Leo Traversa

Leo is a New York based bassist, educator, and clinician whose decades of experience span touring, recording, and teaching at the highest levels of contemporary and world music. He has performed and traveled internationally with artists such as Tania Maria, Astrud Gilberto, Don Byron, and Herbie Mann, building a reputation for versatility across genres ranging from Brazilian and Afro-Caribbean styles to reggae, rock, fusion, and straight-ahead jazz. A longtime fixture in Sound Collective rhythm section classes, Leo is known for a relaxed, supportive teaching style that meets students at any level while grounding them in strong musicianship and groove.

A graduate of Berklee College of Music, Leo has become widely respected as both an instructor and curriculum designer. He is a Music Associate at Columbia University, where he teaches private lessons and ensembles and contributes to the university’s Leadership Jazz program. He is also a veteran faculty member at Drummers Collective and a founding faculty member of the Bass Collective alongside John Patitucci, where he authored the curriculums for African Pop, Caribbean, and Odd Meter Fusion courses. Leo has written two instructional books for Carl Fischer Publications — Afro Caribbean and Brazilian Rhythms for Bass, and Fusion: A Study in Contemporary Music for the Bass — and has completed a third independent text, Five Concepts in World Rhythms, dedicated to the rhythmic skills essential to African, Caribbean, Latin, and Brazilian music. At Sound Collective, Leo brings this deep global perspective to the classroom, helping students develop strong stylistic fluency, rhythmic awareness, and the confidence to perform across a wide range of musical traditions.