Ensemble Arts Philly

Legal name: Philadelphia Orchestra Association

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
231352289
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2024
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Philadelphia, PA, USA
Phone
215.893.1999
Rating
70
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Symphony Orchestras

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$64,973,501
Expenses
$59,929,307
Assets
$243,452,395
Liabilities
$23,517,989

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

19 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MATIAS TARNOPOLSKY - BOARD (MEMBER/PRES & CEO (THRU 12/24))
  • RYAN FLEUR -BOARD (MEMBER/PRES & CEO (AS OF 04/25))

Highest reported compensation

  • MATIAS TARNOPOLSKY - BOARD (MEMBER/PRES & CEO (THRU 12/24)): $1,225,614 total reported compensation
  • RYAN FLEUR -BOARD (MEMBER/PRES & CEO (AS OF 04/25)): $551,140 total reported compensation
  • CRYSTAL BREWE (EXEC VP & COO (AS OF 02/25)): $425,992 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The Philadelphia Orchestra Association, through Ensemble Arts Philly, presents bold artistic experiences and new musical journeys, building on a legacy of artistry and innovation, while creating a vital and inclusive future for the performing arts through education programs, authentic partnerships, and community engagement.

What it reported doing in 2024

Orchestral music programs: the philadelphia orchestra took part in approximately 140 performance events throughout the year: main classical series (68), special concerts (26), family, school and community events (39) and tours and regional concerts (35). The philadelphia orchestra also provided free virtual concerts through its website and community engagement offerings.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and most voting board members are independent. Few specific pay-setting methods are documented in the filing; unanswered boxes are not proof of absence and the filing reports few safeguards for money sent abroad.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 77
  • Transparency & Controls: 48
  • Accountability: 82
  • Sustainability: 75
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 85.5%; rating input score 86
  • Program expense ratio: 73.9%; rating input score 74
  • Fundraising efficiency: $9.37 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 40; 40th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 68th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 0 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 0
    • Compensation committee: Missing
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • Compensation survey or study: Missing
    • Board or committee approval: Missing
  • Foreign activity oversight: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Grant itemization coverage: Scored; rating input score 0
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Yes; rating input score 100

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 93.3%; rating input score 93; 44th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 67
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Fail
    • Other executive compensation review process: Fail
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Fail
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 7.8%; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 4.06; rating input score 82; 82nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.1; rating input score 83; 83rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0.5%; rating input score 85; 85th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 2.1% per year; rating input score 100; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 2.3% per year; rating input score 100; 16th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 7.7% per year; rating input score 100; 56th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 5 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 3 operating locations identified
  • Where the money goes: 85.5% of revenue deployed · 73.9% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 14 of 15 board members independent · 6 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $44.3M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $1.2M · 19 people listed · 0 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $3.6M reported
  • Consistency: 43 of 43 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 11 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, executive pay, and related organizations
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2009 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 4 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 6 filed related-organization links
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Transparency & Controls: Pay-setting controls scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Foreign activity oversight scored 0/100.
  • High — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 0/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 3 of 9 not reported.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 40/100.