I'm having some difficulty playing Chopin's "Tristesse" Etude Op. 10, No. 3. So for anyone who knows the piece or has played it, I'd gladly welcome and appreciate any tips or suggestions you might have.

Basically I would like to know how I should use the damper pedal. The copy of the piece I have has only three areas where it suggests I use it, but I've seen recordings it played on youtube where people use the pedal throughout the whole piece. Using the pedal more often would help because of the fingering of the right hand, it's a bit difficult for me. I don't know if I should just follow my copy or add markings in certain measures. I don't want to lose the essence of the piece.

Again I appreciate any suggestions!

Avoid the sustain pedal. This Etude will help you to work with the legatos and the weak fingers. Keep in mind to keep the middle notes at a lower dynamic than the melody, that is another thing this piece will help.

It is definitely a good suggestion to lay off the sustain pedal in practise. In essence it is like Nyu said, this etude concentrates on legato and voicing. So do that first and practise it as you would an etude of Czerny or something.

However, this is only the absolute surface. The Chopin Etudes redefined the concept of an etude in that they are pieces written to be performed not just for pianists to practise on their own in a room to strengthen their fingers. So once you have the technical grounding you can add the pedal in. Pedalling is done purely by ear, there is no right or wrong way to do it. If you are on a particularly resonant piano where the pedal compromises clarity, then use it VERY sparingly or indeed not at all. If you are on a relatively dead one where it just sounds really dry and harsh with no pedal, then pedal all the way through it. When pedalling all the way through it, like I said it's done with the ear and don't compromise clarity; change it clearly and don't blur any of the harmony.

Above all, don't use the pedal to hide technical weakness!

Above all, don't use the pedal to hide technical weakness!

Put quite well. Especially paired with the comments on clarity. Well said, my friend.

Thanks everyone for your thoughts and clearing that up for me. I guess I've been doing it the right way all along. I just need to practice practice practice.

On a side note about the thread, I tried wording the title so anyone can feel free to use this thread whenever they're stumped or need help with a piece they're learning.
Thanks again!