Pedalboard

“ That for the left foot, the piano pedal, acts by reducing the number of strings struck by the hammers, or softens their impact either by interposing a strip of felt, or by diminishing their length of blow. That for the right foot, the forte pedal, takes the dampers out of use altogether, or allows the player, by judicious management with the foot, so as to avoid confusing the sound, to augment and prolong it by increasing what are called sympathetic vibrations, an invaluable help to the beauty of tone of the instrument. ”

“ But with proper caution there is no danger either of falls or hurt in using the velocipede in the way we have advised. The pedal is constructed so that the foot of the rider can at once leave it; and should the machine incline to one side, it is only necessary to remove the foot from the same side, and place it on the ground. One must not let the handles go; they seem to restore and maintain the balance of the machine after the rider is off it. ”

“ When the end of the ride is reached, the man quickly dismounts and is at his companion’s side to assist her, she, in the meantime, assisting herself as much as possible. This is done—that is, dismounting in the most approved style—by riding slowly, and when the left pedal is on the rise, the weight of the body is thrown on it, the right foot is crossed over the frame of the machine, and, with an assisting hand, the rider easily steps to the ground. ”

“ This is the device which enables the pianist to play staccato or legato. The damper pedal, or loud pedal, checks the action of all the dampers and prolongs the tones even after the fingers have released the keys. The soft pedal brings the hammers nearer the strings, shortens the stroke and produces a softer tone. The simultaneous use of both pedals is a modern 46 virtuoso effect and a very charming one, for the damper pedal prolongs the gentle tones produced by the use of the soft pedal. ”

“ Another point which does not receive the attention it deserves is pedaling. Few students have a true idea of the technic of the foot on the pedal. They seem to know only one way to use the damper pedal, and that is to come down hard on it, perhaps giving it a thump at the same time. I give special preparatory exercises for pedal use. Placing the heel on the floor, and the forepart of the foot on the pedal, they learn to make one depression with every stroke of the metronome ”

“ Very few pianists seem to comprehend the exact function and importance of the pedal. Many will be surprised to hear that the word "touch," which they suppose refers to the way the keys are struck by the fingers, has quite as much to do with the feet—that is, the use of the pedal—as with the fingers. No matter how thoroughly a pianist may have trained his fingers, if he does not use the pedal as it was used by Chopin and Schumann, he cannot reveal the poetry of their compositions. ”

“ The pedestal or pedal-box forms the base of the harp and contains seven pedals both in single and double action harps, the difference being that in the single action the pedals are only capable of raising the strings one semitone by means of a drop into a notch, whereas with the double action the pedals, after a first drop, can by a further drop into a second and lower notch shorten the string a second semitone, whereby each string is made to serve in turn for flat, natural and sharp. ”

“ The pedal will now assume a horizontal position, and the power of the leg with the weight of the body and the pull of the arms will all be exerted to force it downward; at this point the crank throw is in the most effective position, and the hardest work is put in. When the pedal begins to follow a backward course, the ankle-action becomes of the greatest value. ”

“ In going up hill lean well forward, and transfer the entire weight from the saddle to the pedals. Do not be ashamed to dismount in going up hill, but do so in every case rather than exhaust yourself.
In going down hill lean back as far as possible, and keep your machine under control. A little practice in back-pedalling, or pushing against the pedal as it comes up rather than as it goes down, will enable you to take your machine down very steep hills at ordinary walking pace. ”

“ All these Combination Pedals and Pistons move the draw-stop knobs, showing a valuable index of their position to the organist. There are 5 Adjustable Pistons on the treble key frame (and 5 duplicates on the bass key frame) for special combinations, on Manuals, Pedal, and Couplers. There are 5 pedals to operate the various swell boxes of the lever locking type--a locking movement allowing the performer to leave pedal in any position. The swell pedal for the Pedal stops can be coupled to any of the others. ”

“ If you have a bad left hand with intractable fingers always remember that Bach will individualize those fingers, and that old Carl Czerny has written a set of studies for the development of the left hand (op. 399) , which, if taken in moderation just after rising in the morning, will lead to limberness and legato. This is only a suggestive aside, however. Albert Venino has written an excellent Pedal School. Many improvements have been made in pedaling, and Mr. Venino has thoroughly handled his subject. Someone has called the pedal “the breath of the piano,” “its soul,” which is apposite. ”

“ The shifting pedal, or soft pedal as it is popularly called, moves the key-board and action so that the hammer strikes only one or two of the unison strings, leaving the other to vibrate sympathetically. Beethoven was the first to appreciate the possibilities of this effect (see the slow movement of his concerto in G major and his last sonatas) , but after him came Schumann and Chopin, and brought pedal manipulation to perfection, especially that of the damper pedal. This is popularly called the loud pedal, and the vulgarest use to which it can be put is to multiply the volume of tone. ”

“ This renders it the school of schools for those who would really attain a mastery of the instrument, and gain that independence of foot and finger so difficult to acquire. In fact, it is only possible by a thorough study of the great masters in this school of playing, to destroy that sympathy which exists between the left hand and the feet. This sympathy lies in the fact that should a pedal passage ascending occur in conjunction with a left-hand passage descending, the natural inclination of the left hand is to follow the pedal, instead of executing its own independent part. ”

“ Now, since the rider, by the action of his momentum107 and that of the machine, is rolled upon the obstacle or out of the rut, it is easily seen that if he is attending strictly to his work and is at all a skilful rider, he can, by a lively thrust upon the pedal at the opportune time, right himself and keep the drive-wheel rolling on, in which case the rear part of the machine will, in all ordinary cases, drop back upon the ground, from which, of course, it will have raised. ”

