ies of overtones[218] or "upper partials,"
as they are called, _e.g._

[Music]

[Footnote 218: An instrument designed to reinforce these upper tones,
so that they may be clearly heard, is to be found in any Physical
Laboratory. That these tones really vibrate "sympathetically" may be
proved by striking _ff_ [Transcriber's Note: Music example indicates
_sf_] this note [Music: C2 With damper pedal] and then pressing down
_very lightly_ the keys of G and E just above middle C, thus removing
the individual dampers of these notes. In a quiet room the tones are
distinctly audible. For another rewarding experiment of the same
nature, see the Introduction to the first volume of Arthur Whiting's
_Pedal Studies_ and the well-known treatise of Helmholtz.]

Even what we call the perfectly consonant chord of C major, _e.g._,
[Music] would be slightly qualified and colored by the B-flat, and
this effect has actually been utilized by Chopin in the final cadence
of his Prelude in F major, No. 23, _e.g._

[Music]

In this example the E-flat must be very delicately accented and _both_
pedals freely used.

Let it be clearly understood, therefore, that the damper
pedal--popularly but erroneously called the "loud pedal"--has nothing
to do with "noise" as such. Its purpose is to amplify and color the
waves of sound and these waves may vary all the way from _pp_ to _ff_.
The dynamic gradation of pianoforte tone is caused by the amount of
force with which the hammer strikes the wires; and this power is
applied by the attack and pressure of the fingers. The damper pedal
will, to be sure, reinforce fortissimo effects, but logically it is
only a _means_ of _reinforcement_ and should never be used so that a
mere "roar of sound" is produced. The normal pianoforte tone, however,
is that brought forth in connection with the damper pedal, and only to
gain an effect of intentional coolness and dryness do we see in
pianoforte literature the direction "senza pedal"; passages so marked
being often most appropriate as a strong contrast to highly colored
ones.[219]

[Footnote 219: For a complete and illuminating treatise on the pedals
and their artistic use, see the aforesaid two volumes of _Pedal
Studies_ by Arthur Whiting (G. Schirmer, New York).]

An important adjunct of the instrument, though even less intelligently
used, is the pedal employed by the left foot; that popularly known as
the "soft pedal," but of which the technical name is the "