Music, Beer and Fun with Roy Paci

Take a warm June evening, the rooftop of a tall New York building, a panoramic view of the Flatiron Building and the Madison Square bell tower, add some good home-made beer and live music: the recipe is ready. Eataly's new brewery has opened on the 15th floor penthouse of its 5th Avenue location. This is a new experiment by Farinetti, and it promises to meet with great success.
 
The brewery was an idea of young Nicola Farinetti, Oscar's son, and brewers Teo Musso, Leonardo di Vincenzo and Sam Calagione. The goal was to offer a home-made product using American production and typical Italian products, accompanied by Italian food.

At the opening, an unannounced Roy Paci performed, creating a mix of fun and carelessness, answered by the clients standing up, dancing and clapping to the music, feeling at home. This was the magic of the Sicilian singer, who was called back for three encores.
 
It all felt quite Italian: for a moment it felt like an Italian piazza, with people dancing until late. Also reminiscent of Italy were the red chairs, the white tables, the alleyway-street-lamp-like lights, the amphorae filled with oranges, and the 'Birreria' sign itself, with a font similar to Peroni beer.

None of this is by chance. Once again the Farinettis have been able to promote the best of Italy: the quality of the products and the beauty of their context. They succeeded while enjoying themselves at the same time, since they were dancing along as well. And this is probably the most important message: the passion of someone who is offering a service.

Thursday night we were in Italy, and yet it was enough to look up and there was Manhattan with its skyscrapers, blending with Roy Paci's rhythms.

His music ranges from jazz to reggae to ska. He plays the trumpet, sings, writes and arranges. He has been influenced by travels in South America, the Canary Islands, and Senegal. He has collaborated with famous names of the Italian and international panorama, such as Negrita, Jovanotti, Caparezza, Capossela and Manu Chao, in a career that spans over 25 years. He is mainly known for his band 'Roy Paci & gli Aretuska', together with a number of young Sicilian musicians; among their albums are “Baciamo Le Mani” (2001), “Tuttapposto” (2003), “Parola D'Onore” and “Wei Wu Wei” (2005), “Suonoglobal” (2007), the collection “BESTiario siciliano” (2008) and “Latinista” (2010). This latest album brought the band to the United States, in historical venues of New York and Los Angeles.

The evening of June 2 had a higher value for Oscar Farinetti: his arrival in the city on the sailboat that had left Italy on April 25. The objective was to write seven moves to help our country during a trip with several stops. The dates were chosen to coincide with the Day of Liberation and Republic Day. The team was: 2 captains (Giovanni Soldini and Oscar Farinetti), 5 sailors ( Beatrice Iacovoni, Giudo Nanni Falck, Paolo Nocivelli, Luca Sebastiano Baffigo Filangieri and Bruno Fieno), 4 great chefs (Ugo Alciati, Davide Scabin, Moreno Cedroni and Mario Batali) and, alternating at every stop, 15 companions (writers Alessandro Baricco, Antonio scurati, Simone Perotti and Giorgio Faletti, actress Lella costa, entrepreneurs Matteo Marzotto, Gianni Winteler and Riccardo Illy, mathematician Piergiorgio Odifreddi, cellist Mario Brunello, singer-songwriter Maria Pierantoni Giua, illustrator Francesco Rubino, brewer Teo Musso, as well as Marella Levoni and Luciana delle Donne).

This mixed group wrote a document for a restored Italy, not affiliated to a particular political party, made up of suggestions to whoever is in power.