The Art of Piano Pedaling: Two Classic Guides, Anton Rubinstein and Teresa Carreno.(Book Review)

edited by Joseph Banowetz and Brian Mann. Dover Publications, Inc. (31 E. 2nd St., Mineola, NY 11501), 2003. 77 pp. $11.95.

The introductions written by Joseph Banowetz and Brian Mann are important additions to this volume. They provide a brief, yet enlightening, historical perspective of pedal use prior to the publication of these two guides.

Originally written in Russian in 1886 by a student of Anton Rubinstein's brother Nikolai, the Guide to the Proper Use of the Pianoforte Pedals is a reproduction of tile 1897 English translation from the German edition, and is a fascinating period pedagogical study. Using specific examples from Anton Rubinstein recitals of 1885-1886 as its point of departure, the Guide offers readers a nuts-and-bolts approach to the "new" pedaling concepts from 1886. Chapter One identifies sixteen separate "Functions" (or theorems) for pedal use, followed by brief definitions of "primary" and "secondary" pedal techniques, which are now referred to respectively as "simultaneous" and "syncopated" pedal. Subsequent chapters provide in-depth commentary explaining the musical reasons for using the suggested pedal techniques, and interspersed throughout the chapters are interesting "Remarks" referencing Rubinstein's concert performance practices. Provided throughout the Guide are an abundance of musical examples excerpted from advanced repertoire, each with the ...