You're Using the Sustain Pedal Wrong

[00:00:00]The sustain pedal is the single fastest way to make your piano playing sound more beautiful and more professional.

[00:00:06]But here's the problem. Most beginners are using it completely wrong. And the worst part is they have no idea. In this video, I'm going to show you the three most common sustain pedal mistakes I see all the time and then show you exactly how to fix them. By the end of this video, you're going to understand one simple rule that changes everything. And I put together a free sustain pedal practice sheet with all exercises written out so you can practice at home.

[00:00:28]The link is in the description. So, let's get into it. The first mistake is holding the sustain pedal down the entire time. I see this all the time.

[00:00:36]Someone discovers the pedal, realizes it sounds beautiful, and just leaves it down for the entire song. And it sounds like this.

[00:00:50]Everything is blending together into a complete mess. The notes are stepping on each other and nothing is clear. That is what happens when you treat the sustain pedal like an on andoff switch. The second mistake is the opposite. Not using the pedal at all because it feels like one too many things to think about.

[00:01:06]And it sounds like this.

[00:01:12]It's technically correct, but flat and lifeless. The pedal is what gives the piano its warmth and beauty. Without it, everything sounds like you are playing a toy keyboard. Mistake number three, changing the pedal at the wrong time.

[00:01:24]The third mistake is the most common one and you're probably doing it right now.

[00:01:29]It is changing the pedal at the same time as the chord change. So, you lift the pedal and play a new chord at exactly the same moment. And it sounds like this.

[00:01:45]Did you hear all of those little gaps?

[00:01:47]Every time the chord changes, there is a tiny moment of silence. The music keeps stopping and starting instead of flowing together. That is the pedal killing your playing instead of helping it. So, here's the fix. Here is the one rule that fixes everything. Chord first, pedal second. You play the new chord, then you clear the pedal immediately after, not at the same time after. So, here I am playing C major.

[00:02:12]When I go to G major, I'm going to play that chord and then I'm going to lift the pedal right after like this.

[00:02:21]Now, watch me go to the next chord.

[00:02:23]pedal right after I play the chord.

[00:02:27]And again, so I tell my students, chord first, pedal second. Watch it one more time.

[00:02:46]That now makes it where it sounds very smooth between your chords. Now, we're going to get into some exercises to help you really learn this. And by the way, all four of these exercises are written out in the free sustain pedal practice sheet. The link is in the description.

[00:03:00]Add them to your practice routine this week, and the coordination will click faster than you think. All right, we're going to start with whole notes, slow chord changes, easy to feel the timing.

[00:03:09]Then, we're going to move to half notes, slightly faster, the brain starts to coordinate. Then, we're going to move to quarter notes, where it gets a little faster. And lastly, we're going to do arpeggios, which is the hardest level.

[00:03:19]So, here's the first exercise with whole notes. We're gonna switch between these two chords, C major and C sus 2, so you don't have to move too much and you can really focus on the pedal. So, check this out. I'm going to play C major.

[00:03:33]And I'm going to keep switching between my chords, but I'm going to do the pedal correctly. Chord first, pedal second.

[00:03:47]So watch that whole thing again one more time.

[00:04:00]Once you have that down, we're going to move to half notes, which is a little bit faster. So here's the second exercise. Same chords, half notes.

[00:04:17]This exercise answers a really common question. You only change the pedal when you have a new chord. So notice I didn't change it between every chord, just the new chord. So watch it one more time.

[00:04:38]All right. And now we're going to move to an exercise with quarter notes. So check this one out.

[00:04:55]So this one's a little trickier because you're moving your hands a little bit more. So check it out one more time.

[00:05:13]And finally, our last exercise is the hardest one because it's with arpeggios and our right hand is doing a lot more.

[00:05:20]So, let's check it out. We're still playing the same chord. So, check this out. I'm playing C major. I'm just breaking it up. That's what an arpeggio is.

[00:05:31]and then when I switch to the next chord, I have to change my pedal really fast and do it at the right time.

[00:05:48]So, watch the whole thing with both hands.

[00:06:09]Now, I'm going to talk about your actual foot position because we want to make sure that's correct as well. So, check it out. We're going to have our heel on the floor and we're going to have our toe on the edge of the pedal. So, we're not going to put our entire foot all over the pedal. that gives you a lot less control. So, make sure your heel is on the floor and you've got your big toe on the pedal. That gives you the most control. Now, let me show you correct pedaling on a real song. I'm going to do it with the song All of Me by John Legend without the pedal. And then I'm going to show you with the pedal so you can really absorb and make sure you're doing it right. So, here's the song without the pedal.

[00:06:53]And now let's listen to it with the pedal using all the correct techniques that we talked about today. And notice also how much better it sounds.

[00:07:07]So there it is. Three mistakes, one rule, chord first, pedal second. every single time. Add those four exercises to your practice routine this week and the coordination will click much faster than you think. And be sure to grab the free sustain pedal practice sheet in the description. Everything is written out and ready for you. Now, here's the thing. The pedal is only one piece of what makes piano sound so beautiful. If you want to take everything up another level, watch this next. It'll show you beautiful patterns you can play with your chords. Once you have these patterns under your fingers and your pedal is working correctly, your playing is going to sound so beautiful. And if this video helped you, be sure to like and subscribe and I'll see you next time.