"Using Nikolai Amani’s ‘Pieces for the Young, Op.15’ to Develop Musical Storytelling Creativity in Piano Education – An Analytical Study"

Introduction



Piano compositions are among the most important musical forms that have contributed to enriching the global musical heritage. They also represent a reflection of the artistic and technical development that the piano has undergone throughout history, for both composers and performers alike. Piano works have varied in form and content; some are educational and technical, aiming to develop the performer’s mechanical and technical skills, while others are expressive and artistic, highlighting the composer’s and performer’s ability to convey human emotions through musical sound, in addition to many other forms and styles.



Piano music is distinguished by its unique ability to combine melody, harmony, and rhythm simultaneously, making it a self-sufficient instrument capable of performing both solo melodic lines and orchestral textures.

Great composers such as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791), Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827), Frédéric François Chopin (1810–1849), and Claude Achille Debussy (1862–1918) used the piano as a medium to express their aesthetic and intellectual visions, producing a wide variety of musical forms such as the sonata, polonaise, waltz, nocturne, prelude, and many others.



The significance of these works extends beyond their artistic value to include their pedagogical and educational dimensions, as the piano serves as an effective means of training students in sight-reading, hand coordination, rhythmic awareness, and expressive performance.

Through the study of piano pieces, students transition from mechanical playing to conscious, analytical, and