ANDERSON­ — A Highland High School student will be the lone Hoosier in the premiere marching band at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Allen Doty, a junior alto sax player, will strut his stuff in the Macy’s Great American Band, a select group of high school musicians from every state in the country. The 185-member band will lead the parade this year.

“I’m really glad and thrilled I could be a part of the tradition and carry the Highland name to it,” Doty said.

Doty will join band members who each are responsible for learning their parts ahead of their arrival in New York which was expected Saturday. They will be outfitted and have just four half-days of rehearsal before kicking off the parade that begins in front of Macy’s landmark story.

“I’m just trying to get focused on memorizing the music and getting ready for the trip,” Doty said. So are members of Doty’s family, who are also traveling to New York to watch him in action in the traditional parade of bands, floats and balloons through the streets of Manhattan.

“We’re terribly excited. ... I’m counting the days. I just can’t stand it,” said Allen’s mother, Nikki Doty. “We’re planning on being there at 5:30 in the morning (Thanksgiving Day) so we can get a front-row seat.”

And if you think that’s early ...

“(Thanksgiving Day) is a really long day for them. They get into New York City at 2:30 a.m. for dress rehearsal in front of Macy’s,” Nikki Doty said. Then the band will be among the leaders of the procession.

Along with the excitement of participating in a holiday showcase broadcast on national television, the New York trip also will include several sightseeing opportunities for Doty and his bandmates. Students will go on cruises with views of the city skyline and Statue of Liberty, and spend time at such landmarks as Rockefeller Center, the Empire State Building and Times Square.

Doty said he’s particularly looking forward to seeing the Statue of Liberty and Times Square. “I’m really excited to be going and to see all these things in person,” he said.

This won’t be the first time Doty has been on a musical mission. He was a member of the Indiana Ambassadors of Music that toured Europe for three days in 2008, with stops from London to Australia.

Marching Highlanders band director Doug Fletcher said Doty seized the opportunity to join Macy’s select band. “He really did it on his own. He found out about the opportunity, got the application, and I helped him make his audition CD,” said

“It certainly is a great honor for Allen,” Fletcher said. “He’s a go-getter. When he talked to me about it, I was 100 percent in support of it, and I’m glad he got picked.”

Contact Dave Stafford: 648-4250, dave.stafford@heraldbulletin.com