12 replies to this topic

[Ligneo Fistula]

[tulip21]

I voted for "d" but am not quite sure, honestly.

[fsharpminor]

I dont think I am consistent on this, but mainly D

[Ligneo Fistula]

I voted for "d" but am not quite sure, honestly.

Why is that, tulip21? Is pedalling very natural or instinctive to you?

[corenfa]

A or C depending on the pedal and my shoes

[tulip21]

I voted for "d" but am not quite sure, honestly.

Why is that, tulip21? Is pedalling very natural or instinctive to you?

I think this is mainly because I haven't analyzed my foot use for pedalling very carefully, plus a less-than-full understanding of the terminology in the answers.

[EllieD]

It's footwear that is important for me! I take shoes with thin soles with me to my piano lesson and at home I'm just wearing socks. There's Youtube videos of ladies wearing stilleto shoes and I have no idea how you can pedal wearing those! But even ordinary outdoor shoes, I wouldn't be able to feel what I'm doing.

 

Probably C for me.

[SingingPython]

Interesting question!  It prompted me to go and practice an accompaniment I'm trying to learn for a couple of my students ...  Usually I don't pedal it at all (Vivaldi) so I had a bit of fun playing around with different options.

 

I found that if I was using quick touches / quick changes of pedal, I tended towards A or B, but if I wanted to hold the pedal down longer and just lift it now and then, I shifted to the ball of my foot ie C.

 

I agree about footwear; currently at home wearing thin soled slippers!

 

The other thing that might influence it is the position and length of the pedals - I have a vague thought that grand piano pedals might tend to be different to uprights a bit?  This is just guessing though.  Accompanied a couple of students at local music festival recently and had completely overlooked the very different position of the music on a grand which would have been offputting if I hadn't been up against it first with my littlest beginners!

[Ligneo Fistula]

It's footwear that is important for me! I take shoes with thin soles with me to my piano lesson and at home I'm just wearing socks. There's Youtube videos of ladies wearing stilleto shoes and I have no idea how you can pedal wearing those! But even ordinary outdoor shoes, I wouldn't be able to feel what I'm doing.

 

Probably C for me.

Yes of course. My apologies for missing off this option.

[tulip21]

It's footwear that is important for me! I take shoes with thin soles with me to my piano lesson and at home I'm just wearing socks. There's Youtube videos of ladies wearing stilleto shoes and I have no idea how you can pedal wearing those! But even ordinary outdoor shoes, I wouldn't be able to feel what I'm doing.

Probably C for me.

I also think footwear can matter, but not to an extreme degree. I don't think I can pedal with slippers that fall off easily or flip flops, but I never really wear these anyway. I'm the opqsite with regards to pedalling without shoes. My feet are small, so I find it easier to reach the pedals with shoes on. I wear crocks or slippers that stay on well when playing piano at home.

[Ligneo Fistula]

I'm sorry I didn't consider the footwear option.

 

I tend to play in socks at home and yet manage well in sturdy footwear elsewhere, so this probably speaks volumes about my competence when it comes to half- and other pedalling techniques!

[Misterioso]

I dont think I am consistent on this, but mainly D

 

Me too, fsharpminor. But I'm not sure if this is different to what I used to do, but after extensive surgery my foot no longer works in quite the same way, so more sole rather than less seems to be the best way to go!

[Ligneo Fistula]

Do piano tutors typically specify what part of the foot to use for pedalling to their students, or do they simply let the student do whatever feels comfortable and achieves the desired outcome?