The Pasadena Symphony Association

Tax-deductible

Pasadena, CA501(c)(3)Since 1932Arts & CultureEIN 95-6002375

The mission of the pasadena symphony association (psa) is to provide musical concerts of the highest quality raning from orchestral performances to world-renowned artists in recital, and to provide the broadest access to youth education programs and the performing arts through community engagement and digital innovation. In the belief that music enriches and transforms the individual and the community, the pasadena symphony association servces as a curator of classical, popular and new music with an unwavering pursuit of excellence and inclusion.

501(c)(3) charity; gifts are tax-deductible.
83¢ of each $1 spent went to programs.
Run by 178 volunteers and 347 employees.
Mission: Form 990 Part I, line 1 · Status: IRS Pub. 78 · Programs: Part IX · People: Part I, lines 5–6

Before you give

FY2024 · Form 990Independent: from IRS data, not the org
Download 990
IRS status
501(c)(3)
not on the IRS revocation list
Looks good: listed by the IRS and not on the revocation list.
IRS BMF · Auto-Revocation List
Tax-deductible gifts
Yes
Donations are tax-deductible
Looks good: the IRS lists gifts to it as deductible.
IRS Pub. 78 · IRS BMF
Latest return
FY2024
latest Form 990
Looks good: the latest return is for FY2024, 2 tax years back; within 2 tax years.
IRS e-file · Filing history
Surplus or deficit
2 of 5
filings with a surplus
Average deficit $234K a year · 5% of revenue · last 5 filings
Concern: a surplus in 2 of the last 5 filings.
Pt I · Ln 19 · 5 filings
Spent on programs
83%
of spending
Looks good: 83% of spending went to programs; 75% or more.
Pt IX · Ln 25 · col B
Pay to officers and key staff
$210K
to officers and key staff · 3% of spending
Top officer’s pay higher than 86% of similar orgs
Looks good: pay to officers and key staff is 3% of spending; 15% or less.
Pt VII · Sec A
Cash reserves
<1 mo
of spending, in cash
Worth a look: 0.5 months of spending in cash; under 1.
Pt X · Ln 1–2 · Pt I · Ln 18
Named funders
3
named funders · $50K
Looks good: 3 funders name it on their filings; 3 or more.
Funders’ Sch. I, 990-PF
Liabilities
$2.4M
30% of total assets
Looks good: liabilities are 30% of assets; 50% or less.
Pt X · Ln 26
Independent board members
28
of 28 voting members
Looks good: 28 of 28 voting members are independent, a majority.
Pt VI · Ln 1a–1b
Looks goodFineWorth a lookConcernNo data yetTap a box for the reason.
Revenue
$5.3M
+4% vs prior year
Spent
$7.1M
To programs
83%
Net assets
$5.7M
By yearFY2020–FY2024
Revenue
$5.3M
FY2024▲ +4%
Revenue by fiscal year
FY2020$2.7M
FY2021$4.7M
FY2022$5.9M
FY2023$5.4M
FY2024$5.1M
FY2024$5.3M
Expenses
$7.1M
FY2024▲ +5%
Expenses by fiscal year
FY2020$2.8M
FY2021$3.9M
FY2022$5.7M
FY2023$5.8M
FY2024$6.8M
FY2024$7.1M
Net assets
$5.7M
FY2024▼ -27%
Net assets by fiscal year
FY2020$6.8M
FY2021$9.2M
FY2022$9.0M
FY2023$8.6M
FY2024$7.8M
FY2024$5.7M

From the FY2024 Form 990 · figures checked against the IRS filing · see the original

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Is it real?

Yes. Never revoked by the IRS. Latest filing on record: FY2024. IRS ruling in Dec 1955.

IRS Pub. 78 · IRS Auto-Revocation List · IRS Business Master File

Where the money goes

83 cents of each dollar spent went to programs.

Program services 83% · $5.9M Management & general 9% · $636K Fundraising 8% · $541K

Form 990 Part IX, line 25, columns B–D. Every line is in By the numbers.

Who runs it and what they're paid

28 people listed on the 990; $210K paid to officers and key staff.

