Every Sunday, melodious voices arise from the First Chinese Baptist Church (FVBC). The youth and adult sections for choir perform, fueled with fervor for singing, regardless of age and expertise. Among them is sophomore Peyton Koomprapun, who worked hard to make it to her spot right now.
Koomprapun performs in mezzo-soprano voice range (range between A3 and A5), and has high expectations for being the only youth in the church’s advanced choir section, which is mainly comprised of adults. Starting around 6th grade, she joined the FVBC’s church singing as an interesting extracurricular which developed to be way more. Although school and singing are both high-energy activities, she uses a lot of practice and focuses on honing details when learning her part for both.
“I was really inspired by my mom and also my classmates who ended up doing choir. I just really wanted to join and try it, like a new singing experience. They’re really passionate about singing, and I could really feel that passion from them. It’s a lot of time management, because learning a lot of different songs at once is hard, but I get through it,” Koomprapun said.
Although Peyton enjoys being in the advanced choir, she faces some challenges being the youngest in the team. It is hard for her to hold notes for long periods of time, which requires a lot of breath support. She is also working on overcoming her nerves to sing in front of a large audience, next to grown people whom she needs to be at the same level as. Still, the mentors around her alleviate her pressure, supporting her growth in singing for church and school. Peyton describes the adult choir as casual and a fun place to be.
“The older people are very supportive, and they usually help a lot, and it’s generally really fun. [Specific mentors who help me] are Tracy. She is like a leader in my team, and also introduced me to casual choir and gave me the opportunity to join it. She also helped me get into singing, and really supported me [through my journey],” Koomprapun said.
Sophomore Tobias Silva-Jameson watches his friend advance in finesse and her expertise in singing. Both being in the school’s Advanced Treble and Chamber choirs, they have supported each other throughout their musical careers. Singing together has also given him a close view of her growth.
“[Peyton and I] are good friends, and I’d say I’ve watched her become more confident in her singing. Last year, [she was] in Treble, quieter than feeling like she could advance to the advanced ensemble, [not expecting] to actually make it. And I feel like I’ve seen her grow like skill-wise, but also confidence-wise, in her singing,” Silva-Jameson said.
Sophomore Bethany Yu attends the same church as her friend and also performs in the mezzo-soprano section of the youth choir. She has been with Koomprapun since the start of her choir journey, and has since observed her friend’s growth in persistence and skill firsthand.
“We both joined because we both like to help out with service. She talks a lot about music arrangements, and practicing more with other choirs at church helped her improve. I thought it was really cool [to see her in the adult choir] because as youth, we look up to the adults a lot in church,” Yu said. “In the future, we hope to serve like them too. I was really proud of her; it was just a really cool opportunity.”
