FORT WALTON BEACH — Carol Yessick closed the book of music in front of her and closed her eyes, her fingers knowing which keys to hit as she played her final piece for seniors at Magnolia Manor day-care center.
Yessick, 67, of Shalimar, has had a love for piano since she was 14, but didn’t play for more than 25 years.
“Life circumstances entered into the picture, but I don’t like to talk about those,” she said.
Watch a video of Carol Yessick playing the piano. >>
She traveled for work for years, and just a few years ago entered the health field as a sitter for clients needing care. That’s what brought Yessick back to the music.
“I was with one of my clients when she saw this old piano and she said, ‘I wish I could hear someone play it.’ All I wanted to do then was remember one song so I could play it for her,” Yessick said. “It was like riding a bike, better even. It just came back to me.”
Before she stopped playing, Yessick spent years in school fine-tuning her craft. Now she says she has the ins and outs of piano down, and instead of working with teachers she works with coaches.
A few months from now Yessick will play her first formal concert since the late 1970s at Dollarhide’s Music Center in Pensacola.
In the interim, Yessick has spent many hours playing at retirement centers and Magnolia Manor. She said part of the reason for playing the free concerts was to practice in front of people, but mostly it’s the way the music affects those who hear it.
“It’s a powerful thing,” she said, smiling. “I’ll just sit down and play and people will start to come out of their room and sit around me just to hear.”
Yessick says after years of being away from the piano, she has a lot of lost time to make up for to prepare for her concert. She practices six days a week for at least four hours.
“I hope I can inspire someone else to pick up their lost dream,” she said after finishing her piano show she dubbed “Classical Nuggets” at Magnolia Manor. “There’s a second phase in life. You’re never too old to pursue your dreams.”
Contact Daily News Staff Writer Angel McCurdy at 850-315-4432 or amccurdy@nwfdailynews.com. Follow her on Twitter @AngelMnwfdn.
