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Form and sustain

Pedal

Use the damper pedal to sustain and connect resonance beyond the fingers.

See it in the score

Pedal sign notation in Beach's Ah, Love, But a Day

A printed start-and-stop pair shows traditional pedal signs rather than a continuous bracket.

Open measure 5 in the piece
Pedal sign notation in Beach's Ah, Love, But a Day From Ah, Love, but a Day!, Op. 44 No. 2 (piano part) by Amy Beach, source measure 5.

Passage playback follows the literal encoded notes, rhythm, tempo, and written directions in this excerpt. It is a study aid, not a model of a pianist's touch, phrasing, ornament realization, or pedal technique.

In a sentence

Use the damper pedal to sustain and connect resonance beyond the fingers.

A Ped. sign starts the damper pedal and a release sign or line ending clears it. Bracketed lines make the timing and changes more visually continuous.

Pedalling is acoustic and contextual: instrument, room, register, and harmony affect the exact depth and timing. The notation supplies an intention, not a recording of one universal motion.