Part VII, Section A · reportable compensation
Chief Executive Officer
$210,000Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Vice President Personnel
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
Board Member
$0Pt VII · Sec A
$0Pt VII · Sec A

Christopher Andrew Brown’s $210K as Chief Executive Officer is at the 86th percentile of top reported officer pay among 3925 $1–10M arts & culture nonprofits. Peer set: organizations in the same NTEE major field of work and revenue-size band, compared on each org’s own highest-paid officer/key-employee, from Form 990 Part VII / 990-PF Part VIII. Descriptive placement, not a verdict on whether the pay is appropriate.

Compensation history total reportable pay by year · 3 named individuals · Part VII

NameFY2024FY2024FY2023FY2022FY2021FY2020
Christopher Andrew Brown$210,000—————
Lora Unger——$136,026$200,000$185,000$185,000
Andy Brown—$181,730————

Total reportable compensation (Form 990 Part VII column D / Schedule J column E) by filing year, matched by name within this organization. The Schedule J base / bonus / deferred breakdown is not parsed into this dataset.

See The Pasadena Symphony Association executive salaries →

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Questions the 990 asks

The form asks each of these directly. These are the filed answers.

  • Family or business ties among officersPt VI · Ln 2No
  • Top official's pay set by an independent reviewPt VI · Ln 15aYes

Programs and updates

Provides musical training and personal development for young musicians through youth orchestras and ensembles.

Provided by the organization

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3 program services account for $5.6M of program spending, described in the organization's own filed words · FY2024.
01

Pasadena Pops

In the lush outdoor setting of the los angeles arboretum, the pasadena pops orchestra presents six summer concerts featuring a range of popular orchestral programming celebrating the music of the great american songbook, broadway, and film, led by multi-platinum selling, two-time emmy and five-time grammy award-nominated conductor…

$2.9Mprogram expense
02

Founded in 1928, the pasadena symphony has been presenting major orchestral works for greater pasadeana area audiences for nearly a century. The pasadena symphony currently presents a six-concert series frequently pairing classical favorites with new works at the historic ambassador auditorium in pasadena.

$2.0Mprogram expense
03

Since 1972, the pasadena youth symphony orchestra (pyso) has continually offered robust musical training and personal development for young musicians throughout the san gabriel valley. Pyso fosters dedication, excellence, fellowship, and passion in the development of those who are not only outstanding young musicians, but outstanding…

$681Kprogram expense

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Funders

Who pays for it.

From grant filings on record. Receipts are incomplete: individual donors are never listed.

Grants

Schedule I · funders on record
Grants received · FY2025
Total grants receivedfrom 3 funders$50K
See all 3 funders →

By the numbers

The FY2024 990, line by line.

