9/13/26 - That's Amore: The Music Italian Immigrants Carried to Ulster County
When Italian immigrants arrived in Ulster County in the late 19th and early 20th centuries — to build the Ashokan Reservoir, to work the quarries, to put down roots in Kingston and the surrounding communities — they brought with them more than tools and ambitions. They brought their music. From the emotionally charged working-class opera of the Neapolitan Sceneggiata to the sophisticated swing and cool of the Rat Pack — whose Italian-American roots ran deep — the music of Italian immigrants traveled the same Atlantic crossing their ancestors did, transformed in the New World into something distinctly American without ever losing its soul. In this program, local historian and public history student Steven Caselli explores that musical migration — tracing how the songs, styles, and performers who emerged from Italian immigrant communities shaped American popular culture in ways we are still living with today. The program features live musical performance that brings these traditions to life in the room. It is a celebration of what immigrants carry with them, and what the rest of us inherit.
About the Presenter
Steven Caselli is a Kingston-based historian, podcaster, and public history student at SUNY Empire State, best known as the host of the Empire State History podcast, which explores the colonial and 19th-century history of the Hudson Valley and New York State. His work focuses on bringing historic sites and stories to life through immersive and interactive experiences, and he conducts oral history research on Italian-American food traditions and cultural identity as part of his master's thesis — work he regularly shares on Radio Kingston's Tutto Italiano. Earlier this season he presented From Napoli to the Catskills: Southern Italian Labor and the Construction of the Ashokan Reservoir to an enthusiastic UCHS audience. He returns now to explore a different dimension of the Italian immigrant experience — the music that traveled with those communities and transformed American culture from the inside out.
Live musical performance to be announced.
This event is free, but seating is limited—please reserve your spot in advance.
We suggest a donation of $15 to support the Sunday Salon Series and the work of the Ulster County Historical Society. You can contribute online when you RSVP or donate at the event itself via cash, check, or credit card.
Thank you for supporting local history and community programming!
