Christopheren Nomura faithfully attended the San Francisco Opera House when he was only six years old and was instantly inspired by the glorious voices of the opera singers.

At the time, he had no idea that one day his own voice would have the capacity to make that same glorious music.

American baritone Nomura will be performing at the Music Hall Recital Hall this Saturday at 7:30 p.m. His performance marks the second Ames Town and Gown Chamber Music Association concert of the year.

Although Nomura has always possessed talent in the art of singing, his aspirations did not always include performance.

After graduating with an art diploma from the New England Conservatory in Boston, Nomura enrolled at Tuffs University in Boston with the hopes of earning a degree in international law.

“I wanted to be an international diplomat. That’s why I originally came to Boston,” Nomura said.

His hopes of being a diplomat were consumed by his passion to perform and Nomura was soon singing for audiences in prestigious concert halls around the area.

In 1992, Nomura won the Young Concert Artists International Auditions and the Paul A. Fish Memorial Prize, which earned him recitals at the Tisch Center for the Arts in New York and the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.

Since then, Nomura has sung operatic, symphonic and oratorio literature on stages across the world.

While on tour 250 days out of the year, Nomura has had the privilege of traveling to Europe, Asia, Africa and 46 American states. Nomura said his experiences in these countries have helped his career as a recitalist.

“When I came back from Germany, I had a lot of background with recital repertoire,” Nomura said.

Although Nomura has been known to be mostly a chamber musician, he said recital music is not necessarily his favorite.

“I’ve just had a lot of opportunities to perform recital music,” Nomura said. “That’s very unusual for young singers.”

Nomura said chamber music offers a special kind of experience that is not attainable in other styles of music.

“Recital performance is a lot more challenging in the end than opera stage performances,” he said. “It’s also more gratifying. You have direct contact with the audience. They feel the energy more directly.”

When asked about his favorite operatic composer, Nomura said Puccini definitely takes first place.

“I remember watching Puccini opera when I was a boy. He really knew how to write for the voice,” Nomura said. “I love him because I love the Italian opera. The Italian language is so beautiful — so suited for opera.”

The music Nomura will be singing for Saturday’s concert will include Aaron Copland’s “Old American Songs,” Maurice Ravel’s “Don Quichotte a Dulcinee,” selections from Franz Schubert’s “Die Schone Mullerin” and songs of American composers such as Charles Ives, William Bolcom and Richard Hundley.

Nomura will be joined by pianist Daniel Lockert.

Tickets for the concert will be available at the door for $15 or can be purchased in advance at Rieman’s Music and Big Table Books in Ames. The event is free for students.