Pedaling for beginners

Before I ask my question, let me say a few words about my experience. I'm now 63 years old, and am just starting the process of putting together a VPO. As a youth, I studied piano, and although I was no prodigy, I was at least competent. In our home, we also had a Baldwin electronic organ. It was one of those that had two offset, shortened (44 note, I think) manuals and a one octave pedalboard. After my mom purchased the organ I quickly learned that I'd much rather play it than the piano. At first, or course, I found that the needed touch on the keys and the fingering were different, but soon adapted quite well, I believe. However, I was very frustrated with the 3/4 length manuals and the little pedals. Most music scored for organ could not be played as it was intended on those keyboards, and the small, one octave, pedals made learning proper heel/toe technique completely impossible. Actually, I think I pretty much just ignored the pedals after a few attempts at trying to use them.

Now, forty plus years, later, I've begun the process of assembling the console that I dreamed of having so long ago. Before too terribly long, I plan to purchase a full 32 note, concave, radiating pedalboard. My problem is that I don't know how to play pedals, and am not sure of the best way to start learning. I just know that I want to do it properly, however long that may take, and not be one of those organists who's constantly trying to look at his feet! In addition to learning to actually play the pedals, I'm wondering how long it's going to take to learn to read a three stave score at anything other than at a snail's pace.

So, my question to you nice folks is can any of you give me some pointers or guidance on just how I should get started in my quest to achieve basic competency on the pedalboard?

Thanks, much,
-Chris

Among other things, you might see if you can find a copy of "The Organist's Manual" by Roger E. Davis. I picked up my copy (at the suggestion of my teacher) from one of the vendors associated with Amazon. The book has good explanations, as well as lots of exercises for both manuals and pedals. It also has a good anthology of organ literature at various levels. I have found it to be very helpful.

-- John

Hello Chris,

Check out this publication.

http://www.wayneleupold.com/organ-teach ... ld-ed.html

It's a general introduction to organplaying. There's a very thorough chapter devoted to pedal work.

Also, have a look at this little gem.

http://www.wayneleupold.com/organ-teach ... d-arr.html

This book contains a number of hymn tunes arranged in trio style - one voice to each hand and one to the feet. The pedal parts are extremely simple. The first few tunes use just two pedal notes - one for each foot.

From Kevin Mayhew Publishers there are two books by Colin Hand aimed at helping players with piano skills to start using their feet too. The second is the sequel to "One Foot at a Time" which currently doesn't appear in their catalog.

Colin Hand's approach is interesting. He has specialised in creating simplified arrangements of organ works and transcriptions in which he alters the harmonies and musical textures in order to minimise the role of the pedals which still maintaining an overall feeling of completeness.

http://www.kevinmayhew.com/info/contrib ... edals.html

http://www.kevinmayhew.com/info/contrib ... -time.html

Andrew

I can highly recommend the below computerized organ course, OrganTutor 101 - PC course plus workbook. It covers all general aspects of organ playing, including a good section on pedal techniques, and a set of suitable scores to practice. This format I think is more effective than a book alone. It is meant for those with piano experience who want to learn organ playing. Cost $69.50.
Ernst

http://www.ardpublications.com/

Hi Chris,

You may want to check out Richard Enright's "Fundamentals of Organ Playing". Dick is a very gracious man who is Professor Emeritus of organ at Northwestern University (back when NU still had an organ program). This method is geared for pianists who want to learn proper organ technique. It's practical, reasonably priced and is published by Concordia Publishing House.

Best regards,
Greg

I'd like to thank you all for your wonderful suggestions -- especially, Andrew who took so much time to look up the actual links to several publications.

Just looking at the covers of these books, and reading some of the pedal lessons in OrganTutor 101, makes me feel more confident, because I now know that there is guidance, practice exercises, and appropriate music scores available for the beginner on pedals. I wish I could start, now!

Again, I say "thanks" to you guys. I can see that the Hauptwerk Forum is made up of a bunch of really great folks.

-Chris

Thanks Chris. I hope you get your pedalboard soon.

Andrew

Advice from an organ tutor I used to know:
"The first time you sit at an organ, look at the pedalboard. Do you notice that the notes are laid out exactly the same way as the keyboards? Right, in that case you know what the layout of notes is. Now you never need to, or should, look at the pedals ever again." Maybe a bit extreme but he had a point.

Another piece of advice:
Depends if you want to learn to play or if you want to learn to sound like you can play. If the former, try never to look at the pedals but learn to figure out where they are, if the latter, always look. The latter is fine for enjoying hymn playing but will frustrate you if you want to improve.

Further advice: make sure you can play the keyboards without having to look (normally) at your hand position before you satart learning the pedals, that makes things easier. And when you learn a piece of music, always practice hands separately, feet separately, left hand and pedals, right hand and pedals, then only after all that put all three together.

Finally, don't forget to include manuals-only pieces in your repertoire to play and enjoy when you are getting frustrated with the feet!

Hi Organorak,

Thanks for sharing these useful tips. Yesterday arrived my pedal board (first time!), a Baldwin Midi-tised AGO board. I need to modify a few things to my console (well, really, a lot, because I also got a MIDI-prepared 3-manual stack made by Laukhuff). And after that I shall put my first steps on the pedal...

