With her violin in hand, musician Alicia Best brought the rich, haunting tones of Appalachian folk ballads to Franklin Street for the first time on Saturday night.
“It’s a North Carolina tradition that isn’t here as much, and it’s something I know and have studied and wanted to have an opportunity to share,” Best said.
Saturday night marked Best’s third time street performing. She “began” in Asheville one day when she needed gas money to drive home to Chapel Hill.
She said that instance allowed her to finally overcome her fears of playing for a street audience.
“I really enjoy the interactions,” Best said. “My second day in Asheville, a woman stopped and pushed her baby to sleep while I was singing.”
Best said her folk music is received differently in Chapel Hill than in Asheville, where much of her audience has Appalachian folk roots.
“It’s interesting to be singing to boys in full-on UNC regalia,” Best said. “Maybe they’ve never heard someone sing this way before.”
Best, originally from Durham, studied performing arts at Bennington College in Vermont and began playing violin when she was three.
She found her passion for Appalachian folk ballads while participating in contra dancing — a partnered folk dance — growing up.
