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Alan Cook
Flute, Co-Artistic Director
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Abigail Bracken
Oboe, Logistics and Marketing Manager
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Sophia Bracken
Clarinet, Executive Director
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Jenna Stokes
Horn, Co-Artistic Director
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David Michael
Bassoon, Co-Artistic Director
Alan Cook, flute
Flutist and multi-instrumentalist Alan Cook (he/him) is a young musician on the rise. Originally from Nashville, Tennessee, he is currently pursuing a Master of Music in Multiple Winds Performance at the University of Michigan under the tutelage of Amy Porter, Chad Burrow, Dan Gilbert, and Andrew Bishop. He received his undergraduate degree in flute performance from the University of Tennessee Knoxville, where he studied under Maria Fernanda Castillo and won the annual concerto competition. He has performed with the Marble City Opera and the Brevard Philharmonic and has won masterclass competitions with the Texas Flute Society and the Atlanta Flute Club, performing for pedagogues and performers such as Jasmine Choi, and Christina Smith. In his free time, he enjoys playing video games, meditating, and collecting candles.
Abigail Bracken, oboe
Oboist Abigail Bracken (she/her) developed a love of music alongside her sister Sophia, a clarinetist. She is dedicated to expanding the known repertoire of clarinet and oboe duets. In addition to performing many lesser-known works together, Abigail has taken matters into her own hands and arranged music for this duo. Currently, she is published with Songburd Music and TrevCo Music.
Bracken has a passion for performing music that innovates the tradition of classical training and draws people together. As a soloist, she performed with the Jacobs School of Music (JSoM) University Orchestra on Reena Esmail’s RE|Member for live and pre-recorded solo oboe, a production that united the orchestra with the school’s audio-visual team in creating the final live performance. She is an avid arranger of pop and Broadway standards for wind quintet, putting a classical twist on recognizable works that are as equally popular in community centers as they are on the concert stage.
Praised by her mentors and peers for her leadership, Bracken participated in the JSoM oboe studio’s mentorship program for reed-making and teaching courses on instrument adjustment. As a freelancer in southwest Michigan, she has performed with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Dearborn Symphony, and the Flint Symphony Orchestra.
Bracken received her Bachelor of Music from Indiana University in May 2024, where she studied with Linda Strommen. She studied with Dr. Nancy King at the University of Michigan for her graduate studies, earning her master’s degrees in Oboe Performance and Chamber Music Performance in December 2025.
Sophia Bracken, clarinet
Clarinetist Sophia Bracken (she/her) is committed to making classical music accessible to communities across the country. As executive director of OUT Ensemble, she works to elevate the voices of LGBTQ+ composers and create a welcoming space for queer voices in classical music. The group’s annual Pride Concert Series presents music by LGBTQ+ composers in venues ranging from concert halls to art galleries.
Praised by Sandra Chappell of the U.S. Naval Academy Band as being “expressive with lovely tone,” Bracken has won the first prize of the Sidney Forrest Clarinet Competition and the Treasure Coast Symphony Concerto Competition performing Debussy’s Premiere Rhapsodie. She holds the position of principal clarinet with the Dearborn Symphony, having previously served as the third and bass clarinetist with the Old Bay New Music Ensemble in Baltimore. As part of her ongoing community work, Bracken performs solo and chamber music recitals in museums, churches, and art galleries.
Bracken is committed to promoting new works of classical music and is an active commissioner, having premiered many works with OUT Ensemble. As an undergraduate at the Peabody Conservatory, she premiered a variety of solo, chamber, and orchestral works, including the preview of Irya Aleksiychuk’s Go where the wind takes you under the direction of Marin Alsop.
Bracken received her Bachelor of Music and Business of Music Minor from the Peabody Conservatory in 2024 with Alexander Fiterstein. She is pursuing a Master of Music at the University of Michigan in the studio of Chad Burrow and Daniel Gilbert. When not making music, she enjoys visiting secondhand bookstores to find new authors and hiking in national parks.
Jenna Stokes, horn
Jenna Stokes (she/her) is a freelance horn player and teacher in the Ann Arbor area. An avid orchestral musician, Jenna has performed with ensembles such as the Kansas City Symphony, Ann Arbor Symphony, and Portland Symphony Orchestra. She graduated with her master’s degree at the University of Michigan in 2025, where she studied with Professors Adam Unsworth and Bryan Kennedy. A Kansas City native, her summers are spent balancing time at home with her family and attending festivals such as the Chautauqua Institute, National Symphony Orchestra Summer Music Institute, and a recent residency with the Orchestra of the Americas. Jenna received her bachelor’s in 2023 from the New England Conservatory of Music, where she studied with Michael Winter and Richard Sebring. During her studies, Jenna has performed in masterclasses for renowned musicians such as Sarah Willis, Andrew Bain, Rachel Childers, and Abel Pereira. In her free time, Jenna enjoys reading, trying new flavors of tea, and playing the occasional video game.
David Michael, bassoon
David Michael (they/he) is the bassoonist of the OUT Ensemble. They graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from the University of Michigan in 2025, studying bassoon with Dr. Jeffrey Lyman and chamber music with Dr. Bill King. Hailing from Pontiac, MI, David’s performance experiences range from participation in the 2024 Orford Musique Festival’s Winds Workshop, performing the chamber works of Mozart and Amanda Harberg, to marching 3 years in the Michigan Marching Band and having served as the Alto Saxophone Section Leader, to singing in the Abyssinians Legacy Gospel Choir, a student-led organization and community. David’s core interests of study are Latin American Musics, Black Popular Music and Culture, and the intersections of Social Justice, Political Activism and Education. Additionally, David has taught instrumental music, general music, and theater with programs including the Crescendo Detroit pathways program and Wolverine Pathways. This passion for diversity in the arts and equity in education has led them towards the OUT Ensemble's mission to promote, perform, and commission works by queer composers and expand the canon of chamber winds repertoire. David currently teaches general music at Mitchell Elementary School in the Ann Arbor area.