor.
Delayed/legato pedalling means pressing down the pedal after you play a note, releasing it, then pressing it down again after the next note is played. It is the most common, as it allows the notes to flow into the next, without giving a muddy sound.
Common techniques for the sustain pedal
- Delayed/legato pedaling means pressing down the pedal after you play a note, releasing the pedal, then pressing the pedal down again after the next note is played. It’s the most common technique, as it allows each note to flow into the next without creating a muddy sound.
- Half pedaling means partially pressing down the sustain pedal so the dampers only lightly touch the strings. Use this if you want a slightly richer tone, without blurring the sound. Some pianists use it for Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata, or to make Mozart sound less “dry”.
- Preliminary pedalling means pressing down the sustain pedal before you play a note. This takes the damper off the string before the hammer strikes, creating a deeper, richer tone and making it ring out even more. You won’t use this very often.
- Simultaneous pedalling (aka direct/rhythmic pedalling) means pressing and releasing the pedal at the same time as playing a note or chord. This accentuates it, helping create emphasis in a more rhythmic manner. This is also rarely used.
Common mistake: overusing the sustain pedal
“….abusing the pedal is only a means of covering up a lack of technique, making a lot of noise to drown the music you’re slaughtering!” - Claude Debussy
Debussy was harsh, but he had a point. If not used carefully, the sustain pedal can create a muddy, noisy sound. How can you avoid this? A good rule of thumb is to be careful with the sustain pedal if the melody is made up of neighboring notes or whenever chords are changing. Make sure you lift the pedal fully and “clear” the sound before pressing down again, otherwise it can get muddy. Always let your ears guide you and compare your playing to a recording of a professional pianist.
How to read pedal notation
Some composers are clear where they intend for you to use the pedals in their pieces. Others may use no explicit pedal notation at all, and leave the interpretation up to the player. You can think of pedal notation as a suggestion—let it guide you, and also remember that you have the freedom to use the pedals as you think sounds best.
It’s also important to remember that many famous pieces were written on or for predecessors of modern-day pianos, such as the harpsichord. The pedal notation that worked for those instruments doesn’t sound the same on today’s pianos. For example, Beethoven noted that the sustain pedal should be pressed for the entirety of the first movement of the Moonlight Sonata, without clearing. This sounded fine on a fortepiano because the sound decayed faster, but sounds exceptionally muddy on a modern piano.
In sheet music, pedal markings show when to push down on a pedal, and when to lift off again. Each pedal is marked slightly differently, but the principle is the same:
- Sustain (damper) pedal: Down = “Ped.” Up = “✱”
- Sostenuto pedal: Down = “Sost. Ped.” Up = “✱”
- Soft (una corda) pedal: Down = “una corda” Up = “tre corda”
While written music doesn’t always notate pedaling, don’t be afraid to improvise. If you think a section of music would sound better with the use of a pedal, experiment and hear the difference for yourself. As you get more familiar with the effect of each pedal and how to use them, you can add even more dimension and expressiveness to your playing.
Learn the correct pedaling technique with the flowkey app
Enhance your piano pedaling skills with flowkey’s interactive courses. By completing lessons on the sustain pedal, you’ll learn when to correctly press and release the pedal, how to coordinate your hands and feet for dynamic playing, and how proper sustain pedal technique can add even more emotion to your sound. Get started with flowkey today to continue learning.
