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  • TRY-OUT: Kenmore East High School student Alec Safy (pictured) and his band Lumberjack Parliament auditioned recently for the NBC show “America’s Got Talent.” Contributed Photo

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October 22, 2010

Ken East bandmates audition for TV show

Special to the News The Tonawanda News

— — Kenmore East High School student Alec Safy has performed on some pretty big and impressive stages early in his music career. The bassist for the “progressive funk/jazz” trio Lumberjack Parliament has performed at HSBC Arena for the “Battle of the Bands” competition and at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery for the “Music is Art” festival.

The stage and audience might stretch across the country and world if Safy impressed producers for the hit television variety show “America’s Got Talent.”

Safy, along with fellow band-mates and Kenmore East graduates Andrew Kothen and Dave Prinzbach, recently auditioned before producers for NBC during a casting call in Ithaca. Their band impressed organizers of the Music is Art festival, which passed along the band’s name to producers of the show. In addition to providing NBC with a DVD of their music, Lumberjack Parliament was given approximately 90-seconds to perform live, to show producers why they should be given a shot on national television.

“It was nerve wracking, to say the least. We crammed a compilation of our best songs into a 90-second performance. I’m really happy with how we played, and now we play the waiting game to see whether or not we will appear on the show,” Safy, 17, said

Band members were told they would be notified in late March or early April if they were selected to appear on the show, whose winner receives a first-place prize totaling $1 million. “America’s Got Talent” is hosted by Nick Cannon and features judges Piers Morgan, Sharon Osbourne and Howie Mandel.

Safy signed a confidentiality agreement that kicks in if Lumberjack Parliament is officially chosen to appear on the NBC television show. Their audition, which took place in Ithaca on Oct. 3, was an invitation-only showcase to appear on the sixth season of the hit show.

“Alec is an incredibly talented musician and strong student. We’re keeping our fingers crossed that we’ll see a group of Kenmore East musicians on national television this summer,” said Kenmore East High School band director and music teacher Phil Aguglia.

The show is hosting a series of auditions this fall in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York City.

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