It was my mother’s dream to be a musician and she was able to fulfil that hope through me. She started me at the piano when I was 7 years old. I showed an immediate connection at an early age and was “baptized by fire” when I became the church organist at age 11. Keep in mind that I was being trained in the western style of music and the hymn book was in Arabic, with lyrics and notes going from right to left. It was certainly a huge learning curve at a youthful age. My mother’s love of music, her glorious soprano voice, and her constant encouragement drove me to practice and hone my talent. My piano teacher, Kenar Jambazyan, inspired me with her effortless piano playing and her improvisational skills. I started accompanying my mother at 11 and we became known as a mother-daughter duo. My first conducting attempt was at the age of 14, directing my high school classmates in “Silent Night”. My first choral experience was at the age of 12, singing a trio with a community choir in Lebanon. I looked at that conductor and said, “Oh, I wish I could do that when I grow up!!!” By age 16, I had become the chapel pianist at school, started a band of contemporary Christian music, performed regularly with my mother, and was responsible for all the musical activities in the summer camps of our community. Our journey to the US brought us to Southern California, where I attended El Camino College for the Spring Semester of 1977. Discovering that I could major in music, I chose all the required beginning music courses that included a conducting class. This was to be my introduction
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