Specializing in solo, acoustic Country Blues songs from the '20's and '30's.

Leonardo – knows why so many people enjoy songs written during the 1920's and 1930's - the Golden Age of American songwriting. Specializing in solo, acoustic Country/Delta Blues songs from this era, Leonardo slaps a fresh coat of paint on these rarely heard classics using open tunings on National Reso-Phonic guitars. Leonardo has toured with David "Honeyboy" Edwards, is a Detroit Blues Society artist, is endorsed by the National Reso-Phonic Guitar Company and has been selected as a Teaching Artist by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. He also: sings plays rhythm and slide guitar and drums in the blues-based band "Woodford Station" and "Chris Putt and The Broken Mustangs"; plays drums in the blues band "The Juke Dukes" and sings the National Anthem at local events.

Reviews

"Although marketed as a concert of blues music, Leonardo's Country Blues Narrative with Songs is a multifaceted performance of blues music, narrative history, and biography. Leonardo is a talented musician with a complete mastery of his material and is fully engaged with his audience. During the program you get the impression that he's playing informally just for you, something I've never experienced before in a concert."

Matthew Day, Royal Oak Public Library

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"Leonardo has performed in the past as a solo acoustic act in the Jazz & Blues @ the Southfield Library series. His earlier performance of early country blues music was in the style of the some of the well-known artists who originally recorded the music - very entertaining and very informative. Leonardo is a very talented multi-instrumentalist, with special skills on guitar. And, he is an excellent entertainer. He has an easy-going, informal style that the audience genuinely appreciates. And especially valuable for our library series, he is a suburb storyteller with vast knowledge of the history of early country blues."

Don McGhee, Jazz & Blues @ the Southfield Public Library

 

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"Leonardo's Country Blues Narrative performance was by far our largest viewed program in recent memory. He's clearly a great talent and is very knowledgeable on country blues history. He comes highly recommended."

Paul Konkolesky, Warren Public Library

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"Effortlessly blending music and storytelling, Leonardo creates a wonderful and entertaining program that gives a history to a wonderful genre of music and the people that made it. You can feel the love and passion he has, as well as his experience with music, throughout the entire show and it's a joy to get to hear someone who has clearly devoted a lot of their life to learning and teaching others about music."

Joe Kelly, Rochester Hills Public Library

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"Leonardo performed at the St. Clair County Library System on May 3rd with his program A Country Blues Narrative with Songs. It was roughly a 90 min program and was well received with our patrons with over 60 people attending! A few people were even taking notes and recording certain songs. Leonardo discussed the history of some of the first recorded blues songs and continued chronologically through history to show how the blues developed over time. He has minimal set up as his performance is totally acoustic. He just brings his guitars, a chair, and a 3'' stage. If you have any blues aficionados (or just lovers of good music in general) then I think they would greatly enjoying seeing Leonardo in person. His passion for blues music and the history behind it were infectious with the crowd with many thanking me on the way out for bringing him to the area."

Joseph Turbok, St. Clair Country Library

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"Leonardo is a master of his instruments, and his interpretation of the era of Country/Delta blues history accompanied with timeless songs, were simply incredible. Bringing us back to the fundamentals of the real blues was wonderful experience."

Emanuela DeCenso, Farmington Community Library

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"Leonardo is a musician, historian, and singer. It’s a rare combination that makes for an outstanding performance during which the audience has opportunities to learn, listen, engage, and enjoy. His depth of knowledge regarding The Blues is inspiring, and he welcomes questions from his audience. We recently booked him at our community center, and his performance was a true hit. It was a wonderfully enjoyable evening for audience members of all ages, and we came away with a deeper understanding of, and appreciation for, Blues music."

Lauren Northrop, Marketing and Program Coordinator, Next! Community Center