The following interview was from a student named Pathok Khondoker who performed at Carnegie Hall. We wanted to know how it was performing and wanted to hear advice for the upcoming freshman. I hope anyone who reads this knows that they can become what they put their mind towards!

Humaira: Hello! How are you today? 

Pathok: I’m good!  

Humaira: Okay, we’re gonna start with a few questions. All right. So, what made you get into performing? 

Pathok Um, well, ever since childhood, I had a knack for singing. Whether it was from Bollywood films or just artists like Chainsmokers that I heard on YouTube. Yeah, it was kind of, I guess, always in my family because my father is also a singer, or he wanted to be. He played the guitar. My brother also got into music. And so it seemed like the right way to go. 

Humaira: That’s nice. So, you started off with singing and then did it lead you to perform on stage, theater wise? 

Pathok: Yeah, because one day my teacher was just like, hey, I think this role would suit you. And since I trust that teacher, I was like, you know what? Sure. 

Humaira: Was it hard to find people with the same interest as you in school? 

Pathok: Sometimes, yes. Because the way I feel about music. Not a lot of people feel that way. I had only one who thought about music like me. Most people are more casual, but I’m a lot more strict about it and a hard worker. 

Humaira: How was it performing at Carnegie Hall and what did you perform? 

Pathok: Oh, okay. So Carnegie Hall has just been a dream of mine. And my teacher, Mr. Weisman’s too. It’s such an amazing place. Definitely bigger than our Bryant´s auditorium and just, you know, being there up on the stage, seeing so many people just waiting to hear you sing. It’s an amazing experience. And we didn’t perform for too long. I was with the group called All City Choir, and our conductor was Mark Shapiro. So we performed Leonard Bernstein’s Chichester Psalm. He is an artist from Queens and so the show was to tribute him. He wrote West Side Story. So Chichester Psalm was similar to that. It was very dramatic and was musical-esque, but it also spoke about religious stuff like praying to God.  

Humaira: That’s amazing! Shifting to people, is there someone that always motivated you to perform? 

Pathok: My teacher, Mr. Weisman. He’s been supportive every step of the way, without him not only would I have not met some of my closest friends today but I also would have not gotten the opportunity to perform at Carnegie. A select few friends of mine have also motivated me.

Humaira: Do you see yourself continuing this in the future? 

Pathok: Definitely. When I get to college, I wish to major in music. And after that, I want to become an official artist. Possibly. It’s a dream of mine to feel what an artist feels when they stand atop the biggest stage and see the crowd of millions of fans singing their song back to them.

Humaira: Have you written any pieces? 

Pathok: I have, I have, but, you know, they’re still works in progress. They’re not, like, publishable. Maybe I’ll get a chance to sing them for people one day.

Humaira: Lastly, what is one piece of advice you would tell an incoming freshman that wants to perform like you? 

Pathok: Make sacrifices because if this is something you’re going to dedicate your life to and, you know, you really want it more than anything else, that’s the type of mindset you need to have. You can’t just be like, oh, I’ll just do it later or whatever. No, you have to be there 100% every day. Absorb every piece of lesson or information you can get. Perform everywhere you can. You know, always strive to break your limits of what you can sing, what you can write. And definitely, you know, ask your teachers like Mr. Weisman, Mr. Lanzet, Mr. Somer, because they’re amazing teachers. They’re going to be very gentle with you. And if you ask them to be harsh and genuinely critique you, like people will. Yeah, then they will. Singing to me isn’t just a hobby. It’s life itself. Because how many times as teens have we all listened to a sad song when we were heartbroken? It’s not about where you come from or who you are, it’s about doing what needs to be done even when everyone is against you. Everyday is another chance to better yourself. And I definitely love hearing people sing! Come up, sing and let people cheer for you. Definitely looking forward to what the next generation of singers hold.

Humaira: Thank you so much!

Pathok: Of course! No problem!