But I feel like the soft pedal also acts in gradients, just like the fingers do. Why does Fleisher refer to it as an all-or-nothing occurrence?
Leon Fleisher says that applying the soft pedal partly is like being a little bit pregnant. Funny. But I feel like the soft pedal also acts in gradients, just like the fingers do. Why does Fleisher refer to it as an all-or-nothing occurrence?
I don't think he means it as an all or nothing - just that she should be more consistent with it. Like "I'm using it a little" - "no, either you are using it or you are not". I wouldn't read too much into it.
With that logic then why do we need a soft pedal in the first place, if softness can be done with the fingers alone?
Advanced techniques for the soft pedal includes using it during forte to gain access to extra colors and holding it down during a crescendo and releasing it at the end to get an extra surge of sound. You absolutely don't need to limit yourself to using it for soft and "airy" passages.