pedalling
The use of the piano's pedals to sustain notes, soften tone, or create selective resonance
In Depth
The piano has three pedals: the sustain pedal (right) lifts all dampers, allowing all struck strings to vibrate freely; the soft pedal or una corda (left) shifts the hammers to strike fewer strings; and the sostenuto pedal (middle) sustains only the notes that are depressed when the pedal is activated. Masterful pedalling is essential to piano tone production. Legato pedalling (changing the pedal on each new harmony), half-pedalling, and flutter pedalling are advanced techniques that separate professional pianists from amateurs.
Anton Rubinstein called the sustain pedal the soul of the piano — and Chopin reportedly used it with such subtlety that his students could never fully imitate his sound.