'I grew a lot as a human being and as a musician'

Makram Aboul Hosn studied both classical music and jazz and he received his Master's degree New York Jazz. He is currently working as a jazz instructor at the Notre Dame University in Lebanon and he is a band leader of Ad-Hoc Trio and the Aboul Hosn Quartet. He also holds a position as a double bass player in the Lebanese Philharmonic Orchestra in Beirut.

Choosing this master

Tarek Yamani, a friend of mine who happens to be an excellent musician, recommended PCC after he completed his Bachelor's degree there. So I auditioned and got accepted. It was a very good experience for me. I was completely committed to making the best out of what was in front of me and I grew a lot as a human being and as a musician. I got to spend an entire semester in New York where I learned so much about who I wanted to be, and more importantly what I didn't want to be.
I met so many interesting people coming from different cultural and musical backgrounds and we learned a lot from each other, whether we intended to or not. I keep in touch with them until today.
I wrote a blog about why studying abroad was one of the best decisions I took, and I feel blessed that I got the opportunity. And if you get the chance, I would say grab it!

My research

My research topic was entitled "Freeing the creative mind". It was an in-depth research about the psychology of performance. I was looking for practices that would help me perform at an optimum level whenever I had to. What are the bad ways to think about performing and practicing, what are the pitfalls, and what are the healthy thought patterns? In other words, how to maximize the mind's capacity to help in performance, rather than allow it to be detrimental. If you are interested in this topic, I am glad to send you a copy of my thesis, you can contact me through my website or Facebook page.

Being a professional

I still benefit from the things I learned, not only on a social level but also knowledge wise. I have a strong insight into my own thought patterns and the way my mind works. As a teacher I use this knowledge to guide my students in performance and in preparing them to be real improvisers. I even go back and read my thesis whenever I feel the need to get my mind in order when it comes to performing.