NYSSMA is the New York State School Music Association. Each spring it runs about 145 festivals where students play for a trained adjudicator. A student plays a solo, scales, and a short piece at sight. Solos come in six levels, from Level 1, the easiest, to Level 6, the hardest. Levels 1 to 4 are scored out of 28 points, and Levels 5 and 6 are scored out of 100. A student signs up through the school music program.
How a student signs up
Registration goes through the music program at the student’s school, and the school must be a NYSSMA member. A parent cannot register a child. A private teacher cannot do it either. The school music teacher has the dates, the forms, and the fee.
A private teacher still has a part. The teacher helps choose the solo and the level, and prepares the student.
What happens in the room
| Part | What the student does |
|---|---|
| Solo | Plays a graded solo from the NYSSMA Manual |
| Scales | Plays scales from memory |
| Sight reading | Plays a short passage not seen before |
School music departments describe a time slot of about 10 minutes for Levels 1 to 4, and about 15 minutes for Levels 5 and 6 and for All-State.
The adjudicator is a teacher and musician trained in NYSSMA’s system. The student takes home a sheet with a score and written comments.
NYSSMA calls its festivals evaluations, not competitions. The one exception is All-State.
The six levels
The NYSSMA Manual lists solos for each instrument and voice in six levels of difficulty. To get a score, a student must choose a solo from the Manual. The teacher picks the level.
The Manual is revised every three years. The 2026 edition applies from the 2027 festival season, and it is online only. NYSSMA says the Manual is written for teachers, so ask the teacher to look up the solo.
| Level | Scored out of | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 4 | 28 | A rating in words |
| 5 and 6 | 100 | A letter grade |
| All-State audition | 100 | A score used for selection |
The scales
The number of scales grows with the level. One school district sums up the rule for many instruments as 3 scales at Levels 1 and 2, 7 at Levels 3 and 4, and 15 at Levels 5 and 6. The Manual gives the exact rule for each instrument.
How Levels 1 to 4 are scored
The sheet has seven categories. Each one gets 1 to 4 points.
| Points | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 4 | Exceeds expectation |
| 3 | Meets expectation |
| 2 | Developing |
| 1 | Needs improvement |
The total gives the rating.
| Rating | Total |
|---|---|
| Outstanding | 26 to 28 |
| Excellent | 21 to 25 |
| Good | 13 to 20 |
| Needs Improvement | 12 or less |
How Levels 5 and 6 are scored
The sheet has seven categories that add up to 100 points. On a NYSSMA woodwind sheet, scales are worth up to 5 points and sight reading up to 10. The rest of the points are for the solo.
| Grade | Score |
|---|---|
| A+ | 97 to 100 |
| A | 93 to 96 |
| A- | 90 to 92 |
| B+ | 87 to 89 |
| B | 83 to 86 |
| B- | 80 to 82 |
The scale goes on down from there.
Comments only
A student may ask for comments with no score. That student can play any music, and does not play scales or sight read. This suits a first festival, or a solo that is not in the Manual.
Rules that surprise families
- The music. The student must play from a legal copy. A second copy for the adjudicator is recommended.
- The accompanist. An accompanist is required for an All-State audition and recommended for singers. NYSSMA says most festivals do not allow one for other soloists.
- The instrument. Students bring their own, drummers included.
- Piano. There is no All-State for piano, except in the jazz ensemble.
What it costs
NYSSMA sets a fee for each solo. One NYSSMA zone page for the 2026 season lists these fees.
| Solo | Fee |
|---|---|
| Levels 1 to 4 | $20 |
| Levels 1 to 4, piano | $26 |
| Levels 5 and 6 | $30 |
| Levels 5 and 6, piano | $36 |
| All-State | $36 |
Ask the school for this year’s fee and deadline.
The path to All-State
Conference All-State is a set of eight honors groups: bands, choruses, orchestras, and jazz ensembles. They perform in Rochester at NYSSMA’s Winter Conference, in late November or early December.
- The audition is a Level 6 solo, played at a spring festival.
- The student must be in the matching group at school, if the school has one.
- The school director sends a recommendation six weeks before the festival.
- NYSSMA says over 7,000 students try for 825 places.
- NYSSMA says a perfect score of 100 does not guarantee a place on many instruments.
Area All-State groups are chosen closer to home. Zones use the solo scores and teacher recommendations to fill them.
NYSSMA and graded exams
NYSSMA is a school festival, not a ladder of certificates. There is no written theory exam, and a student need not move up a level each year.
A family that wants a graded path with certificates can add an exam system. Read RCM in the United States and music exams for kids.
How a parent can help
- Ask the school music teacher for the festival date and the deadline in the fall
- Ask the private teacher to choose the solo early, so there are months to learn it
- Practice scales from memory a few minutes a day. The metronome for kids helps
- Read one new line of music a day for sight reading
- Hold a practice run at home: solo, three scales, and a line at sight
- Read the comments together after the festival, before you look at the score
For the nerves on the day, read stage fright in kids.
Sources
Checked in November 2026.
- NYSSMA. Parents and students: festival Q and A.
- NYSSMA. NYSSMA Manual.
- NYSSMA. Zone 12, for the 2026 fees.
- NYSSMA. Zone 2 integration table for solo sheets, for Area All-State selection.
- NYSSMA. Solo vocal adjudication form, Levels I to IV, hosted by Conway Publications.
- NYSSMA. Bass woodwinds adjudication form, hosted by Conway Publications.
- Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Central Schools. NYSSMA and the solo festival, for the scales.
- Harrison High School bands. NYSSMA solo festival, for time slots.
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Use it with your kids
Print a listening page, a practice chart, or a composer fact sheet. Or try a tool, such as the composer timeline or the piece picker.