“ Force should never be exerted in driving the pedals, they must be "coaxed" round, for this in a word is the art of "ankling." When the pedal is at the top of the stroke, the heel should be [Pg 270] downward as in Fig. 1. As the pedal travels forward and down, the foot should follow it, keeping the ankle as still as possible, till at the bottom of the stroke, the toe is pointing downwards, and the heel is highest. The effect of this will be first of all to give power in riding as shown by Fig. ”

“ The height of the pedals from the ground is a point which is never overlooked by a really good firm of cycle makers. It is desirable to get the pedals as near to the ground as possible for comfort in mounting and for ease of propulsion; but there is a limit, as if too low, the pedal would be likely to catch the ground when the machine leans over on a sharp corner. The consequence of this would be disastrous to the rider. There is also the lesser danger of the pedal striking a stone if too near the ground. ”

“ And, furthermore, the earlier or later the strength is applied to the pedals the less and less powerful it becomes so far as sending the wheel ahead goes. If you press down hard when the pedal is nearly or fully down to its lowest point you are scarcely sending the wheel ahead at all, and all your exertion goes for nothing therefore. Practically speaking, in order to get the best of your strength in at the quarter-circle point you should begin to push, and push vigorously, the moment the pedal has passed by its highest point. ”

“ The pianist often is obliged to use the sustaining pedal to hold a note that he cannot keep down because his fingers are otherwise employed. But the music rolls are cut so that every sustained note is held down as long as the composer directs that it should be. Remember too that the term "loud pedal" as applied to the sustaining pedal, as it properly is called, is incorrect. This pedal sustains but does not increase the power of the sound that is produced. That effect is secured by a stronger pressure of the feet upon the pumping pedals. ”

“ Whether the cyclist elects to provide the motive force by his own efforts or prefers to call in the aid of the internal combustion engine is a question of personal choice. The pedal bicycle, as it is termed, provides exercise with recreation, and the motor is therefore scorned by some athletic enthusiasts. The dependability and speed of the motor cycle are, however, now an established fact, and the advantages of the mechanical propulsion cannot be overlooked where time is a factor. ”

“ For example, the writer (who counts himself not more than up to good average as to ankling) can climb a pretty fair grade, on a good surface, with only the forward push over the upper centre. Of course, people differ in pedalling, as in other features of riding, but ankle motion must be deemed one of the best tests of correct pedalling and therefore of good riding; it is no fad, but in the utmost degree practical, and whatever contributes to it is, so far, valuable.
GARD CRANK AND DIVIDED AXLE.
THE RAMSEY SWINGING PEDAL. (See Pages 90 and 91.) ”

“ Black keys for naturals, and white (ivory) for the sharps look well: they are sometimes to be seen in old instruments, and should be retained; the contrast between them and more modern key-boards, which have a strong harmonium or American organ look, is in their favour. Every player has his own views as to whether the old perpendicular rows of stop-handles, or the French horizontal rows, are the best, and no one form of pedals, plain, concave, radiating, or both concave and radiating, gives universal satisfaction. ”

“ At this point it may be well to begin lessons on the organ, taking great pains to become familiar with the technical part of the instrument, the names of stops and meaning of these names, mechanism and its use. Then will come the careful practice of pedals, which are at first so absolutely bewildering that amateurs are filled with despair at the apparent impossibilities they are asked to face with hope. ”

“ Suddenly the heavy vibration of a single pedal note burst from the organ upon the breathing silence, long drawn out, rich, voluminous, and imposing. Presently, upon the massive bass, great chords grew up, succeeding each other in a simple modulation, rising then with the blare of trumpets and the simultaneous crash of mixtures, fifteenths and coupled pedals to a deafening peal, then subsiding quickly again and terminating in one long sustained common chord. ”

“ Another peculiarity of this remarkable pedal is that its tread is as much below the pivot at the top as at the bottom, so that the leg reach is increased near the ground and decreased at the top. This will be valued in practice, according as the riders find it comfortable to drive (as does the writer) with a full leg reach, or not; yet it is plain that the Ramsey must be a very desirable pedal for women, because it decreases the objectionable rise of the knee. ”

“ The large wheel should be attached to an axle and one of the pedal-cranks made fast to it. Instead of the pedal a wooden handle will slip on the pedal axle where it can be secured by the nut that held the pedal in place. The relative positions 142of wheels, axles, and other parts of this reel can be seen at Fig. 33. A represents the crank, handle, and large wheel; B the axle that passes through the box; C the axle and flanges made fast to the small sprocket-wheel ”

“ Learn to mount from either side of the machine, and to do so lean the machine a little toward you with the outside pedal up, and rather forward, then place your foot on the pedal furthest from you, and as you raise yourself into the saddle, the weight of your body will bear on that pedal, thus sending the opposite one up to meet the other foot. ”

“ The two breaks in each octave where there are no short keys—between B and C, and between E and F—are also excellent guides which are readily available to a practised touch. The position for the front of the short keys of the straight pedals, is in a line with the fronts of the short keys of the Great Manual. With radiating pedals this arrangement is necessarily modified. Occasionally some other pedal than C is placed under the C of the manuals, to bring the extreme upper pedals within more easy reach. ”

“ But experience has quite satisfied us that if a pedal loosens (as it not infrequently does) it is as often one as the other, and the reason is that the force which loosens is not the tendency of the pedal to carry the shaft with it, but the downward pressure coming on the shaft itself. ”