American Youth Symphony Inc

What it reported doing in 2020

American youth symphony, inc. (ays) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is "to inspire the future of classical music." ays achieves its mission by providing fellowships to exceptional young orchestral musicians (ages 15 and up) and presenting free concerts to the community. Comprised of 100 passionate and talented musicians from all over the world, ays is one of the nation's best training grounds for the next generation of orchestral professionals. The ays orchestra performs works across the breadth of orchestral music: classic repertoire, works by living and underrepresented composers, film music, and new works commissioned by ays. By producing exceptional and accessible concerts, ays is proud to have one of the most diverse audiences to be found in classical music today. Ays musicians are paid scholarships to ensure equitable access to participation opportunities. The ays concert season runs from september through may and most concerts are presented at ucla's royce hall. The concerts are offered free to the community in alignment with ays's longstanding commitment to eliminating financial barriers that might restrict access to experiencing remarkable orchestral works performed live in a beautiful concert hall. Ays also runs a music education program that supports music programs at title-1 lausd middle schools while also providing orchestra members with valuable in-school teaching experience.ays' 56th season (2020/2021) was led by music director, carlos izcaray, only the third conductor to hold this position since the organization's founding in 1964. The season included the following performances (concerts marked with an asterisk* were presented free to the public). All performances were virtual and/or practiced social distancing due to the impact of the covid-19 pandemic throughout the entire season: september 26, 2020*-one-on-one rooftop concerts at the el segundo museum of art (esmoa) with ays violinist ani sinanyan (j.s. Bach's sonata no. 1 in g; komitas vardapet's al aylughs) and principal cellist, alex mansour (mark summers, julie-o; bach, cello suite no. 1 excerpts; kodaly, solo cello sonata excerpt). Recorded and posted on youtube.november 1, 2020*-virtual fall concert with conductor carlos izcaray: benjamin britten's variations on a theme of frank bridge; jesse mongomery's starburst; igor stravinsky's symphony of wind instruments; carlos izcaray's bloom (world premiere). Recorded at royce hall, live event broadcast and available on-demand on youtube.december 20, 2020*-virtual concert with alex mansour, principal cello, and galia kastner, concertmaster: alex mansour's 1,000 cranes (world premiere). Alex mansour is the ays creative fellow. Recorded at esmoa, live event broadcast and available on-demand on youtube.december 24, 2020*-virtual ensemble with the la county holiday celebration: alex mansour's candlelight. Event broadcast on pbs socal, and posted on ays youtube.march 20, 2021*-virtual concert livestream from esmoa with double bassist moses aubrey, violist sarah wilkinson, and cellist ben solomonow. J.s. Bach's suite no. 3 in c; franois rabbath's ode d'espaa, moses aubrey's i ate that bottle; j.s. Bach's suite no. 6 in d; ludwig van beethoven's eyeglass duet. Live event broadcast and available on-demand on youtube.june 3, 2021*-ays 2021 virtual gala with conductor carlos izcaray: aaron copland, three latin american sketches; anna clyne, within her arms; joseph bologne, chevalier de saint-georges: symphony no. 1; wolfgang amadeus mozart, serenata notturna. Recorded at royce hall, live event broadcast and available on-demand on youtube.ays is firmly established as a "gateway orchestra for aspiring musicians, as well as the field of classical music at-large. Ays alumni have joined the finest orchestras in the nation, including the New York philharmonic, the chicago symphony, the cleveland orchestra, and the metropolitan opera, to name a few. The three leading orchestras in los angeles - the la philharmonic,

Financial Efficiency

• Mission deployment rate: 87.6%; rating input score 88
• Program expense ratio: 84.1%; rating input score 84
• Fundraising efficiency: $14.86 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

• Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Pay-setting controls: Limited
• Foreign activity oversight: Limited
• Grant itemization coverage: Limited
• Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
• Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

• Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
• Governance controls: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
  • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
  • Whistleblower policy: Pass
  • Document-retention policy: Pass
  • CEO compensation review process: Pass
  • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
  • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
  • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
  • Audit committee oversight: Missing
  • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

• Operating margin: -4%; rating input score 19; 19th percentile among comparable filings
• Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.04; rating input score 39; 39th percentile among comparable filings
• Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 77; 77th percentile among comparable filings
• Officer compensation ratio: 12.6%; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings

Growth

• Program expense growth: 0.3% per year; rating input score 100; 33rd percentile among comparable filings
• Revenue growth: 0.5% per year; rating input score 100; 26th percentile among comparable filings
• Asset growth: 6.2% per year; rating input score 100; 48th percentile among comparable filings