Matlab's seamless integration with java, perl, C and ActiveX allow you to use the right tool for job all under the control of Matlab. There a plenty of examples around of Matlab/IB APIs using Java connection objects that are very straight forward.
Matlab m-code is easy to learn and once learned can do amazing things with very short dense snippets of code. You can program Matlab OOP or just old school or both.
People who excel at Matlab aren't necessarily genius programmers but rather people with a large vocabulary of Matlab functions they remember. If you possess a large verbal vocabulary you might find you are especially suited for this language.
Matlab data is mostly 3-dimensional so if you can think in terms of 3-D data you are going to do well.
I think you are asking the right questions and are on the right path. My good friend Duane Hanselman wrote Mastering MATLAB with Bruce Littlefield and I recommend this book.
Good luck. My qualification to speak about this language is about 10-years experience. I've got a little code running at Citadel Global Equities, the USAF, the Centers for Disease Control, the National Institute of Health, University of Pennsylvania Neuro-Engineering Laboratories...well, I'll stop there. You get the idea.
