Where to start? [Bob project]

[Bob]

Where do you suggest I start for the following?
- starting to seriously move through repertiore?
- starting to seriously study recordings and performers?
- starting to seriously study the literature (not to perform, just to be familiar with it)?

[Clare]

Good question. I think I need more help on this sort of thing myself.
If I was a pretty good piano player starting to build up a repertoire, I'd try and cover as many time periods as I could for starters, learning a combination of well-known pieces I liked along with anything else I felt like learning. I think having a well-balanced piano diet is a good idea.
As for recordings and performers, the way I like to study them is to find a whole bunch of recordings of the exact same piece but performed by different pianists from the library and listen to them all, comparing how they play.
I also learned a lot from reading 'the Great Pianists' by Harold C. Shonberg. Reading as many books as possible by famous pianists can help too.
I guess your questions are pretty open-ended so I hope this answer is kind of what you were after.

[scriabinsmyman]

May I suggest that you start with a genre of pieces or a certain composer that you're crazy about?  Your repertoire should be special- make this part stand out.  For example, my strengths are Chopin and Scriabin, so I have many of their works in my repertoire.  Of course, a couple etudes, a Beethoven sonata, and a Bach Prelude&Fugue are essential parts to any pianist's repertoire.  Just make sure you pick pieces you truly love (and can stand practicing and playing for a looooong time )