Hey Everyone,
Now that the ATCL exam is nearing, i gotta start polishing up my pieces. I'm a bit wary about the pedalling in Mozart Sonata K309. I know that it is a slow piece, but over pedalling gives it a very typical romantic touch..which my teacher says should NOT be.
Any suggestions from anyone????
Thanks,
Tanmoy

Don't know if this is helpful or not, but my piano teacher seems to loathe any pedalling at all in Mozart! I've not looked into it, but how much do you know about the sort of instruments Mozart was playing on? Find out if the pedal was a relatively recent "invention". But then I suppose you also have to balance this with the (constraints of the?) instruments we play today.

I speak as a pianist who is forever being told off for over-pedalling! ( so much so that I'm avoiding Mozart for diploma, and going from Scarlatti (no pedal at all) to Chopin (fair amount of careful pedalling))

I assume you are talking about the middle movement. I usually encourage pedal use in Mozart's slow movements; it enhances the rich tone already available on a modern grand piano. I teach students not to blur the melodic line - crucial to music from this period.

This particular movement is different as it has so much movement in the melody. The beat is quite slow, but there are a lot of notes within that beat. Using the pedal would blur the melodic line for most of the movement, so much of it is best left without pedal.

Hope this helps

Steve