Kronos' first big album was 1987's White Man Sleeps, and its 1989 recording of
Reich's Different Trains won a Grammy for Best Contemporary Composition. Many of Kronos' other recordings have spent weeks at the top of Billboard's Classical Chart, with 2002's Nuevo nominated for both a Grammy and a Latin Grammy, and 2003's recording of
Berg's Lyric Suite winning another Grammy for the ensemble. Kronos' recordings reflect its broad interests in jazz, world music, young composers, and film. In performance, it is just as catholic in its venues and collaborations, even working with several choreographers and multimedia artists.
In 1999,
Jeanrenaud left the quartet, and Jennifer Culp stepped in as the cellist. Culp left in 2005 following the recording of You've Stolen My Heart: Songs from R.D. Burman's Bollywood, and was replaced by
Jeffrey Zeigler. Personnel changes aside, the quartet continues to appeal to an eclectic mix of listeners and receive high praise for its championship of unique music. In 2011, just after the release of Uniko, a collaboration with accordionist
Kimmo Pohjonen and sampling artist
Samuli Kosminen, it was announced that Kronos was the recipient of both the Avery Fisher Prize (U.S.) and the Polar Music Prize (Sweden) for its exceptional achievements. Following concerts in New York and London to celebrate Nonesuch's 40th anniversary with labelmates Oliver Chaney, Rhiannon Giddens, Natalie Merchant, and Sam Amidon, the quartet regrouped with their collaborators to record an album. Folk Songs was released in 2017, and featured a number of traditional compositions with contemporary arrangements.