Bassist · Engineer · Producer
MEET SCOTT
Recording engineer, producer, and bassist based in Catskill, New York. Over 1,000 recording credits across four decades, with recent releases on ECM and Edition Records.
1000+
Recordings
40+
Years Experience
2
Grammy-Nominated Albums
Scott Petito is a recording engineer, producer, and bassist based in Catskill, New York. He has worked on over 1,000 recordings since the early 1980s — among them the Grammy-nominated Trio Brubeck (MusicMasters, 1993), and recent releases on ECM and Edition Records.
He is also an active bassist, multi-instrumentalist, composer, and arranger. That combination of engineering and performance work means he has spent four decades on both sides of the glass.
Origins
WOODSTOCK ROOTS
Scott Petito was born in Kingston, New York and grew up near Woodstock in the Hudson Valley. He started on guitar, then expanded to bass and piano. As a teenager in the mid-1970s, he spent time at rehearsals and informal jams around the Woodstock scene, watching players like Steve Gadd, David Spinozza, Warren Bernhardt, and Tony Levin at work.
The Studio
NRS RECORDING
Petito began his engineering career in 1984, co-founding a recording studio on Professor Louie's farm in Hurley, New York. He studied composition and arranging at Berklee College of Music before returning to the Hudson Valley. During the 1990s he worked extensively at Levon Helm's barn studio in Woodstock, engineering sessions for The Band and others.
Established 2000
NRS Recording Studio
In 2000, Petito built NRS Recording on his six-acre property in the Catskill Mountains — a private, full-service studio two hours from New York City. He acquired an API 1608 console in 2014, returning to analog recording through a 24-channel desk.
Notable Sessions Include
- Jack DeJohnette
- Dave Holland
- The Band
- The Fugs
- John Scofield
- Larry Grenadier
Selected Credits
NOTABLE WORK
Petito's engineering and production credits span folk, jazz, rock, and film music. Selected highlights:
Grammy-Nominated Recordings
Engineer on Trio Brubeck (MusicMasters, 1993).
Top 40 Singles
Produced Livingston Taylor's Life Is Good (Atlantic, 1988), which included two Adult Contemporary Top 40 singles.
European Gold Records
Engineered Rory Block's Best Blues and Originals (Rounder, 1989); Mercury Rev's Deserter's Songs (1998), recorded in part at NRS, was certified gold in the UK.
Film & Television
Engineering and performance credits include the score of the Netflix documentary Knock Down the House (2019); film and television projects for BBC, PBS, and Robert Redford; and the theme for NPR's With Good Reason radio program.
Recent work recorded at NRS: John Scofield & Dave Holland — Memories of Home (ECM Records, 2025); Lionel Loueke & Dave Holland — United (Edition Records, 2024); The Levin Brothers — Fade to Blue (2022).
The Artist
MUSICIAN BEHIND THE CONSOLE
Petito has remained an active performer and session bassist alongside his engineering career. He plays bass, guitar, mandolin, piano, and keyboards — a range that means he can contribute to arrangements and performances, not just capture them.
His session credits include work with James Taylor, Stevie Wonder, Mark Knopfler, Tony Levin, Jerry Marotta, Dave Holland, Jack DeJohnette, John Scofield, and others across folk, jazz, and rock.
Instruments
Roles
Scott plays
Basses
Collaborations
BAND WORK
World Fusion
Meraki
Petito joins percussionist Mino Cinélu and bansuri master Steve Gorn in creating meditative world fusion that blends Indian ragas, Afro-Caribbean rhythms, and ambient textures.
Since Mid-1980s
The Fugs
Petito has been the bassist and keyboardist for the countercultural band since the mid-1980s, landing the role with an audition tape of Bach's Cello Suites on fuzz-tone electric bass.
Current Member
The Blues Project
Petito serves as bassist and producer for the legendary 1960s Greenwich Village blues-rock pioneers, recording and touring with original members Steve Katz and Roy Blumenfeld.
Live Band
Modern Times
Petito's live sextet, formed to perform the Rainbow Gravity and Many Worlds material. Members include Omar Hakim (drums), Rachel Z Hakim (keyboards), Joe Locke (vibraphone), Jay Collins (saxophone), and Mino Cinelu (percussion).
Partnership
LESLIE RITTER
Since 1984, Petito has collaborated with singer Leslie Ritter, releasing In The Silence (Hudson Valley Records) and Circles in Sand.
The recordings highlight his ability to support vocals with tasteful, multi-instrument arrangements—bass, guitar, mandolin, and keyboards—without overproducing the core emotion of the songs.
Their track "Forgiveness" became widely heard through in-store music systems, and the duo continues to perform and record.
As Leader
SOLO PROJECTS
February 2023
Many Worlds
A sequel to Rainbow Gravity, also inspired by quantum physics, recorded remotely during the pandemic. Released February 2023 on Planet Arts Records.
Planet Arts Records • August 2018
Rainbow Gravity
Features an all-star lineup drawing from classic jazz-rock fusion energy. Reviewed by JazzTimes, London Jazz News, and Textura.
Ambient Solo Bass
Sbass Music
An ambient solo bass recording that debuted at the top of the New Age Voices (NAV) chart and aired on more than 450 radio stations. Sbass Music explores extended techniques and electronics to build immersive textures.
Before People Walk In The Door, I Am Ready To Record.
Today
STILL ROLLING
Scott Petito continues to operate NRS Recording, produce and engineer new projects, compose, and perform.
His most recent credits include recordings on ECM Records, Edition Records, and Planet Arts. He performs regularly with the Modern Times sextet, Trio ELP, and the Meraki Trio.
Current Activities
- Operating NRS Recording Studio
- Producing & Engineering New Projects
- Composing & Arranging
- Live Performance
Ready to Roll?
LET'S MAKE MUSIC
Whether you need a recording engineer, a bassist, or both—let's talk about your project.