# All-State String Audition Preparation: State and Year Checklist

Canonical: https://arcosounds.com/exam-prep/us-all-state

Updated: 2026-09-06

Build a state-specific string audition plan, check current cuts and errata, and try a free excerpt-start exercise. No universal All-State syllabus or rank prediction.

All-State is not a single national string exam. The state, audition year, instrument and school division determine the task. Begin with the current association document supplied by your director. An impressive performance of last year’s cut may still be the wrong submission.

## Before you build a plan

- Write the state association, audition year, instrument and division at the top of the plan.

- Check required cuts, errata, technical details, deadlines and allowed recording conditions.

- Obtain restricted music through your director or the authorized association.

- Ask who confirms updates and check again before the final rehearsal.

## Original exercise: Start from the actual cut

1. Locate the first note of the official cut and the preceding rest or pickup, if any.

2. Without playing, count the preparation pulse and imagine the articulation of the first note.

3. Play the opening phrase once, then note whether the first entrance and tempo matched your plan.

### Check your work

A prepared start combines the correct entry point, a clear pulse and the intended articulation. Practising from an earlier familiar passage can conceal an insecure official opening.

## A common mistake

Using a generic national checklist as the final authority. Arco’s preparation framework is not the association’s rules or a placement forecast.

## Supported Arco packages

Monthly prices for one selected instrument, pathway and level. Board entry fees are not included.

- Middle school · Violin: $25/month. [Select package](https://arcosounds.com/signup?package=exam%3Aviolin%3Aus-all-state%3Amiddle-school)

- Middle school · Viola: $25/month. [Select package](https://arcosounds.com/signup?package=exam%3Aviola%3Aus-all-state%3Amiddle-school)

- Middle school · Cello: $25/month. [Select package](https://arcosounds.com/signup?package=exam%3Acello%3Aus-all-state%3Amiddle-school)

- Middle school · Bass: $25/month. [Select package](https://arcosounds.com/signup?package=exam%3Abass%3Aus-all-state%3Amiddle-school)

- High school · Violin: $25/month. [Select package](https://arcosounds.com/signup?package=exam%3Aviolin%3Aus-all-state%3Ahigh-school)

- High school · Viola: $25/month. [Select package](https://arcosounds.com/signup?package=exam%3Aviola%3Aus-all-state%3Ahigh-school)

- High school · Cello: $25/month. [Select package](https://arcosounds.com/signup?package=exam%3Acello%3Aus-all-state%3Ahigh-school)

- High school · Bass: $25/month. [Select package](https://arcosounds.com/signup?package=exam%3Abass%3Aus-all-state%3Ahigh-school)

## What the package does and does not include

Arco is independent of the exam boards and institutions. Packages provide preparation planning, requirements links and weekly task tracking, not exam entry, teacher assessment, official papers or a guaranteed result. Only published original knowledge-support collections are scored in question sessions; no question bank is promised for other selections. Instrument learning is a separate $15/month package. Each selected package is billed separately; review its terms before purchasing.

## Official source and verification scope

[NAfME: student opportunities directory](https://nafme.org/student-opportunities/)

A discovery directory, not the requirements for your audition. Your named institution or director and current audition-year documents are authoritative. Arco has not verified a particular institution’s audition rules here.

## Continue learning

[Compare frameworks](https://arcosounds.com/exam-prep)

[Compare violin pathways](https://arcosounds.com/exam-prep/compare/violin)

[Compare cello pathways](https://arcosounds.com/exam-prep/compare/cello)

[Free scales reference](https://arcosounds.com/learn/scales)

[Free metronome](https://arcosounds.com/tools/metronome)

Canonical source: https://arcosounds.com/exam-prep/us-all-state