Ashley Chizek is practicing with her high school band, but in a few short weeks she'll be playing with an all-star team of high school musicians from all over the country. "It makes me a lot more confident,” she said, “but at the same time it makes me realize how many people are competing for the same thing I want."

Her mom opened the congratulations letter. "She tried to play it cool but it didn't work out so well," said Chizek. "She could tell just by the look on my face," said Ashley’s mother Vickie Bauer.

The high school junior said she's eagerly anticipating her first trip to New York. "We go to New York City and Times Square and we practice for all day," said Chizek.

Nerves don't seem to be a problem, at least for Ashley. "It's those big moments that are special to her that of course a parent has a few nerves on the inside," said Bauer. And that's understandable, 2.5 million people will watch Ashley play in person, and another 50 million will be tuning in on their TVs. "I'll be watching on TV as well,” said Bauer, “there'll probably be about 40 of us."

Chizek will be the only Montanan in the ‘Great American Marching Band’ as they lead the parade eight miles through the city.

Bauer said her daughter’s come a long way since "starting out from the horn squeaking to being able to read music, to now having the great honor of representing the state of Montana."

Until then Ashley will be memorizing every note, and tapping out the beat. She’s hoping the opportunity leads to college scholarship offers.