Submitted Photo Rossano Galante, acclaimed film orchestrator and composer, was commissioned by Lake Shore Music Department Chair Eric Blodgett and the High School Music Boosters to create the original band piece Champions of the Sky, now published worldwide.

The Lake Shore Central School District is proud to announce the worldwide publication of Champions of the Sky, a Symphonic Band work commissioned by High School Band Director, Eric Blodgett for the Lake Shore High School Band, Music Department, School District, and Community. This powerful and soaring piece was composed by internationally renowned composer and film orchestrator Rossano Galante, a Grand Island native with ties to the Lake Shore community and a long-standing friendship with Lake Shore Band Director Eric Blodgett.

“This has been a dream in the making for many years,” said Eric Blodgett, Lake Shore Central Schools Music Department Chairman and High School Band Director. “I knew early on that I wanted to leave something lasting for our students, something that captured the pride, tradition, and excellence of the Lake Shore Band Program. Rossano was the perfect composer to bring that vision to life.”

The idea for this special commission began more than a decade ago when Mr. Blodgett set out to find the right composer to create a lasting musical legacy for the Lake Shore Band Program. After years of inviting top-tier composers to work with the band and watching the talent and dedication of his students grow, he knew it was time. Mr. Blodgett turned to his college bandmate and University at Buffalo and USC graduate Rossano Galante, whose impressive resume includes film orchestration work on some of Hollywood’s biggest blockbusters. In fact, Galante was so inspired by his visit and the students he worked with during the spring of 2022, he rearranged his schedule to ensure that Lake Shore students could premiere the piece while still in high school — a rare honor.

“Rossano worked with our high school and middle school bands, and our students made such an impression on him that he moved his projects around to make this happen sooner,” Blodgett said. “That’s how special our students and our program are. It’s something I’ll never forget.”

Collaborating closely over the summer, Blodgett and Galante shaped a piece that reflects the spirit and strength of Lake Shore students, incorporating musical elements that pay homage to the school’s mascot, the Eagle, and the program’s proud legacy. When it came time to name the piece, inspiration came from one of their own — then-freshman Bailey Burke — who offered the title Champions of the Sky, a name that perfectly captured the piece’s majestic energy.

“Rossano and I were really struggling with the title,” Blodgett admitted. “And then Bailey — just a freshman at the time — came up with Champions of the Sky. It was perfect. It stuck immediately. Unfortunately, no royalties for Bailey or Lake Shore — but she’ll always know she named a piece that’s now part of band repertoire worldwide.”

The Lake Shore High School Band officially premiered Champions of the Sky at their 2023 Spring Concert, with Galante present to hear the final product of their collaboration. In fact, the true debut performance took place a few months earlier, when the band performed the piece at the OrlandoFest National Music Festival in Florida, where they took home the Grand Championship.

“It was an incredible moment,” said Blodgett. “To see our students perform something that was written just for them — and then to win the Grand Championship at a national festival with that very piece — it was beyond anything I could have hoped for.”

Now published globally by Alfred Music Publishing and available through major retailers including J.W. Pepper, Champions of the Sky will live on for generations, performed by bands around the world.

“This is a piece that will be played by high schools, colleges, community, and professional bands for years to come,” Blodgett said. “But it started here, with our students, in our community. That’s something really special.”

Each score and part of the piece sold will list the following: “Commissioned by the Lake Shore High School Bands, Angola, N.Y., Eric Blodgett, Director. A tribute to the Students, Alumni, and Music Boosters for their years of dedication and service. Listen to Champions of the Sky on J.W. Pepper’s website or by visiting https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=za2fOM1Eocg