Form 990 for tax year 2023

Totals

Total revenue

$5,120,173

Total expenses

$4,931,970

Contributions and grants received

$2,782,434

Grants paid

$0

Program service revenue

$2,101,630

Investment income

$202,143

Other revenue

$33,966

Total assets, end of year

$10,727,469

Total liabilities, end of year

$1,943,899

Net assets or fund balances, end of year

$8,783,570

Program services expenses (Part IX)

$3,898,675

Management and general expenses

$537,072

Fundraising expenses

$496,223

Program service expenses (Part III)

$3,898,675

Program services were 79.0% of total expenses calculated — Part IX's program-services column over total expenses, both as filed.

Line items

Every line the filer filed in Parts VIII, IX and X, as filed and in filed order. Blank columns are left out, and the lines are not forced to add up to the totals above.

Mission and programs · 2023

• THE SYMPHONY'S 2023-2024 SEASON, THEMED "MUSIC FOR EVERYONE," FEATURED A REMARKABLE LINEUP OF INTERNATIONALLY ACCLAIMED GUEST CONDUCTORS AND WORLD-RENOWNED VISITING ARTISTS. FROM LEGENDARY CONDUCTORS LIKE THOMAS WILKINS, CARL ST. CLAIR, GERARD SCHWARZ, TITO MUOZ, AND LINA GONZLEZ-GRANADOS TO SUPERSTAR GUEST MUSICIANS SUCH AS MICHELLE CANN, PINCHAS ZUKERMAN, MAXIM LANDO, AND SARA DAVIS BUECHNER, THE SEASON CONTINUED TO ELEVATE THE SYMPHONY AS A TOP-TIER ARTS AND CULTURAL DESTINATION. WITH SENSATIONAL PROGRAMMING, INCLUDING WORKS BY PRICE, BRUCKNER, BRAHMS, MARSALIS, VERDI, THE SEASON SHOWCASED INCREDIBLE REPERTOIRE, AND LARGER ORCHESTRAL SOUNDS ELEVATED THE SYMPHONY TO NEW HEIGHTS. THE SYMPHONY'S COMMITMENT TO ARTISTIC EXCELLENCE RESULTED IN RECORD SUBSCRIPTION AND SINGLE TICKET REVENUE.IN FEBRUARY 2024, THE SYMPHONY COLLABORATED WITH CHABAD OF CHARLESTON TO PRESENT "AN EVENING WITH ITZHAK PERLMAN." FOR ONE NIGHT, OUR COMMUNITY EXPERIENCED THIS RARE OPPORTUNITY TO HEAR THE LEGENDARY VIOLINIST, ITZHAK PERLMAN, PERFORM AND CONDUCT THE SYMPHONY. THIS SPECIAL PERFORMANCE SOLD OUT IN LESS THAN THREE WEEKS.

