Students will start to develop more control over the use of the sustain pedal in Stage D.
Activities
- To develop control over the sustain pedal ask the student to play a scale they know using one finger only (finger 3 is good to start with), and get them to try to make a legato sound using pedal only.
- We are used to tapping our feet on the beat but often when we are using the pedal to create a legato sound we need to raise our foot on the beat instead. The instinctive action is reversed. It can be helpful to explain this to adult students in particular.
- Discuss the difference between legato pedalling and using the pedal to change the timbre of the sound.
piano TRACKS Project 