Now

2/5/2025

New Singles Coming Soon

I recently recorded two of my favorite songs, one written by Bob Dylan and one by Elton John, because why not? I decided to release them both as singles on the streaming services (Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, etc.) because why not? Look for them in the upcoming months. I’ll announce it here, on social media, and to my email subscribers. You can find my social media links and sign up for email updates on this page. The songs are pretty deep cuts – not hits for either artist.

Teaching Banjo at Old Time Music Camps

I’m excitedly preparing to teach old-time banjo classes at the following camps:

I’ll be sharing what I’ve learned in more than 20 years of playing and studying the techniques of the masters. The camps are a ton of fun, with lots of informal jamming. In addition to banjo, there will be fiddle, guitar, singing, flatfooting, and other classes taught by world-class players and instructors. Click the links above for more information and to sign up.

Podcast Appearances

I recently was a guest on two podcasts. You don’t need to know anything about how to listen to podcasts in order to hear them. Just click the links below to go to the websites and listen online. If you’re into podcasts, you can find them both on your favorite podcast app.

  • That Record Got Me High – S7E382 – On each episode of this podcast, a guest discusses a favorite album with host Rob Elba. Rob and I took a deep dive into an album that changed my life, Anthology of American Folk Music. Containing Appalachian ballads, fiddle tunes, country blues, Cajun, jug band, sacred harp, and more, it prompted my journey studying and playing folk songs, which resulted in me starting the nonprofit Ballad of America, Inc.
  • Three Song Stories – Episode 356 – On this podcast, I told the stories of how three particular songs affected my life. There was a technical glitch causing my voice to be pitched lower than normal for the first half of the episode before it was fixed.
Concert Appearance with the Appleton Boychoir

I will be the guest artist in a special concert with the Appleton Boychoir in Appleton, Wisconsin, on Saturday, April 26, at 4:00 p.m. The concert is called America in Song: The Hopes, Dreams, and Fears of a Young Nation. I’ll be singing with the choir and performing a few songs on my own. I will also present a workshop for local teachers the day before the concert.

Southeast Regional Folk Alliance Conference – May 15 – 18, 2025

In my role as vice president of Southeast Regional Folk Alliance (SERFA), I am busy planning our annual conference in Owensboro, Kentucky, May 15 – 18, 2025. SERFA is the southeast regional branch of Folk Alliance International. SERFA (the conference) is a gathering of folk music makers, industry, and community from the southeastern United States and beyond. We share music, build community, help each other to grow and succeed in music, and spread the music we all love. It’s also a ton of fun.

Then

6/26/2024

Debut of The Story of the United States in Song Multimedia Show

I’m excited to announce the debut of the Rambling String Band’s brand-new multimedia show. With vocals, guitar, fiddle, mandolin, bass fiddle, and a wealth of historic American songs, Matthew Sabatella and the Rambling String Band tell the story of the United States. This 90-minute multimedia show includes music and images from Colonial America, the Revolution, Westward Expansion, the Abolitionist Movement, the Civil War, the Industrial Revolution, the Women’s Rights Movement, the World Wars, the Great Depression, the Civil Rights Movement, and more.

The first performance is at 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, July 4 at John Knox Village in Pompano Beach, Florida. It’s open to the public, but you must purchase tickets at Eventbrite in advance. More information is on the Facebook Event page.

Booking Information

New Recordings in the Works

Karen Feldner and I have a repertoire of traditional folk and old country songs from our performances in recent years, and we decided to record them. We’re not sure whether these will take the form of an album or a few EPs, but we plan to release them as soon as we sort things out. Here’s an old country song we recorded a few years ago that might be a part of the release(s).

Blue Ridge Old Time Music Week at Mars Hill

I had a fantastic time as a staff musician at Blue Ridge Old Time Music Week. I assisted the great Judy Hyman and Jeff Claus in their Rhythm & Repertoire class, working with the banjo players.

Performance for Americana Community Music Association

I posted photos from a recent solo performance for the Americana Community Music Association in Fort Myers, Florida. View the photos on Facebook or Instagram, even if you don’t have an account.

Summer Festivals and Camps

Looking forward to Old-Time Week at the Swannanoa Gathering and the Appalachian String Band Music Festival in July and August!

5/29/2024

New Rambling String Band Video

We recently posted a brief video montage from our performance at the Seminole Theatre in Homestead, Florida, on September 24, 2021.

