EARLVILLE - Earlville Opera House (EOH) will host a Piano Tribute Concert for Vivien Harvey Slater on Sunday, June 14 at 2pm on its 1892 Main Stage. Vivien Harvey Slater (1917-2011) was a concert pianist and made her Town Hall debut in 1952.

Her fine Steinway model A-1 grand piano has been gifted to the Opera House by Vivien’s daughter Lydia Slater. In this tribute concert, we honor both the memory of the wonderful artist and person Vivien was as well as the generous gift of her fine instrument. The concert will feature piano performances by former students and longtime friends of Vivien’s who are piano professionals in their own right, as well as words of tribute offered by other former students. Among the piano performers are Anita Humer, Susan Cooney Ticknor, John Colonna and Sarah Wider. 

Vivien was known as a champion of the works of Carl Czerny and issued recordings of Czerny's “The Art of Finger Dexterity” and “The School of Velocity” on the Musical Heritage Society label. She also recorded works by Beethoven and Czerny on Spectrum Records and by Arthur Shepherd on CRI American Masters. Vivien published two volumes of her own compositions for piano students: The piano etudes “Tanglewood Tales” and the piano duets “Birds of a Feather”.

For many years, Vivien was Pianist-in-Residence at Colgate University in Hamilton, NY, where she taught piano to generations of students, both at Colgate and at her long-time home in Poolville, NY. She performed for over forty years in numerous recitals at Colgate, Munson Williams Procter Institute in Utica, NY, and many other venues in Upstate New York. Her travels with her beloved husband of 62 years, Joseph Locke Slater, Professor Emeritus of Colgate University (deceased, 2001) lead to performances in London, Granada, Seville, Wiirzburg and Prague. Vivien was an active member of the B Sharp Musical Club of Utica, NY, and the Fortnightly Club of Hamilton, NY.

Earlville Opera House is honored to host this event to tribute such a fine musician and past member of our artistic community. While Vivien passed away in 2011, her tremendous kindness and warmth of spirit shine through in her playing. Vivien is deeply missed but fondly remembered by generations of students and by many colleagues and concertgoers throughout Upstate New York. A suggested donation of $15 can be made at the door. While on site for the show, visit our Galleries featuring Bruce Webster, Linda Kays-Biviano and Lawrence Kinney, pop into our Artisan Gift Shop!

Earlville Opera House Arts Center is located at 18 East Main Street in the quaint Village of Earlville, NY.

At EOH we believe accessibility and inclusion are critical to everything we do.

Our historic Opera House has been upgraded to ensure accessibility throughout the building, including a hearing loop system in our 1892 theater provided by Hamilton Hearing LLC.

EOH events are made possible in part by the New York State Council on the Arts with support from the Office of the Governor and NYS Legislature, and through the generosity of EOH members.

- Information the EOH