The singing of the chorus and the fast pace of a band is what you’re going to hear this weekend at the All-State winter concert at the Eastman Theatre in Rochester.

"It’s one thing to play in your school where everybody is really passionate, then you come here and you take everybody that's dedicated to music so much and focused on making the best music possible,” said Michael Parrinello, who is a member of the All-State Jazz Ensemble.

Every year, the New York State School Music Association puts on a winter concert. NYSSMA selects the best 900 musicians from a pool of 6,000 students who audition for the occasion.

"It's an amazing honor to be here, to be recognized as one of the top musicians and top trumpet players. It's an amazing opportunity to be able to play with all the other people who've been given that same honor,” said Michael Golub, a member of the All-State Instrumental Jazz Band.

The students from all over New York came together at the convention center to rehearse. They only have two days of practice before they play on Saturday and Sunday.

"The kids are at such a high level and they come prepared, and they all have, the like, mindset of being the best they can possibly be and contributing in such a positive way to the groups that they're in that, that short amount of time is often enough,” Rich Guillen, one of the band directors at NYSSMA.

NYSSMA officials say they want to do all they can to make sure music education is kept alive in schools.  

"A lot of times when finances get tough, music tends to fall by the waist side, but we know students that have access to music making and music creating just do so much better as they come through their education and as they go out in the career world,” said Marc Greene, a member of the executive office staff for NYSSMA.