  Expenses $3,423,630 · Revenue $2,062,923

• THE CSO REMAINS COMMITTED TO PRESENTING THE HIGHEST-QUALITY MUSICAL EXPERIENCES AND PROVIDING DIRECT ACCESS TO THE ARTS FOR OUR COMMUNITY'S CHILDREN, THEREBY NARROWING THE GAP OF EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY FOR OVER 20,000 STUDENTS ACROSS THE LOWCOUNTRY EACH SEASON. THE CSO IS PROUD TO OFFER MULTIPLE OPPORTUNITIES FOR EDUCATIONAL ENGAGEMENT, WITH A SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON PROVIDING FREE OR LOW-COST PROGRAMMING TO PROMOTE ACCESS TO INSPIRATIONAL EDUCATION THROUGH MUSIC. EACH YEAR, SMALL ENSEMBLES OF CSO MUSICIANS TRAVEL DIRECTLY TO SCHOOLS ACROSS THE TRI-COUNTY AREA TO PRESENT CHAMBER MUSIC CONCERTS AND INSTRUMENTAL DEMONSTRATIONS FREE OF CHARGE THROUGH THE "MUSIC IN SCHOOLS" PROGRAM. DURING THE 2023-24 SCHOOL YEAR, STUDENTS ALSO HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO ATTEND "YOUNG PEOPLE'S CONCERTS" AT THE GAILLARD CENTER IN PARTNERSHIP WITH CARNEGIE HALL FOR A HIGHLY ENGAGING AND INTERACTIVE PROGRAM OF FULL-SCALE SYMPHONIC MUSIC.IN ADDITION TO THESE PROGRAMS, THE CHARLESTON SYMPHONY YOUTH ORCHESTRA (CSYO) OPERATES YEAR-ROUND AS ONE OF THE CSO'S MOST IMPACTFUL INITIATIVES IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF YOUNG MUSICIANS. THIS ESTEEMED ENSEMBLE PROVIDED MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS WITH RICH MUSICAL EXPERIENCES THROUGH INTERACTIONS AND INTENSIVE COACHING WITH CSO MUSICIANS THROUGHOUT THE SEASON. THE CHARLESTON SYMPHONY YOUTH SINFONIETTA (CSYS) IS A STRING ORCHESTRA THAT INTEGRATES WIND AND BRASS SECTIONS IN EACH CONCERT CYCLE, PREPARING YOUNGER MUSICIANS FOR THE MORE ADVANCED CSYO. THIS YEAR, THE PROGRAM SERVED OVER 100 STUDENTS FROM GRADES 3-12, WHO PERFORMED THREE CONCERTS AT THE CHARLESTON GAILLARD CENTER AND A FINAL CONCERT AT THE MUSIC HALL DURING THE PICCOLO SPOLETO FESTIVAL. THE CSYO AND CSYS WERE ALSO FEATURED IN A SYMPHONY MASTERWORKS PERFORMANCE, PROVIDING STUDENTS WITH THE LIFE-CHANGING EXPERIENCE OF PERFORMING ALONGSIDE PROFESSIONAL MUSICIANS OF THE SYMPHONY ON THE GAILLARD STAGE, CONDUCTED BY MAESTRO GERARD SCHWARZ.FURTHERMORE, THE SYMPHONY CONTINUED ITS PARTNERSHIP WITH THE COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON FOR THE THIRD YEAR OF THE EXECUTIVE FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM AND INTRODUCED THE SECOND SEASON OF THE ORCHESTRAL FELLOWSHIP. THIS YEAR, FIVE MUSICIANS, ALONG WITH TWO EXECUTIVE FELLOWS, WERE SELECTED THROUGH A RIGOROUS PROCESS TO JOIN THE SYMPHONY. THE PROGRAM OFFERSPERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR EMERGING NONPROFIT ARTS LEADERS AND MUSICIANS. THIS SEASON, THE FELLOWS PARTICIPATED IN A VARIETY OF SYMPHONY ACTIVITIES, INCLUDING MAIN SERIES PERFORMANCES, EDUCATION AND COMMUNITY PROJECTS, AND THE FELLOWSHIP SHOWCASE. THE SYMPHONY REMAINS DEDICATED TO PROVIDING CULTURALLY RELEVANT PROGRAMMING THAT RESONATES WITH DIVERSE AUDIENCES.

  Expenses $475,045 · Revenue $38,707

As filed on the 2023 return. The filer continues this part on Schedule O, which is not shown here.

Listed in Part VII

Compensation is as filed in Part VII: reportable pay from this organization and from related organizations, other compensation, and hours per week. The total, marked calculated, is our sum of the three dollar columns, with a blank column counted as $0; the form itself has no total. On a Form 990-EZ the columns are Part IV's instead, and on a Form 990-PF Part VIII's — compensation, contributions to benefit plans, and expense account — and the total sums those. A Schedule J breakdown is as filed: base pay, bonus, other, deferred compensation and nontaxable benefits from this organization, with any from related organizations beside each, and the filer's own total. It is shown with the Part VII listing of the same name on the same return. The form gives no key between the two, so that pairing is ours, and is marked matched by us.

Schedule J

Part I's answers as filed. A line not listed was left unanswered; on lines 1a and 3 that means the box was not checked.

Grants on this return

No itemized grants to organizations on this return.

Related organizations on this return

Schedule R Part II: tax-exempt organizations related to the filer by control. It does not record shared board members or money.

• CHARLESTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA LEAGUE INC

  501(C)(3) · FUNDRAISING FOR CSO · SC

Provenance

Return type

form_990

Tax year

2023

Filed

24 February 2025

IRS schema version

2023v6.0

Source object

202540589349300119

Check it against the return as filed: the GivingTuesday Data Lake hosts a public copy of the original XML.

The source document this was parsed from is served over the API, which is where bulk and document access live.