Remembering Liz

Dear Friends:

We are saddened to announce the passing of Elizabeth Pastor, a truly amazing person who meant a great deal to her students, friends and colleagues over her long life.

Liz taught piano at Ashland College/University from 1947 to 2014! She also taught piano at the Cleveland Institute of Music for many decades and at her home until a few weeks ago. She was a demanding, inspiring and persistent teacher, who always kept the focus on playing with beauty, expression and musicianship. She gave huge amounts of extra time to students preparing for recitals and juries. She taught students from absolute beginners to advanced students embarking on professional careers.

Liz received her artist’s diploma at the age of eighteen from Boston’s Longy School of Music. She studied piano with Boris Goldovsky, Carl Frieberg, Beryl Rubinstein and Arthur Loesser. She made her debut at Town Hall, New York and made solo appearances with leading orchestras throughout the country including the Cleveland Orchestra, the NBC Symphony in New York, the Boston Pops, the Las Vegas Philharmonic and various Ohio orchestras including Mansfield, Wooster and Ashland. She performed in solo recitals throughout the United States as well as being a participant in many chamber music concerts.

In 1987, Liz was named Ashland University’s second Trustees’ Distinguished Professor, an academic honor awarded by the University’s Board of Trustees to a professor who is recognized as an outstanding educator, performer and campus leader. She was chairperson of the Ashland University Music Department from 1983-1987, had an extensive record of serving on University faculty committees and was a multiple-year recipient of the AU Mentor Award.

Also an avid collector of contemporary art, her home and her yard are an amazing array of unique sculptures, paintings, sketches, mobiles, furniture, etc. Her office in 209 CFA was a miniature art gallery as well.

Liz was a community activist, using her clout to advocate for the preservation of historical buildings in Ashland. She helped bring speakers to Ashland on a variety of topics outside of music, including environmental and social issues.

She co-founded Ashland University’s Spectrum Series which hosted world-renowned performers and speakers from 1980 to 2014. She also regularly brought outstanding musicians to Ashland for recitals, sometimes at her own expense, and initiated the Music Department’s tradition of attending Cleveland Orchestra concerts as a group.

Her passion for great music, for helping others succeed and for her community is a great example to us all, and we will miss her.

From the Department of Music
Tom Reed, Chair