World percussionist Ricardo Bozas was born in Montevideo, Uruguay, home of Tango and Candombe. His influences are vast, shaping his virtuosic playing on a wide variety of world instruments and styles, and he specializes in music from Uruguay, Brazil, Cuba, Spain, the Caribbean Islands, and numerous other Latin American countries. A sought-after live and studio percussionist, Ricardo has had opportunities to perform with many high-profile artists, including Aretha Franklin, Al DiMeola, Alex Acuña, Luis Conte, Horacio “El Negro” Hernandez, Steve Smith, and Dave Weckl. He also spent time touring Uruguay and Argentina with Vinicius de Moraes, the famous Brazilian composer and bossa nova pioneer most known as the lyricist for the eternal “Garota de Ipanema” (Girl from Ipanema). In addition to his many travels performing in Latin America, Ricardo spent four years in Spain touring with the “Samba Trio” and “The Peter Pan Band,” and he participated in the “500 years of Carnaval” in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2000, parading through the Sambodromo with “Boi da Ilha do Governador” escola de samba. He is a graduate of the University of North Texas College of Music where he played in many notable ensembles, including the Grammy nominated One O’Clock Lab Band as well as the 1987 World Champion PASIC Drumline.