Summer Festivals and Camps

I will be a staff musician at Blue Ridge Old Time Music Week on the campus of Mars Hill University in North Carolina. This was one of the first camps I attended when I started playing old-time music, and I’m excited to return as a staff member.

The weekend before, I’ll be attending the Mount Airy Fiddlers Convention for the first time.

In July, it’s Old-Time Week at the Swannanoa Gathering, then the Appalachian String Band Music Festival!

Florida Folk Festival

What a thrill it was to perform in the amphitheater on Friday night at the Florida Folk Festival. I’ve been performing at this festival for many years in different configurations (solo, Rambling String Band, Joe Bone, Karen Feldner). It was a dream come true to finally perform on the mainstage at night.

Southeast Regional Folk Alliance

As vice president of Southeast Regional Folk Alliance (SERFA), I helped put together another fantastic conference in Black Mountain, North Carolina. I was honored to present Junior Appalachian Musicians, Inc. (JAM) with our 2024 SERFA Award for extraordinary contributions to the folk music community in the Southeast. JAM is the non-profit parent organization for 50+ after-school programs for children in grades 4 – 8. They provide communities with the tools and support needed to teach children to play and dance to traditional old-time and bluegrass music. JAM introduces music through small group instruction on instruments common to the Appalachian region, such as fiddle, banjo and guitar. We also roped Brett Morris, Executive Director and President of JAM, into leading a flatfooting workshop at our conference.

This is me accompanying my friend Ash Devine on the Carter Family’s “The Birds Were Singing of You” in a SERFA showcase.

Twenty minutes until the dinner bell rings at SERFA? Time enough for a few tunes in the lobby! There are always wonderful impromptu jams and song circles of all types, but in my years participating in SERFA conferences, I don’t recall anyone instigating more old-time fiddle tunes than Janie Rothfield and Allan Carr did this year.

8/19/2023

New Photos

My friend, the amazing photographer Leanne Echeverri, captured photos of me during a recent visit to Asheville. View the entire collection.

Bascom Lamar Lunsford House

While in Western North Carolina, I visited with the new owner of the home of musician/folklorist Bascom Lamar Lunsford. Whitney Ponder is working to open the Pondering Bascom Performing Arts and Education Center on the property. The organization is dedicated to promoting traditional Appalachian music, dance, arts, and culture. Check out the website and get in touch with Whitney if you are interested in getting involved.

I’ll post more information about my visit and a few videos later.

Clifftop 2023

I had another wonderful time at the annual Appalachian String Band Music Festival, better known as Clifftop. I spent 12 days camping in the mountains of West Virginia with some 4,000 other folks playing fiddle tunes. Nothing better.

6/30/2023

Citation from National Federation of Music Clubs

I am deeply grateful to the National Federation of Music Clubs (NFMC) for awarding me and the nonprofit Ballad of America, Inc. a citation at their annual conference in Norfolk, Virginia. NFMC is the largest nonprofit organization in America promoting and supporting American music, performers, and education. They invited me to speak at their conference and perform “A Celebration of America’s Music: From Plymouth Rock to Rock & Roll.”

I am deeply grateful to the National Federation of Music Clubs (NFMC) for awarding me and the nonprofit Ballad of America, Inc. a citation at their annual conference in Norfolk, Virginia. NFMC is the largest nonprofit organization in America promoting and supporting American music, performers, and education. They invited me to speak at their conference and perform “A Celebration of America’s Music: From Plymouth Rock to Rock & Roll.”

Barn’s Burnt Down

I’m very proud of my contributions to the new album by Karen Feldner, Barn’s Burnt Down. I played banjo, guitar, and/or bass on all of the tracks and did some backing vocals. Karen wrote the songs, some based on the melodies of old-time fiddle tunes. You can hear it on most of the major digital music sites, including Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube. Following the eight tracks of the album, there are the “Song Stories” in which Karen narrates the origins of each song. I highly recommend checking it out.

Southeast Regional Folk Alliance

I was recently re-elected Vice President of the Southeast Regional Folk Alliance (SERFA) board. We had an excellent annual conference in May, at which I performed a showcase and hosted the Roots & Sources showcases, featuring performers of traditional folk songs. The highlight for me was interviewing Jeff Place, a producer and writer for the 1997 reissue of The Anthology of American Folk Music from Smithsonian Folkways. I hope to post video of this session later.

Rambling String Band

Check our Upcoming Events page on Facebook for live performance dates.