Elijah Hashem is a junior at Keene State majoring in music performance and he recently embarked on an experience of a lifetime, in which he underwent training to be a musician for the National Guard band.
Hashem said he first started playing tuba back in his first year of high school and focused on mastering it when he arrived at Keene State. When Hashem heard that he could help pay for his college tuition by playing for the National Guard, he took the opportunity. Not only could he continue his love for playing his instrument, but he could also acquire a steady paycheck to go along with it.
While his experience was not long, Hashem said he still learned plenty about what the National Guard would have in store. He said his day-to-day was actually quite boring. He quoted it as a “hurry up and wait” sort of environment. When he went to Advanced Individual Training (AIT) for music, he found that specific experience as a change of pace.
“It was pretty fire, because you were treated like a human being, so a lot of the people there were really nice people,” said Hashem. “Just talking to them and learning from them was pretty cool.”
He said his favorite moment, however, was not part of the expected experience. “I think my favorite moment was probably going home, because I was in training for eight months from January to August,” Hashem said. “When I came back, I came back a week late. It was just kind of nice to do normal things again.”
Hashem’s success in the National Guard band was known to those who knew him well.
“He’s a fantastic student, for one,” Dr. John Hart, an associate professor of music, said. “He’s always eager to learn, very independent, reliable, inquisitive – I think these are all words that could describe him.”
Hart said he was not nervous when he heard Hashem was going to play music for the National Guard.
“I think a lot of us have preconceived notions of what Basic Training is like. I think a lot of us have the image of this very grueling, brutal, very physical, sometimes dangerous situations, but I think the modern army is a very different place from the 40s and 50s,” Hart said. “I knew he would be safe.”
Even so, Hart was happy to see Hashem home.
Hashem is participating in a Veterans Day Concert on November 9 with his band and will be traveling to El Salvador in January.
“I’m interested to learn about the culture and the people,” Hashem said. “I’ve never been there before, so a lot of me is like, ‘Okay, I don’t know what to expect, but I want to expect something!’”
Michael Ardita can be contacted at
mardita@kscequinox.com
