Ballad of America

Matthew Sabatella and the Rambling String Band

Now booking The Real Florida, a new musical program that celebrates Florida’s rich heritage and diverse cultural history.

From 1513 when Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon first set foot here through today, the story of Florida is one of land and water and people. Sing along to authentic songs about life in Florida while learning about the diverse people who have called this state home over the past 500 years. This program is a proud partner of Viva Florida 500, a statewide initiative led by the Florida Department of State to highlight the 500th anniversary in 2013 of the arrival of Juan Ponce de Leon to La Florida in 1513. Learn more by visiting Fla500.com and VivaFlorida.org.

Visit our Special Programs page for information about the programs we offer on other themes.

Ballad of America for Children

Libraries, Schools, Homeschools, Camps

With vocals, guitar, banjo, fiddle, mandolin, bass fiddle, mountain dulcimer, and a wealth of traditional American folk songs, Ballad of America brings the story of the United States vividly to life. Audiences, young and old, sing along to familiar songs as well as virtually forgotten gems that reveal the dreams, hardships, and joys of people who built homes and lives in a fledgling nation.

Classic American folk songs have a unique power to unite audience members, no matter the age or ethnicity. The songs build community, fostering empathy and understanding among people while providing a vital connection to those who came before. Our cultural heritage is unique and irreplaceable, and Matthew Sabatella and the Rambling String Band offer a fun and inspiring way to present and preserve it for current and future generations.

Throughout the show Matthew tells the stories behind the songs, weaving the performance into an engaging narrative that features the music and instruments of colonists, pioneers, sailors, lumberjacks, immigrants, '49ers, farmers, mountaineers, slaves, soldiers, cowboys, railroaders, and activists for social justice. Along the way audiences enjoy folk songs, fiddle tunes, Old World ballads, work songs, spirituals, love songs, sea shanties, reels, play parties, breakdowns, blues, and more.

A variety of Special Programs are available that focus on a particular topic or theme in the history of the United States. Visit our Special Programs page for a description of the programs that are currently being performed. If you don't see a program that suits your needs, let us know so that we may develep one for you.

Whatever your budget, there is a Ballad of America
program that's right for your library audience.

Schedule a program today:

• Matthew Sabatella (solo) - vocal, guitar, banjo, harmonica, mountain dulcimer
• Matthew Sabatella + 1 (duo) - adds fiddle, bass fiddle, mandolin, or banjo
• Matthew Sabatella and the Rambling String Band (5 musicians) - featuring Charles Anton (fiddle), Lynn Griffith (banjo and vocal), Chris DeAngelis (bass fiddle and vocal), and Sean Edelson (mandolin)

Matthew Sabatella and the Rambling String Band are totally amazing! I cannot praise them enough! Matthew related all of the songs to the era of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. It was wonderful. The entire band is great! They are personable, relate to the audience and can perform almost anything I'm sure."

Nancy Ansley (Programs and Exhibits Supervisor)
Broward County Library

Testimonials

"Rare is the event that engages both me and my young ones in a genuine way."
Ben Crandell - Sun-Sentinel

"Your program on Lincoln this past Sunday was awesome. Amazing how much you can tell about the man through his connection to music."
Patricia McDougle (V.P. Youth Education) - Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge

"Thank you for another GREAT performance and lesson in history! The music was outstanding!! We NEED so much more of this! I think you were able to see how the audience responded....the children were up dancing and the adults were singing and clapping along the whole time!! BRAVO!!!!"
Linda Gail Sindt - All Kids Love to Sing

"What an excellent production, performance, and presentation! Everyone should make an effort to attend one of his shows; it's perfect for all ages. You will be rewarded with a wealth of great music, singing and storytelling as you hear the true blue lyrics of the great folk songs of the U.S. This is an outstanding and original program."
Anne Kelly - Brockway Memorial Library

"What a great concert, thank you SO much for such a fun afternoon! Everyone in the audience, young and old alike, enjoyed hearing the stories and songs of our country. All the different instruments your band played, and hearing such beautiful vocal harmonies really made for a thrilling experience we will never forget."
Lisa Mansell (Sunday Matinee Music Series Manager) - Spanish River Library