1The main four
Money inPt VIII
$5.3M
Ln 12
Fees for servicesLn 2g$2.8M
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$1.3M
Investment incomeLn 3$1.0M
Money outPt IX
$7.1M
Ln 25
Programscol B$5.9M
Managementcol C$636K
Fundraisingcol D$541K
Owns and owesPt X
$5.7M
net assets · Ln 32
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$282K
Total assetsLn 16$8.1M
LiabilitiesLn 26$2.4M
PeoplePt VI, VII
28
listed · VII A
PaidVII A1
Voting boardVI 1a28
IndependentVI 1b28
2In more detail
Revenue in detailPt VIII
Gifts and grantsLn 1h$1.3M
Government grantsLn 1e$85K
Fundraising eventsLn 1c$53K
Fees for servicesLn 2g$2.8M
Investment incomeLn 3$1.0M
Other incomeLn 4–11$174K
Gains on assetsLn 7$783K
Total revenueLn 12$5.3M
Assets in detailPt X, end of year
CashLn 1$282K
SavingsLn 2$0
Cash and savings togetherLn 1–2$282K
InvestmentsLn 11–13$7.0M
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$173K
Other assetsLn 15$438K
Total assetsLn 16$8.1M
LiabilitiesLn 26$2.4M
Net assetsLn 32$5.7M
OperationsPt I, VI
EmployeesI 5347
VolunteersI 6178
Fiscal year endsHeaderDecember
Conflict-of-interest policyVI 12aYes
Whistleblower policyVI 13Yes
Records policyVI 14Yes
3Year over year
Balance sheet, start vs end of yearPt X · col A, B
LineStart FY24End FY24
Cash and savingsLn 1–2$87K$282K
InvestmentsLn 11–13$9.0M$7.0M
Land, buildings, equipmentLn 10c$217K$173K
Total assetsLn 16$10.1M$8.1M
LiabilitiesLn 26$2.3M$2.4M
Net assetsLn 32$7.8M$5.7M
4Every line
Statement of functional expensesPt IX · every line
LineTotalProgramsManagementFundraising
Grants to domestic organizationsLn 1$0
Grants to domestic individualsLn 2$0
Grants and assistance to foreign recipientsLn 3$0
Benefits paid to or for membersLn 4$0
Pay of current officers, directors and key staffLn 5$210K$63K$42K$105K
Pay of disqualified personsLn 6$0
Other salaries and wagesLn 7$2.4M$2.2M$16K$207K
Pension plan contributionsLn 8$0
Other employee benefitsLn 9$318K$275K$13K$30K
Payroll taxesLn 10$233K$202K$4K$26K
Management feesLn 11a$32K$32K
Legal feesLn 11b$7K$7K
Accounting feesLn 11c$122K$122K
Lobbying feesLn 11d$0
Professional fundraising feesLn 11e$0
Investment management feesLn 11f$0
Other fees for servicesLn 11g$0
Advertising and promotionLn 12$558K$525K$78$33K
Office expensesLn 13$221K$127K$84K$10K
Information technologyLn 14$86K$3K$83K
RoyaltiesLn 15$0
OccupancyLn 16$126K$126K
TravelLn 17$0
Travel and entertainment for public officialsLn 18$0
Conferences, conventions and meetingsLn 19$49K$55$3K$45K
InterestLn 20$0
Payments to affiliatesLn 21$0
Depreciation, depletion and amortizationLn 22$44K$44K
InsuranceLn 23$58K$58K
Other expenses (24a–d)Ln 24$2.7M$2.6M$730$84K
Total functional expensesLn 25$7.1M$5.9M$636K$541K

Filing history

YearMoney inMoney outIn minus outNet assetsDownload
FY2024 $5.1M$6.8M−$1.7M$7.8M 990 PDF
FY2023 $5.4M$5.8M−$439K$8.6M 990 PDF
FY2022 $5.9M$5.7M$265K$9.0M 990 PDF
FY2021 $4.7M$3.9M$796K$9.2M 990 PDF
FY2020 $2.7M$2.8M−$92K$6.8M 990 PDF

