Carol Jean Rand, 79, of Concord, died of cancer at Parmenter Hospice on December 30, 2015.

Carol was born in Grand Forks, North Dakota, on September 4, 1936. She was the daughter of the late Albert and Minna (Harm) Rand. Carol is survived by her brother and sister-in-law, Tom and Alice Jean Rand of East Grand Forks, Minnesota and her cousin Evelyn Headen of Minneapolis. Her extended family members in East Grand Forks are niece and nephews Kathryn (Steve Light), Douglas, and Steve Rand and grand-nieces Chloe, Kendal, and Avery.

Her Massachusetts family was large: That family was both her many musical colleagues and her friends in House Party, and her kind friends and neighbors who were of such great and appreciated help in her last years.

Carol attended Michigan State University for two years and completed her bachelor's degree in Music from the University of Minnesota. She earned her master's degree from the New England Conservatory of Music with a major in Piano.

She taught piano for the New England Conservatory and then at Putney School in Vermont, the Cambridge School of Weston, and the Concord Academy.

Carol began her work as a professional accompanist while in 8th grade. This later was one of her many musical skills she was known for in the Boston area, to be able to step in at a moment's notice to join an ensemble or accompany, given "her phenomenal ability as a sight-reader" (from a colleague and conductor). And from another colleague: "To play with Carol was one of the greatest treats. You were carried away, swept away, in a brilliant musical adventure. You heard phrases made entirely new. Her sense of rhythm and tempo was playful, convincing, and completely infectious. (And she turned pages like a wizard!)"

A memorial service will be held at the Lutheran Church of the Savior, corner of Route. 62 and 426 Davis Road, Bedford, on Saturday, January 30, at 11 AM. Following the service will be a lunch and gathering of her colleagues and friends in Fellowship Hall at the church.