Ernst

Organorak, that sounds like wonderful advice. And, yes, I want to really learn to play, so I'm going to do as you say. Whenever I learn a new piece, I already make a point of, at least once, playing the right hand part first and then the left, before putting them together. If the piece is difficult for me, I might play each hand separately several times, first. So, the idea of doing as you suggest with the pedals sounds perfectly logical.

Without having actually ever tried it, playing the pedals the first time,without looking at them, sounds a bit difficult, but if that's the way to do it, then that's what I'm going to do. It should be a challenge, but just the kind of challenge that I love!

Thanks, again, all of you!

I've learned to play the pedals twice in my life already! Many years ago, the first time, I got pretty good at it. Then circumstances in my life changed, and I couldn't play organ anymore because I did not have access to one. Then HW came along.....
I have a good friend who has played the organ since childhood (he started playing at the same time I did, in childhood actually). But he has never had access to a full pedal set - just one octave. He struggles a fair bit on my pedal board, but it looks like he's getting better every time he visits.
I guess practice is the key (!) component here. For me, I had to re-learn a lot when I finished my pedal board. But I have learned so much more!
At younger age, I wanted to play difficult pieces but did not invest time into it. Now I learn a few pieces very well and study them for years. And during all this practice, my feet have learned the positions on the pedal board. I play with my feet crossed where needed, toe and heel, just the toe... I learned a few techniques, but figured the rest out by myself.
I figured that since I'm never going to be a professional, I can live with not-too-perfect techniques as long as I get by. I play for my own enjoyment. The best part of that? I manage more and more difficult material! Of course, being able to play organ at least one hour every day might have something to do with it...

I guess my point is: get familiar with the pedal board first. Play a very easy hymn until you can do it blindfolded and sitting in reverse on the organ bench. Then add pedals. Play that hymn over and over and over and over and over.... again. Add a few artistic thingamabobs here and there. Change the key. Have fun with it! Before long, your feet knows the pedal board like your fingers know the manuals. From there, everything goes swimmingly.

You need to reach the point where you can read the score and instinctively know which keys and pedals to play. It just takes a lot of practice.

I'm studying the piece "Andandte con moto" by Alexandre Guilmant. I can play the piece very well now. I started learning the piece about six months ago. I now have reached the stage where I do not need the score anymore. And now the practice section really begins! Studying fingering, practicing pedal parts... all in all, fine-tuning my performance until I can play the piece perfectly - blindfolded! That might take me another year... But it is fun!

Play the pedals and be happy. Certainly study techniques, but you do not need to master the pedal board. Or in other words: you do not need to learn differential equations in order to count!

This book by David Johnson also has hundreds of excellent exercises for the pedals.
http://www.amazon.com/Instruction-Begin ... 0806604239

One important thing to learn to help you find starting notes or check your place in the middle of piece without looking, is to learn to find C's, E's, F's and B's by touching the edge of the groups of black keys. But don't consider looking to be all bad, the best organists look when they have to for difficult passages, just as a pianist looks at his hands when large leaps are involved. (That is the main reason for memorizing, at least difficult passages, as far as I'm concerned) You will eventually be able to play a great deal of music without looking, but until you develop a muscle memory for where the notes are, looking will help you develop that muscle memory.

Also, think of your feet as having six possible playing points: two heels, two inside toes and two outside toes. If you are playing a note with a toe, it is very helpful to identify rather it is the inside or outside edge of the toe that is playing a particular note.
At the lower end the left foot will mostly play with the inside edge and the right with the outside edge, the other way around at the upper end. In the middle it can vary depending on where you are coming from or going to. It will help to identify where you make the switch from from outside edge to inside edge as passage carries your foot up and down the pedal board.
John

Among other things, you might see if you can find a copy of "The Organist's Manual" by Roger E. Davis. I picked up my copy (at the suggestion of my teacher) from one of the vendors associated with Amazon. The book has good explanations, as well as lots of exercises for both manuals and pedals. It also has a good anthology of organ literature at various levels. I have found it to be very helpful.

-- John

I agree with John. The Organist's Manual is what my teacher taught me with and I found it very useful. Of course there are others that I'm sure are very good or maybe better, but one thing to do is, practice practice practice once you pick a method.

I vote for the Clarence Dickinson method, which was my first introduction to legato playing, heel and toe, substitution, repeated notes and so on. Still available, although a teacher is still recommended.
http://www.amazon.com/Technique-Organ-Playing-H-W-Gray/dp/0769241751

Since then there have been many other stylistic movements, flat-fingered, all staccato, all toe, whatever, but I learned from the Widor Schweitzer edition, (later Henle for piano and harpsichord), and preferred these urtext editions as opposed to Dupre's, which contain phrase marks, registrations and fingerings.

You could do worse than watch the pedal technique carefully in this video:
http://www.contrebombarde.com/concerthall/music/7150

James Pressler

James.

I have looked at the video. I'm very much still a beginner with pedaling technique. Is it correct that the heels of the shoes must be that high above the pedals? I was under the impression that they should be at least an inch lower, so the shoe soles would be almost horizontal just above the pedal keys in "neutral" position.
So, how do I establish the correct height of my feet above the pedal keys? Please advise.


Ernst