Roy Paci

Roy Paci & Aretuska formed in Italy as a pop/world music/jam band that earned steady favor on the European festival circuit and across world music rankings. At thirteen Roy Paci received his first bugle and promptly joined the Hot Jazz Orchestra of Augusta and the New Royal Big Band. While still in his early teens he accumulated road experience in Italy’s leading jazz venues, shifting from large ensembles to quartets and quintets. In 1990 he relocated to South America, where he worked with prominent Argentine big bands and pop performers. After absorbing a range of South American idioms he returned to Italy, established the award-winning Rosariosa Acme Project, and recorded and performed alongside key Italian pop figures such as Mau Mau. During the following decade he also joined forces with Zap Mama, Manu Chao, Trilok Gurtu, and additional international artists. In 1998 he launched the independent label Etnagigante to champion emerging Sicilian acts. Aretuska issued its first album, Baciamo, in 2002; Tuttapposto appeared the next year. The ten-piece ensemble followed with the third album Parola d’Onore and, two years afterward, SuoNoGlobal. The 2007 release maintained a steady position inside World Music Charts Europe’s Top 20 for the entire year. Its single “Toda Joia Beleza,” which featured longtime associate Manu Chao, brought the group mainstream pop attention and a packed touring calendar that stretched through 2007 and well into 2008.