Chris Kopp is an expert in three different fields. As an electronics engineer for radios and televisions, in sales, and in music management. He has also worked as an FoH mixer and manager of a project studio. When he applied to Bleuel Elektronik in Switzerland 17 years ago, now Sennheiser Switzerland, he had no idea that he would be performing all three roles simultaneously. He didn’t really know what was in store at all. A three-hour interview was followed by a trial period at a trade fair. “I was simply hoping this would be the start of something new,” Chris explains. “We sat in the meeting room at the trade fair, and Hasso Böhme, the Managing Director of Bleuel at the time, said: Go and introduce yourself to your new colleagues and tell them that you are joining us.” As what exactly? As a jack-of-all-trades, as it turned out. He started out in sales, then artist management and finally ended up in marketing. Wherever Chris appears, whether it is the backstage area on tour or at the customer site, “he always makes you feel looked after. People are happy when someone from Sennheiser stops by and offers advice and assistance.”
For Chris, who works with numerous artists who are also very successful outside of Switzerland, there is no such thing as an average day. In fact he also has a long-standing partnership with rock band Gotthard, who have enjoyed a career spanning three decades touring globally with Europe and Deep Purple among others. Chris came up with something extra special for the band’s album release concert in Zurich in the mid-2000s. “I called their manager and said: I need Steve Lee’s signature.” Chris then had a SKM 5200 microphone with KK105 capsule made for the front man with the band logo and his signature on the body. “We actually made two microphones. One for the performance and a second as a backup.” Steve was very touched and grateful when he finally discovered his personalized microphone during the sound check. Only real friends do something like this. When Steve Lee suffered a fatal motorbike accident in the US in 2010 during a tour break, it was not just millions of fans worldwide who mourned. “His backup microphone is displayed in a showcase in our office. Every time I walk past it, I remember Steve. I can’t help but think of him,” says Chris.
Working together for a long time creates friendships that go beyond day-to-day business. He has a similarly close relationship with the crew of DJ BoBo, whose musical director Thomas J. Gyger is a huge Sennheiser fan and who will be relying entirely on Sennheiser for the upcoming concerts by Büezer Buebe at the Letzigrund Stadium in Zurich (the largest arena in Switzerland) in the summer of 2020. We’re talking 36 channels of Digital 6000 and 32 channels of 2000 series In Ear. This will be another highlight in Chris’ career and will certainly keep him on his toes. As well as offering backstage support, he will be taking customers to the concert, organizing backstage tours and much more besides. Just another day that is anything but ordinary.