Staccato and Pedal questions

[hammerandtongs]

Hey all,

I've been learning from the books in Howard Kasschau's piano course, so far book 1 and 2. I have 3 questions.

1. Why am I to pedal here in the Beethoven piece?

Regarding the Beethoven file attached, why is the book suggesting I push down on the sustain pedal after the note and release the pedal before the next note?

Wouldn't it be the same to play this bar without the sustain pedal? or is the idea to connect each individual note played on the same count/beat (connect left hand and right hand together)?

2. How to play longer staccato notes?

When the books first introduced the staccato technique It was simply short notes which came naturally with the technique (press on keys quickly and firmly then off quickly while raising the wrists).

Regarding the Joseph Haydn sheet music picture I feel I understand how to play the right hand but not the longer left hand staccato notes. My guess is that I have the same on/off piano approach but just play the note longer, is this right?

3. How to play quieter staccato notes?

Some notes at the end of pieces have "p" or "pp"  markings as well as staccato. To me it seems I have to do two opposing things - I have to hit the keys quickly and firmly (keeping staccato technique) but play softly (keeping with the "p" or "pp" marks).

Hope this isn't too long.

[hammerandtongs]

same pictures just smaller resolution attached, hopefully easier to open.

[j_menz]

1. Pedal

The pedal does more than just "hold" the notes, it takes the dampers off the strings (all the strings), allowing them to vibrate in sympathy with the notes being held. It gives a richer sound, even if you don't actually press another note in the meantime.

Play around with it and listen for the difference.

If you are playing on a lower end digital piano, however, it probably won't make any difference at all.

2. Staccato

Varying the volume and the staccato-iness (for want of a much better word) is something that comes with practice. You will be aware that you attach the note differently if it is staccato than if it is legato, but you should be able to see that there are a range of attacks in between. Just noodle about on a couple of notes and try out different degrees of crispness in your attack.

What makes it more or less staccato is the time from hit to release, not the strength of the hit.  Making that a longer time gives you a longer note - less staccato. A shorter time means a crisper staccato. The volume is controlled by the strength of the hit. So a gentle hit, released very quickly will give you a soft crisp staccato. A faster hit, but with more time before the release, will give you a louder, but less crisp staccato.

[iansinclair]

I can only add that staccato is, to a very great extent, a matter of style, particularly in later works (in baroque, it is somewhat more conventionalised, at least for organ -- where the initial idea, which can be modified, is that a staccato marking is taken to mean that the note is held for half its value, with silence for the second half).  You can have a very sharp staccato -- strrike and release as fast as possible -- ranging all the way out to what I would call detache -- a just barely audible break in the legato.  And the choice is influenced by the style of the piece in question and by the performer's artistic judgement.  As j_menz notes, the length of the hold has nothing to do with the volume, although I'd be the first to admit that a very short pianissimo staccato takes a lot of control!  It's worth working on and fiddling with.

Again, as j_menz notes, in an acoustic piano in good tune (even a small upright, although very pronounced in a good grand) exactly when one presses the sustain pedal makes a very significant difference in the sound of the note (pressing just before the hammers strike is going to be different from just after, even) and affords a degree of control over the sound quality which is very desirable (for example: find a really good grand, in tune, and play the last six bars or so of the Schubert Op.90 #1 with no pedal, then with pedal on only the last two bars...).  Again, it is often a matter of style and taste.  One has to have a pretty darn sophisticated digital piano to have it make any difference, though, if digital is what you are working with.

[hammerandtongs]

Thanks for the detailed responses!

just comes down to practice/experimenting now.

[hammerandtongs]

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[hammerandtongs]

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