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UNITED SOUND INC

EIN 47-1534338 MESA, AZ

Revenue 2024
$389,375
Expenses 2024
$381,908

Program services were 96.5% of total expenses calculated — Part IX's program-services column over total expenses, both as filed.

As filed

Subsection
03
NTEE code
B90
Classification
2000
Street
1136 E HARMONY AVE STE 201

These codes are the IRS's own and are shown exactly as filed. What each one means is in the Business Master File documentation (opens in a new tab).

Mission and programs · 2024

Mission

United Sound's mission is to remove barriers and foster social change through music. Our goal is to support musicians and educators to use music as a vehicle for transformative change. Working with peer mentors, teaching artists, specialists, therapists, educators, composers, performers, and industry professionals, United Sound provides training, support, organizational resources, and curriculum that leverage individual strengths to create equitable opportunities and outcomes for all. Through our own experiences, we know that the joy of learning and performing music is life-changing. We believe that all children should have access to meaningful and authentic music education and musical performance experiences.

Activities or mission (Part I)

United Sound's mission is to remove barriers and foster social change through music. Our goal is to support musicians and educators to use music as a vehicle for transformative change. Working with peer mentors, teaching artists, specialists, therapists, educators, composers, performers, and industry professionals, United Sound provides training, support, organizational resources, and curriculum that leverage individual strengths to create equitable opportunities and outcomes for all.

  • Peer mentoring program: Production of method training materials (music, books, and other teaching materials) for teachers and students in the United Sound program. We currently have method books available for flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, euphonium, mallet percussion, rhythmic percussion, violin, viola, cello, and guitar. The curriculum was created with research-based principles in mind. Using colors and foods, the abstract concepts of music (rhythm and pitch) are transformed into concrete steps. The method books include flash cards and other materials useful in helping New Musicians be successful on their chosen instrument. For example, the flute book would include textured stickers that can be placed on a New Musician's instrument to help them feel as well as see the hand position for each note. The Peer Mentors use these method books, along with the training they receive to create a modified, individualized plan for each New Musician. For the 24-25 academic year, 687 New Musicians (students with disabilities and special needs) and 1627 Peer Mentors (general education band and orchestra students) participated in United Sound. Training 1850 volunteers, teachers, students, and aides from participating United Sound schools who donated more than 55,500 hours during the fiscal year for the United Sound program. This training includes the production of training videos that are made available to teachers and students and conference calls with schools to discuss not only the implementation of a United Sound chapter but also on-going support as needed. In addition, our founder and executive director travels to various programs throughout the country to offer support and training. For the 24-25 school year, United Sound had 88 peer mentoring programs throughout the United States. In addition to this, we also give New Musicians and Peer Mentors the opportunity to perform together at local and national events and conferences/conventions.

    Expenses $289,939 · Revenue $100,538

  • Composer project - we worked to form strategic alliances with teachers, students, and composers. For teachers, we are working on making the process of finding and obtaining diverse new music easier. For students, we are working on increasing access and opportunity, enabling more young people to play more diverse music at much younger ages. For composers, we are building structure to support the writing and distribution process.

    Expenses $18,597 · Revenue $30,000

  • Play with US Program: this program was created as we navigated the "new normal" during the pandemic. Even though our peer mentoring programs couldn't meet in person, our focus still remained on students with disabilities and by extension their teachers and parents. The Play with US program brings the music class directly into self-contained special education classrooms by partnering with schools across the country to provide weekly interactive videoconference music classes. At the junior high and high school levels, general music is typically not an option and electives are being cancelled. Play with US enables special education teachers to participate with their students in an active music-making class that utilizes the existing United Sound curriculum and foundations. In addition to weekly music classes, instrument kits were provided to all participants and their teachers truly making this an interactive and fun class for all. For the 24-25 academic year, we had 46 classrooms/teachers participating in Play with US and were able to bring the joy of music into the lives of over 460 special education students.

    Expenses $48,823 · Revenue $31,825

  • In 2022, United Sound merged with another 501(c)(3) public charity, Tempe Symphonic Wind Ensemble Association, a community ensemble based in Tempe, Arizona. the conductor of the Tempe Winds retired and this merger allowed this ensemble to continue to exist and also benefited United Sound's composer project.

    Expenses $11,184 · Revenue $1,874

As filed on the 2024 return.

Officers and directors · 2024

As listed in Part VII of the 2024 return, in the order the filer printed them. Each return names its own; this is not a roster the organization keeps with us.

  • Julie Duty

    Executive Director

    Total calculated
    $78,300
    From this org
    $78,300
    From related orgs
    $0
    Other
    $0
    Hours/week
    60

  • Mark Young

    Chairman

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Matthew Burton

    Treasurer

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • Debbie Spaulding

    Secretary

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

  • James Weaver

    Member

    Total calculated
    $0
    Hours/week
    1

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. Earlier years are each on their own filing page.

Filings

  • 2024
    Revenue
    $389,375
    Expenses
    $381,908
    Contributions
    $246,290
    Grants paid
    $0
  • 2023
    Revenue
    $419,122
    Expenses
    $379,874
    Contributions
    $268,707
    Grants paid
    $0
  • 2022
    Revenue
    $352,679
    Expenses
    $296,451
    Contributions
    $236,645
    Grants paid
    $0

The four totals the IRS asks for on Part I of the Form 990, as filed. A dash means the figure was not present on the return — not that it was zero.

Other returns filed

  • 2021 · 990

    Revenue
    $307,259
    Expenses
    $272,160
    Assets (EOY)
    $361,115

  • 2020 · 990

    Revenue
    $371,504
    Expenses
    $236,115
    Assets (EOY)
    $355,857

  • 2019 · 990

    Revenue
    $334,810
    Expenses
    $252,423
    Assets (EOY)
    $207,012

Nonprofiteer parses Forms 990, 990-EZ and 990-PF, in a window of recent tax years. These returns are recorded from the IRS e-file index, so their figures were extracted by that index rather than read from the return here — treat them as a different source from the filings above, not as more of the same record. A dash means the index carries no figure; Form 990-T listings carry none at all.

Form 990-N e-Postcard, tax year 2013

Tax period
1 August 2013 to 31 July 2014
Principal officer
Julie Duty
Mailing address
2826 E Campbell RdGilbert AZ 85234
Website
www.unitedsound.org

As filed, from the IRS e-Postcard file of 26 October 2026. The IRS publishes only each organization's most recent postcard, so earlier years are not shown. A 990-N carries no financial detail. The postcard also gives the principal officer's address, which is not shown here.

Grants made

No itemized grants to organizations. Schedule I is filed only by organizations that granted more than $5,000 to a recipient, so most filers have none.

Grants received

Other IRS files

Auto-Revocation List

Not listed. The IRS publishes this list for organizations whose exemption was automatically revoked for failing to file for three consecutive years.

Publication 78

Listed as of 13 October 2026, under deductibility PC.

These are two separate IRS files on two separate schedules, shown as published and not reconciled with each other. Neither is a statement about whether a contribution is deductible today: 19,245 organizations appear in Publication 78 while the IRS's own revocation file lists them as currently revoked, more than half of those revoked before 2019. Absence from Publication 78 is evidence of nothing, and presence is not evidence either. Verify current status with the IRS before relying on it.

What this page reflects

The registration facts above come from the IRS Business Master File published 13 October 2026 and read 1 November 2026, for every organization at once. Returns through tax year 2024, the newest we have parsed for this organization.