A Fond Farewell: A Q&A with Kronos’s Janet Cowperthwaite

On October 18, the proverbial fifth member of the Kronos Quartet will head home from her San Francisco office for the last time. After 43 years—to the date—of leadership as Manager and Executive Director of the Kronos Performing Arts Association, Janet Cowperthwaite will be moving on to new musical and administrative ventures.

News of this career segue made headlines—after all, Cowperthwaite’s tenure with Kronos has been consequential. In addition to leading the group to international fame, she has arranged thousands of concerts worldwide; overseen the recordings of more than 70 releases; and, in a role as creative producer for the ensemble, steered major collaborative projects throughout the years. Recently, she was pivotal to the success of Kronos Fifty for the Future, the program that assembled 50 commissioned works that are available for free on the KPAA website, and oversaw the Library of Congress’ acquisition of KPAA’s archive that makes Kronos’s work accessible to the public in perpetuity.

So how does one learn to become one of the most influential executives in chamber music? Leading up to her final days, Chamber Music America spoke with Cowperthwaite to learn more.

CMA: Going back to the early years, your career with Kronos began when you were still in college, studying journalism and communications. How did you learn to run a company?

JC: There was a lot of instinct. The Quartet itself had been taking on a lot of the administrative work, so they knew what needed to be done, even if they didn’t necessarily know the best way to do it. A few of the board of directors were small business owners—so I could look to them for mentorship. At a booking conference, I met a fellow manager, Susan Endrizzi, who had a management firm called California Artist Management. She took me under her wing so generously and showed me the ropes and made sure I was doing OK. I also think my college studies helped: in journalism, you’re taught to just figure things out. Go find the answer to that question. So I had some of that in my DNA.

CMA: You’ve also spoken about how when you started with Kronos, while you had a curiosity and interest, you didn’t come from inside the world of string quartets. Can you talk about how your “outsider” background worked to everyone’s benefit, especially for those who may be making hiring decisions?

JC: The first string-quartet concert I ever attended was in the first month of my employment with Kronos. I grew up with music—there was lots of music in my household, and I attended concerts constantly. I had been to symphony orchestra concerts with school, but primarily, the concerts I attended were rock concerts in arenas. There have been many times in my 40-odd years at Kronos where I was the only person employed who didn’t read music—which is not something I’m ashamed of. It’s just the truth. And It’s unusual. When I started at Kronos, I was tasked with creating brochures or other print material to sell the concerts. I just brought my particular sensibility—I had no preconceived notion of what the stereotypical quartet was. I wasn’t completely unaware, but it wasn’t part of my world. In a sense, I was kind of the perfect person for the group. I wasn’t trying to break any stereotypes because I didn’t even know what the stereotypes were. I just knew Kronos was a music group and we were looking for shows.

CMA: In a sense, you helped to create “The Beatles” of the classical world. I can’t think of another string quartet that has name recognition like Kronos.

JC: I appreciate that compliment. I do want to stress, however, that it’s always been a team. The Quartet is so involved, even in more administrative work, too. We’ve had a lot of staff along the way—different sizes of staff, different teams. And working together with David Harrington, the artistic director, to understand his very long list of ideas is and imagining how to bring those ideas to fruition—it’s something we’ve done together.

CMA: What’s one thing you want to tell peers in the field or those interested in moving into a management career?

JC: It’s OK to make your own way and to do things the way that are good for you and feel comfortable. And if it’s different from the way things have been done by others, that’s fine.

I think about the entrepreneurial nature of Kronos, and the group’s entrepreneurial spirit. It’s gratifying to see that in new ensembles that are one and two generations below Kronos. There’s an amazing creativity artistically, but also organizationally. That’s really important.

A manager needs to feel passionate about the work they’re representing. It wouldn’t be especially rewarding to be selling something that you don’t feel deeply yourself. It’s a luxury for me to be able to say that—it’s not always possible or practical. But if that’s there, it makes things easier.

And the other thing I’d say that to up-and-coming or emerging managers is don’t underestimate the power of the relationship. It’s our commodity. Musicians do this naturally—their networks of musicians and composers and creative people is so strong. Managers need this, too. Treat your relationships with care.

CMA: Do you have a favorite musical moment or a project that you’re most proud of?

JC: I had a feeling you’d ask me that. And I’m going to separate “proud of” from “favorite,” because they’re different. I’d say my absolute favorite moment was when Kronos was onstage with Paul McCarney performing “Yesterday,” which he had never done with a string quartet since the original, if you can believe that! And while that happened at Outside Lands in San Francisco, in front of tens of thousands of people—I also got to experience the process leading up to it: the rehearsals.

What I’m most proud of is Kronos Fifty for the Future. This has taken place over the course of a decade. We commissioned 50 pieces and gave them away. Since then, nearly 40,000 scores have been downloaded in 108 countries and territories. My team raised more than $2 million with more than $1 million from different presenters who were partners. I’m proud of the project itself, the architecture of it, and the fact that there has been an infusion of 50 new pieces to string quartet repertoire, available to others for no cost.

CMA: When artists within a group shift, there are seismic changes. As the executive director, in a management role, I’m sure you take on some HR functions. How do you hold it together despite newcomers.

JC: It’s certainly not without complication, as you can imagine. The first time in my career at Kronos that there was a shift was in 1998 when cellist Joan Jeanrenaud departed. She had been with Kronos with 20 years. That situation was managed in its own particular way, and each cellist change afterwards was different—with Jennifer Culp, and Jeffrey Zeigler, and Sunny Yang, and now Paul Wiancko. The outside world also shifted overtime, which affected how the changes were communicated internally and externally. It’s a very personal situation for the musician who’s departing, and for the one coming in. It’s complicated. They’re all done with great care, and you’ve got to treat each situation differently.

CMA: What’s next for you?

JC: Initially I’ll take a little time off. But I am not retiring. I am very open. I’ll be joining the ranks of the freelancers and work project to project. I’m excited to work on projects and artists—but not necessarily carry the responsibility of an organization.

CMA: What kept you going all those years for 43 years, through the pandemic, going to the same job every day? Certainly, you believed in the mission, loved the work… but what’s the secret?

JC: I could never have imagined this would have been a 43-year career, certainly not in the beginning. But I think I stayed because it was fun. Not every minute, surely, but the overwhelming feeling is of amazement. I was given an amazing opportunity—I had the ability to make something in terms of the organization. I was given an amazing amount of trust, and I could be very creative. I met some of the most important artists of the 20th and 21st centuries, many of whom I can call friends. I traveled the world. Every season was new—new projects and challenges, dozens of premiers. I think that’s also what kept me going. I wasn’t ever doing the same thing for 43 years.

CMA: What are the qualities your successor should have? What boxes should the new managing director tick?

JC: The next person will have a wonderful opportunity. There have been huge changes recently—two new members and my departure. This person should come in with a fresh eye, just as I did. The person should be creative, collaborative, positive, energized. They can take all that’s here and reinvent it. And there’s a lot here to work with: reputation and artistic quality. There are things in place for someone with an entrepreneurial spirit. It’s almost like a startup. I’m happy to pass this torch and am curious to see what happens.