MA Top 30 Professional: Benjamin Cadwallader

Executive Director
Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra

When Benjamin Cadwallader became executive director of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra in March of 2020, Covid-19 was beginning its ruthless tear through the U.S. Subsequent lockdowns posed an unprecedented threat to all the arts, but Cadwallader’s quick thinking turned crisis into opportunity. 

The orchestra launched an array of digital offerings, including its annual LACO SummerFest, a series of 30-minute concerts, and Close Quarters, an interdisciplinary series melding musical and visual arts.

The initiative secured $700,000 in sponsorship revenue and drew millions of viewers, reaching far beyond its traditional audiences.

“There really wasn’t anything out there quite like what we were producing at the time, and I think people responded to the originality,” says Cadwallader, a Vermont-born onetime oboist. “We wanted to make something meaningful and evergreen that we’d be proud of long after the pandemic was over.”

On Cadwallader’s watch the orchestra has secured important partnerships including one with its habitual venue, the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, and a residency with the Colburn School’s new Kohl Hall, opening in 2027. He has also built a relationship with an international law firm, resulting in over $1 million pro-bono legal support across six seasons.

Together with Music Director Jaime Martin, he has energized programming, mixing established masterworks with commissions and music by Hollywood film composers. He has also broadened

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