As you can see, every limb is called upon to perform a task when playing the pedal steel, so a fair amount of coordination and dexterity is needed. The right foot controls a volume pedal, which gives the instrument a wide palette of dynamic expression. The pedal steel solves this problem by adding pedals and knee levers that are controlled with your feet and the sides of your knees.īy using an intricate system of levers and pull rods that bend certain strings, either individually or in combination with others, pedal steel players can access many different chords and scales with little to no movement of the bar. With a traditional steel guitar, the bar limits the amount of chords and scales you can play it’s like trying to play a guitar with one finger. Instead, players wear picks on their thumbs, and index and middle fingers of the right hand, which pluck the strings in groups of three, called “grips.” The pedal steel is rarely, if ever, strummed. The bar is what gives the instrument its silky, legato tone, but also makes it tricky to play in tune. Like its grandfather, the Hawaiian steel guitar, the pedal steel is played with a stainless steel bar that slides smoothly up and down the strings to change the pitch. There is even a concerto for pedal steel and orchestra! When played well, this can be a beautiful instrument that fits with many styles besides country, including jazz, rock, and rhythm ‘n’ blues. Tune into your local country music radio station at pretty much any time of the day, and you’re bound to hear it: the singing, bell-like wail of the pedal steel guitar. Sure, it may look harder to play than a big-rig is to drive, but armed with the right knowledge, it’s completely within the realm of possibility for almost any musician to figure out the basics and start playing pedal steel guitar.
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