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Schedules filed Part IV

III · Programs I · Grants R · Related orgs G · Fundraising L · Interested persons A · Public support F · Foreign M · Noncash
See the full FY2024 990 (4 parts)
Part VIII · Statement of revenue $5,293,534 across 12 lines filed
VIII-1c Fundraising events$53,482
VIII-1e Government grants$85,148
VIII-1f All other contributions, gifts and grants$1,181,848
VIII-1h Total contributions, gifts and grants$1,320,478
VIII-2a-f Program service revenue, itemized rows (sum of 2a–2f as filed)Related to mission $2,770,024$2,770,024
VIII-3 Investment incomeExcluded from tax $245,456$245,456
VIII-5 Royalties$0
VIII-6 Net rental income or loss$0
VIII-7 Net gain or loss on sales of assets$783,089
VIII-8 Net income from fundraising events$153,337
VIII-11a-d Other revenue, itemized rows (sum of 11a–11d as filed)Excluded from tax $21,150$21,150
VIII-12 Total revenueRelated to mission $2,770,024 · Excluded from tax $266,606$5,293,534
Part IX · Statement of functional expenses $7,123,344 across 30 lines filed
IX-1 Grants to domestic organizations$0
IX-2 Grants to domestic individuals$0
IX-3 Grants and assistance to foreign recipients$0
IX-4 Benefits paid to or for members$0
IX-5 Pay of current officers, directors and key staffPrograms $63,000 · Management $42,000 · Fundraising $105,000$210,000
IX-6 Pay of disqualified persons$0
IX-7 Other salaries and wagesPrograms $2,179,124 · Management $15,609 · Fundraising $206,998$2,401,731
IX-8 Pension plan contributions$0
IX-9 Other employee benefitsPrograms $274,954 · Management $13,131 · Fundraising $29,820$317,905
IX-10 Payroll taxesPrograms $202,335 · Management $4,065 · Fundraising $26,166$232,566
IX-11a Management feesManagement $32,340$32,340
IX-11b Legal feesManagement $7,147$7,147
IX-11c Accounting feesManagement $122,340$122,340
IX-11d Lobbying fees$0
IX-11e Professional fundraising fees$0
IX-11f Investment management fees$0
IX-11g Other fees for services$0
IX-12 Advertising and promotionPrograms $525,009 · Management $78 · Fundraising $33,332$558,419
IX-13 Office expensesPrograms $127,122 · Management $83,888 · Fundraising $10,069$221,079
IX-14 Information technologyPrograms $2,801 · Management $83,438$86,239
IX-15 Royalties$0
IX-16 OccupancyManagement $126,162$126,162
IX-17 Travel$0
IX-18 Travel and entertainment for public officials$0
IX-19 Conferences, conventions and meetingsPrograms $55 · Management $3,374 · Fundraising $45,225$48,654
IX-20 Interest$0
IX-21 Payments to affiliates$0
IX-22 Depreciation, depletion and amortizationManagement $43,607$43,607
IX-23 InsuranceManagement $58,472$58,472
IX-24 Other expenses (24a–d)Programs $2,571,786 · Management $730 · Fundraising $84,167$2,656,683
IX-25 Total functional expensesPrograms $5,946,186 · Management $636,381 · Fundraising $540,777$7,123,344
Part X · Balance sheet $8,061,983 assets, 24 lines filed
X-1 Cash, non-interest-bearingStart of year $86,895$281,565
X-2 Savings and temporary cash investmentsStart of year $0$0
X-3 Pledges and grants receivableStart of year $95,649$48,650
X-4 Accounts receivableStart of year $0$0
X-8 Inventories for sale or useStart of year $0$0
X-9 Prepaid expenses and deferred chargesStart of year $157,577$79,184
X-10c Land, buildings and equipment, netStart of year $216,868$173,261
X-11 Publicly traded securitiesStart of year $0$0
X-12 Other securitiesStart of year $9,034,495$7,041,436
X-13 Program-related investmentsStart of year $0$0
X-14 Intangible assetsStart of year $0$0
X-15 Other assetsStart of year $515,690$437,887
X-16 Total assetsStart of year $10,107,174$8,061,983
X-17 Accounts payable and accrued expensesStart of year $1,055,127$1,093,569
X-18 Grants payableStart of year $0$0
X-19 Deferred revenueStart of year $1,142,657$1,142,417
X-20 Tax-exempt bond liabilitiesStart of year $0$0
X-24 Unsecured notes and loans payableStart of year $0$0
X-25 Other liabilitiesStart of year $145,413$150,000
X-26 Total liabilitiesStart of year $2,343,197$2,385,986
X-27 Net assets without donor restrictionsStart of year $1,000,647−$1,875,104
X-28 Net assets with donor restrictionsStart of year $6,763,330$7,551,101
X-32 Total net assets or fund balancesStart of year $7,763,977$5,675,997
X-33 Total liabilities and net assetsStart of year $10,107,174$8,061,983
Part XI · Reconciliation of net assets $5,675,997 net assets at year end
XI-1 Total revenue$5,293,534
XI-2 Total expenses$7,123,344
XI-3 Revenue less expenses−$1,829,810
XI-4 Net assets at start of year$7,763,977
XI-5 Net unrealized gains (losses) on investments−$258,170
XI-10 Net assets at end of year$5,675,997

Form 990 e-file (XML) FY2024 from the IRS · Classification, formation year and address from the IRS Business Master File

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