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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Carpe Diem String Quartet

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 204351770
OH · NTEE A6C
FY ending 2024-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Marisa Ishikawa, Executive Director / CEO ($16,600) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 23 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 22nd percentile of comparable organizationsbelow the typical range for comparable organizations

Benchmarked executive: Marisa Ishikawa — reported title “TRUSTEE”, selected as the organization's highest-paid individual — no exact title match, so confirm this is a comparable role.

How comparable organizations were selected

23 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 23 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$786 total compensation of comparable organizations → $71,078 $16,600
$14,60510th
$17,33125th
$36,639Median
$43,92375th
$58,74590th
$16,600This org · 22nd
p10$14,605
p25$17,331
p50$36,639
p75$43,923
p90$58,745
$16,600

Comparable organizations

Each figure is Form 990 Part VII columns D + F (reportable pay plus other compensation and benefits; column F may include amounts from related organizations), normalized to OH cost of living (BEA RPP, 2023) and to its filing year (CPI-U); the reported amount is on each linked 990.

OrganizationStateRevenueMatched titleComp
(reported)
Comp
(adjusted)
FY
Klezmer Music Foundation IL$161,844 President $26,000 $24,133 2024
Renovare Music Inc OH$174,055 Executive Director $36,000 $37,063 2023
Kadima Conservatory Of Music Inc CA$177,171 Ceo $19,582 $15,965 2024
Miami Chamber Music Society FL$178,365 Artistic Director $30,000 $26,609 2024
Mistral Music Inc MA$137,198 Artistic Director $20,250 $16,738 2025
Center For Music By People With Disabilities MT$135,967 Executive Director Non Voting Member Of The Board $36,000 $36,639 2024
Wichita Falls Youth Symphony Orchestra TX$189,592 Executive Director $38,333 $36,203 2024
Magical Strings Of Youth Nfp IL$128,512 President $15,000 $14,334 2023
Sacramento Jazz Education Foundation CA$198,559 Executive Director $52,382 $42,706 2024
Cedar Falls Band Inc IA$123,132 President $760 $786 2024
One Achord Guitar Lessons Inc CA$122,814 President $77,624 $63,285 2024
Cavani String Quartet OH$202,846 Treasurer $17,410 $17,924 2023
Boise Baroque Inc ID$203,674 Executive Director $36,000 $37,225 2023
Mcm Productions TN$212,044 Executive Director $16,225 $15,687 2025
River City Drum Corp Cultural Arts Institute Inc KY$111,932 Executive Director $44,500 $45,139 2024
El Cerrito Band Association CA$214,748 Director $5,250 $4,170 2025
Villa Sinfonia Foundation CA$220,620 President $27,000 $22,663 2023
Dallas Chamber Music Society Inc TX$222,869 Executive Dir. $60,000 $58,340 2023
Vienna Jammers Percussion Ensemble Inc VA$223,789 Executive Dir. $42,800 $39,017 2024
Dolce Suono Ensemble Inc PA$224,288 Executive Director $73,325 $71,078 2023
Musicians Of Ma'alwyck Inc NY$225,332 Artistic Director $47,200 $40,269 2024
Denver Municipal Band CO$230,704 Executive Di $65,000 $58,846 2024
Avokado Artists Inc NM$236,815 President $45,417 $46,120 2024

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to OH cost of living and 2024 dollars. Click any organization to verify the figure on ProPublica.

Methodology

Comparable organizations were drawn from electronically filed IRS Form 990 returns and matched on sector (NTEE code), budget (a size-adaptive revenue band that tightens as the organization grows), and geography (same-state first, broadening only when too few peers qualify); every organization within the band forms the peer set. To compare fairly across regions and years, peer compensation is normalized to OH cost of living (BEA Regional Price Parities, 2023) and to the subject's filing year (CPI-U). The figure benchmarked is Form 990 Part VII, Section A, columns D + F — reportable pay plus other compensation, benefits, and deferred amounts (column F may include amounts from related organizations) — with the chief executive matched by role. Related-organization amounts (column E) and institutional trustees are excluded. Full methodology: peerbasis.org/methodology.

Sample, role match & sensitivity

Sensitivity — the subject's percentile under alternative compensation definitions:

BasisSubject percentile
Total compensation (D + F), cost-of-living + inflation adjusted — the PeerBasis default22nd
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)17th
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted26th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted22nd

If the percentile moves materially across these definitions, the result is sensitive to methodology choices, and the board should weigh which basis best fits its facts.

Rebuttable presumption of reasonableness · 26 CFR 53.4958-6

Compensation paid by a tax-exempt organization is presumed reasonable — shifting the burden to the IRS — when three requirements are met. This report supplies the comparability data for the second. The board should record the following in its minutes concurrently with its decision:

Draft board minutes — executive compensation

  1. The compensation of the Executive Director / CEO (Marisa Ishikawa) was approved in advance by [the Board / Compensation Committee], composed of members with no conflict of interest with respect to the arrangement.
  2. Prior to its determination, the authorized body obtained and relied upon appropriate comparability data, namely the PeerBasis Compensation Comparability Determination dated June 9, 2026, comparing compensation against 23 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A6C), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $16,600 is reasonable (approximately the 22nd percentile of comparable organizations) and documented the basis for this determination concurrently, on [date], by a vote of [__ for / __ against].

Sources: IRS Form 990 e-file data (apps.irs.gov); IRS Business Master File (NTEE classification). Every figure traces to an original public filing — click any organization above to verify it on ProPublica. PeerBasis is a service of Prismind Analytics; its methodology is published, was commissioned for independent adversarial review, and discloses its own limitations. This report is comparability data to support a board's good-faith determination under IRC 4958; it is not legal or tax advice. Generated by PeerBasis on June 9, 2026.