I, Sostenuto

Standing toe-to-toe with its more popular sisters, equally as accomplished though wholly misunderstood, is the sostenuto pedal.  It is the middle child among piano pedals, its carefully honed skill overshadowed by the unrefined and obvious damper pedal and the simple yet daft soft pedal.  Many people do not know the sostenuto exists; still fewer know its true purpose.

As are many features of the modern-day piano, the sostenuto pedal was invented by Albert Steinway.  The Steinway family is responsible for one of the greatest American-made products in commerce history.  Pianos bearing this name are still made entirely by hand using methods and tools that have remained largely unchanged for over 100 years.  The Steinway grand is a triumph of artisan skill over technology; the market embraces its enduring quality at any price.

When it comes to pedals, most people only notice the one on the right—the side of the pianist that faces the audience.  Known as the damper pedal, its function is to raise the dampers from the strings so that the sounds continue to resonate when struck by the hammers.  This gives the piano its personality, allowing the artist to blend sounds and harmonies.  It is the musical equivalent of blending paint with a wet brush (not the same kind of ‘damper’) causing the colors to run together to create new colors.   The damper pedal is effective when used judiciously, but it is often overused or misused.  For many piano players, the damper pedal can be a bit of a crutch, filling breaks in the music (as if by one who cannot endure a natural break in conversation) or obfuscating poorly executed passages.  As such, its talents can quickly become tedious.

The left foot takes the pedal on the left, known as the soft pedal.  This is a misnomer, as the soft pedal does not affect a decrescendo.  It shifts the keyboard so that the hammers, which normally strike three equally tuned strings per key, are aligned with only one string.  The effect is a change in timbre, not volume.  Many teachers instruct their students to use the soft pedal any time a passage is played softly.  In fact, loud and soft are meant to come from the fingers—hence the full name of the modern instrument, ‘pianoforte.’  The modern piano is remarkable because of the physics that enable the keys, which are struck by the fingers, to translate sound volume through the hammers.  The soft pedal redirects attention away from this marvel of engineering, promising far more than it actually delivers.

But, ah, the sostenuto pedal, a quiet princess hidden between two flamboyant siblings, her powers left virtually unknown.  With only two legs per pianist, what use are three pedals?  She is like the superfluous child of selfish parents whose lives are fulfilled embracing their other two children, one in each arm.  Only she knows her true worth:  an extraordinary ability to sustain a custom collection of notes on demand while the others are left unaffected.  Sostenuto is used rarely, but by contrast to the other pedals, it is used well.  It is a game changer, delivering on demand to stunning affect and leaving spectators wondering how it was all accomplished.  This pedal is not for everyone, and that’s okay.  Its talents are best left to those who can appreciate it.

Tomorrow's blog:  Reality Check