His work relies on a broad understanding of texture, atmosphere and microtones and includes the invention of the Springboard, an electroacoustic percussion instrument made from readily available materials. Its sounds belie its humble origins, thanks to the rich enharmonic timbres of bowed coil springs and the curious sound of the crude wooden daxophones, all amplified by a single, inexpensive piezoelectric contact mic. Leonardson is the recipient of an Illinois Arts Council Media Arts Fellowship (2002 and 2006) and adjunct associate professor in the Department of Sound at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago.