We are the May Day Marching Band, an inclusive community-based band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Our band formed in 2009 as part of the first annual May Day Parade in Pittsburgh’s Polish Hill neighborhood. Since then, our presence in the community has continued to expand. We play for public events, protests, benefits, parties, parades, and more — we party for causes, dreams, and just plain fun!

Our band’s mission is: 1) to build and strengthen our community while supporting organizations and causes by bringing music, sound, creativity, and flexibility, 2) to transform and reclaim public space, to encourage spontaneity, add energy, to build or break tension, express grief and radical joy, support community feelings, and to raise morale, 3) to make music accessible by teaching and welcoming musicians of all skill levels as a core value, which we embody through our commitment to practice and growth, 4) to uphold and advance our values, which include: fighting systemic oppression; supporting each other in unlearning oppression; nonviolence; respect; consent; compassion; empathy; awareness of our impact; and, equality through horizontal non-hierarchical organization.

We hold open practices every week and welcome new members of any background, so long as they share our band’s mission and values. We have no fixed membership, no auditions, and no hierarchy — anyone interested is encouraged to come play with us and help us keep deciding who we are and what we do!