Cooper Taylor

Cooper Taylor is a junior bassoon performance major at Arizona State University. Born in Glendale, Arizona, Cooper began bassoon lessons in 2018 and has since traveled across the country and the world to cultivate his musical knowledge, most notably performing in the 2025 National Music Festival under Jeffery Keesecker, 2025 Saarburg International Music Festival, 2023 Music For All Honor Band of America, the 2023 Boston University Tanglewood Institute (BUTI) Bassoon Workshop under Margaret Phillips, and UNCSA’s 2022 Chamber Music Academy of Southern Germany under Saxton Rose.

While in high school, Cooper performed in the Phoenix Youth Symphony Orchestras (PYSO) for four years, playing principal or second bassoon for their large orchestral works and ballets. During his participation in PYSO, Cooper placed third in their concerto competition and received the opportunity to attend the BUTI festival for free.

At the International Double Reed Society conference in the summer of 2024, Cooper premiered two new works for bassoon quartet and participated in a performance class hosted by Gina Moore and another under Kristin Wolfe Jensen. During his time at ASU, Cooper has had the pleasure of performing with the AZ Musicfest Orchestra, the Scottsdale Philharmonic, and ProMusica Arizona Chorale and Orchestra.

Outside of music, Cooper frequently lifts weights and reads nonfiction books. In the Spring of 2024, Cooper ran a Spartan 10k and finished in the top 15 percent of racers. He is an early-morning person and loves to be outdoors!