"...Sabatella's best asset is easily his voice, urgent but unforced, sweetly melancholy in telling personal stories and powerfully evocative in rendering antiquated songs intimate again. It's a great gift, and Sabatella wields it with exceptional talent."
(read article)
"Best Acoustic Performer" - New Times Broward/Palm Beach - Best of 2005

“Through perseverance and hard work, American settlers turned their faces west toward the dream of finding new lives. In their struggle came the music presented by Mr. Sabatella. Matthew is a talented performer and a teacher not only of music, but of music which should be heard by all.”
Pastricia J. Adams-Sallustio (Social Studies Teacher) - Tequesta Trace Middle School

"Matthew Sabatella and the Rambling String Band are totally amazing! I cannot praise them enough! Matthew related all of the songs to the era of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. It was wonderful. The entire band is great! They are personable, relate to the audience and can perform almost anything I’m sure"
Nancy Ansley (Programs and Exhibits Supervisor) - Broward County Library

"Matthew Sabatella's Ballad of America is an interactive program that incorporates American history, stories, and music into one fun-filled, educational program for all ages."
Michele Dye (Naranja Branch Manager) - Miami-Dade Public Library System

Collection Development

No library should be without these important compact disc titles.

Like Special Programs, each CD in the Ballad of America catalog has a different theme. There are currently three volumes available, but many more are planned. They are available through distributors including Follett Library Resources, BWI Book Wholesalers, AEC One Stop Group, Amazon.com and many more. Contact us if you need help ordering.

Over a Wide and Fruitful Land (Volume 1)
The journey on this CD begins in the latter part of the eighteenth century when the United States of America became an independent nation. It follows the paths of the pioneers, sailors, lumberjacks, immigrants, '49ers, farmers, slaves, soldiers, cowboys, and railroaders who moved the country across the continent and into the twentieth century.

America Singing (Volume 2)
The songs in this collection are among the most commonly sung in the history of the United States. They present uniquely American musical blends, with roots in European and African traditions and branches that have sprouted countless regional and personal variants throughout the country. Collectively, these songs of work, fun, and love transcend social and ethnic boundaries, painting a broad picture of America during the 18th and 19th centuries when music making was, for many, an integral part of everyday life.

Songs in the Life of Abraham Lincoln (Volume 3)
Abraham Lincoln was a man of remarkable determination, compassion, honesty, humor, and melancholy. To explore the music he cherished is to better understand the man himself and the times in which he lived. From a childhood on the American frontier to a presidency that changed the course of history, Lincoln's life unfolds through these Old World, play party, minstrel, campaign, slave, Civil War, and sentimental songs.

Accolades for the Compact Discs

"Matthew Sabatella, singer/producer/arranger, sings 18 traditional folk-style songs in a beautiful, slightly raspy baritone... Excellent background instruments include guitar, banjo, piano, tambourine, sandpaper blocks, fiddle, acoustic bass, drums, harmonica, mandolin, English concertina and bodhran... An excellent resource for schools and public libraries."
Beverly Bixler - School Library Journal

"Performer Matthew Sabatella's rich baritone voice perfectly complements stories of common folk... A wonderful resource for units on nineteenth-century American history."
Naomi Leithold - American Library Association's Booklist

"In his second excellent album, Matthew Sabatella sings 16 familiar and mostly traditional American folksongs in a rich baritone. The Rambling String Band joins him, performing beautifully on guitars, dulcimer, harmonica, banjo, bass, mandolin, fiddle, and washboard. The songs bring to mind the culture of America during the 18th and 19th centuries. Fun to sing along and harmonize with, this album belongs in every collection that values folk music."
Beverly Bixler - School Library Journal

“Miraculously, Hollywood-based folkie Matthew Sabatella has packaged a history lesson in the guise of a strikingly good album and a nerdaliciously compelling live show that tell the story of western expansion across the American heartland through song.
Jonathan Zwickel - New Times Broward/Palm Beach