There are those who count down the days until they retire. Not Jan Magnus.

A Dutch econometrician and statistician who continues to teach at the Vrije Universiteit  Amsterdam, Jan, who is 76, figures he’ll keep working until he is 80. First, he needs to finish his textbook.

He grew up in Zeist, a small town in the Netherlands, where he played in what he cheerfully calls “probably the worst village orchestra in the country.”

He has two children, a son on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and another whose family is in Holland. He also has five grandchildren — two in New York and three in Holland.

Through it all, there has been his love of the cello and chamber music. He finds a way to play all around the world.

Twice a year he travels with his wife to her home country of Japan, where he plays with a string quartet in Kobe made up of three professionals.

He took up the cello in primary school, began playing chamber music seriously as a university student in Amsterdam, and has been a member of ACMP for 15 to 20 years.

He is also a Haydn enthusiast, playing monthly performances of Haydn symphonies with a small orchestra in Amsterdam.

We talked with Jan recently and asked him about his chamber music life. The conversation has been edited and condensed for brevity and clarity. – Bob Goetz

When did you begin playing chamber music seriously?

I started cello lessons as a child and played with my mother at the piano and my sister, who was a competent flutist, but real chamber music began when I became a student at the University of Amsterdam. There I joined the student orchestra, found excellent players, and formed my first string quartet.

How has ACMP been useful to you?

Several times a year, visiting musicians come through Amsterdam and we play together at a high level, essentially sight-reading as a group—it almost always goes remarkably well. When I travel, people are very welcoming, and connections made through ACMP have even led to my daughter-in-law and a New York violinist now playing together regularly.

What are your happiest chamber music moments?

Japan is at the top of the list—I have two string quartets in Amsterdam and a piano quartet, but playing with the three professional women musicians in Kobe has been a special experience. I go back in May to play Schubert with them again.

You love playing Haydn’s works. What do you find so appealing?

There are so many beautiful string quartets by Haydn. I admire Haydn above all for his innovative mind and his daring choice of keys.

What is it about chamber music that keeps drawing you back?

Playing with really good people—whether in Amsterdam, Tokyo, Kobe or New York — is simply irreplaceable. My wife has even taken up the violin in the last two years, so now we play little things together at home.