The Citizen

John Downey taught music for 30 years, 20 of those in the Union Springs school district. During this time, he had the opportunity to watch children grow, to observe as music brought them alive.

In contrast, Downey, 80, of Skaneateles, has also witnessed a much darker side of life.

In 1944, he joined the Navy and served at the Chelsea Naval Hospital, where, Downey said somberly, he “got to see the less glamorous side of war.”

In the decades that followed, Downey combined his gift for music with his ability to express emotions, composing five CDs and dozens of poems and compositions, some of which have been performed. One of his most recent works is “A Tribute to the Fallen,” a poem that is slated to be displayed at the National Memorial Day Museum in Waterloo once the second floor is renovated.

“I'll be using that to be a lovely showpiece for the current wars exhibit,” said museum curator Tanya Warren.

Warren said that there is no date set yet for those updates but that the first floor, which features the Civil War and Memorial Day history, was recently totally renovated and is now open to the public.

The poem is dedicated to the men and women who have served in Afghanistan and Iraq.

“To see how young these children - and they are (children) - the ages they're dying at. It deeply affected me,” Downey said from his office in his Coon Hill Road home. “Every generation sends off its best, and unfortunately they do come back in flag-draped coffins.”

“I don't want anyone to ever forget what they did,” Downey added.

Downey, who grew up in Catskill, decided to join the Navy because of Pearl Harbor. Just recently out of high school, he first enlisted at the Merchant Marine Academy in Long Island but later joined up with the Navy. He was sworn in in Albany and after training, was sent to work in the orthopedic ward of a naval hospital in Massachusetts.

“These fellows came right from the battle lines,” Downey recalled, his voice heavy with emotion. “When you cut off a cast put on as a battle dressing, just about everything comes off with it.”

After his two years in the service, Downey went to Ithaca College on the GI Bill. It was there that he studied trumpet and pursued a bachelor's in voice. Neither was foreign to Downey, a baritone who discovered jazz at a young age.

Behind the hotel where he worked as a bellhop during his teenage years was a club called Slims (“The guy who owned it was about 400 pounds at least,” Downey recalled with a smile.).

One night, Downey went into the club and heard an impressive trio. From that point on, he used his earnings to buy his own trumpet.

After completing his bachelor's work at Ithaca, Downey studied with Warren Benson and earned his master's in composition. It was during this time that Downey penned his first composition after he learned that his brother was dying from cancer.

“That led me to write music for the 23rd Psalm as a gift for my brother really,” Downey said. “It was for his final journey, so to speak.”

Thereafter, Downey continued to use his talents. He writes his own lyrics and music; usually it's the words or the poem first, and the music follows suit.

“I get an idea and it just affects me,” said Downey, who has been quite prolific since his retirement. “Sometimes I don't get sleep that night.”

Downey's poems and compositions often have religious ties, and others reflect his military background.

One of the Downey's major works, “Civil War Requiem,” includes a section entitled “Oh Man, What Hast Thou Wrought?” As the music plays loudly in his office, Downey comments on his intentions.

“My God, the waste that has gone on has just been awesome, and it goes on cyclically,” he said. “It's really an indictment of man, of we as human beings.”

At the same time, however, Downey is filled with hope for the future. He is currently working on a new CD and one of the works will be titled “Darkness Shall Not Prevail” (it will also include music for a “A Tribute to the Fallen.”). He'll be calling on friends that he made during his 10 years with the MasterWorks Chorale for assistance in recording the compositions.

And of course, Downey will one day make a trip to the National Memorial Day Museum to see his and other works.

“It points out that I'm using my gifts, and it's thrilling to know that I have this gift and I can share it,” Downey said. “We can't waste our time on this planet, you know.”

A Tribute to the Fallen

All hail to our fallen heroes

who spilt their blood that day

Like a lilies' burst of springtime bloom

too soon they fade away.

Their youthful eye had little time

to see all that did abound

The spark snuffed out - the light denied -

they fell upon the ground.

Who were these smiling warriors

that clutched a noble cause

and marched to meet assassins

who recognized no laws?

With pride and dauntless courage

they offered life and limb

For all they cherished here at home

so a new path might begin.

The flag-draped box hangs poised above

the cold and darkened ground

As the bugle's song fades fast away

and silent tears fall down.

We bow our heads in solemn prayer

For all that they have done

They gave their gift to all of us

So the battle might be won.