Palmer Hall opened its doors to a new kind of violinist on Feb. 19. Josh Vietti is a master violinist who specializes in many different genres of music. He has appeared onstage for numerous occasions, including UAB’s homecoming and the Ellen Degeneres Show. 

Vietti played a wide variety of music, including jazz, rap and hip-hop. Throughout the night, he danced with audience members to the song “Yo! Home to Bel-Air,” serenaded someone with “At Last” and rocked out to “Single Ladies” while two female students danced onstage.

Vietti worked the room and made sure to get the whole audience involved. Some students were so moved they got up and square danced onstage. One student rapped to the sound of the violin and another beat-boxed to a catchy tune.

“The performance was really great. He was really entertaining. He was really good with audience participation,” said student James Kinney. “He kept the show so live and involved.”

Vietti even had a surprise for the audience. He said he spent three months learning how to play “Sweet Home Alabama.” He said it was “amazing” to perform this song for the audience he had in Palmer Hall. He had so much fun that he now has plans for a music video featuring this song.

Where will this music video be filmed? A location is not set in stone, but Vietti said he would love to perform it in front of Reynolds Hall — and do it in a way that would help promote the university.

He said he is going to try to set this project in motion in the very near future.