4 - How & when to pedal. Using explosive dynamics

Pedaling does require you to have good ear. It is too easy to play loosely. Yes, You can keep pedal pushed all the way from start to end of music. It can only be identified by your ear. If you do it too much, the sound become thick, dull and cloudy to your ear as well as to your audiences.

As the theory, you don't extend your pedaling beyond the bar you start to pedal. In playing jazz, to avoid clouding your chord, you should not use pedal beyond the limit of the chord.

And it is sincerely recommended that you use it just to give explosive effect to your sound. Which means you limit the use of it for a couple notes.

Above can be proven if you listen to Johon Lewis or Oscar Peterson. Red Garland uses pedal quite frequently when he play melody with chord.

The advice is that you should be able to keep your finger on a certain note so that you can play melody in legato. Thereby you cn keep your melody line clear and crisp.