— Pittsburgh May Day Brass BBQ

 

PITTON
KA
TONK

 

SATURDAY MAY 14, 2022

VIETNAM VETERANS PAVILION
PITTSBURGH, PA

 

Pittonkatonk is music without boundaries. Since 2014, Pittonkatonk is music in public spaces that belong to everyone, with no stage, no doors, and no right way to express yourself.

We’ve been a Green Festival since 2019!

LEARN MORE
DONATE NOW!
GOFUNDME 2022
NEWS & UPDATES
MORE EVENT INFO & LINKS

— Pittsburgh May Day Brass BBQ

 

PITTON
KA
TONK

 

SATURDAY MAY 14, 2022

VIETNAM VETERANS PAVILION
PITTSBURGH, PA

 

Pittonkatonk is music without boundaries. Since 2014, Pittonkatonk is music in public spaces that belong to everyone, with no stage, no doors, and no right way to express yourself.

We’ve been a Green Festival since 2019!

LEARN MORE
DONATE NOW!
GO FUND ME 2022
NEWS & UPDATES
MORE EVENT INFO & LINKS

Balkan Brass, Cumbia,
Hip-Hop, Big Bands

SATURDAY MAY 14, 2022

A one of a kind musical festival, free and open to all, connecting the dots between community, organizers, and euphoric musical experiences.

SEE Who's playing this year
RSVP FACEBOOK
RSVP EVENTBRITE
DONATE VENMO
VOLUNTEER SIGNUP

REVIEWS

Pittonkatonk is more than just the annual picnic; it also does educational outreach year-round in the Sto-Rox school district and elsewhere. But the picnic is its keynote event, last year drawing a crowd estimated at about 3,000.

Bill O’Discoll
WESA 90.5 FM

Authentic and grassroots, Pittonkatonk erases boundaries between performers and attendees, which means there are no stages, green rooms, tickets or corporate sponsors. Sounds representing West Africa, Chicago, Providence and more will fill the pavilion and spill into the park actively engaging listeners in live performance. It’s uplifting to see, hear, and be a part of.

Jennifer Baron
NEXT Pittsburgh

“You’re part of something bigger, something magical. You’re part of something where everyone values you for who you are. And in that moment, you can totally let loose and be free.”

Meg Fair
Pittsburgh City Paper

The focus of Pittonkatonk is on community. It’s about bringing together people who might otherwise never convene, and blurring the line between performer and spectator.

Caralyn Green
Pittsburgh City Paper

PITTONKATONK 2022 is coming!

Day(s)

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TIME: PITTONKATONK KICKS OFF AT 1pm

DATE : SATURDAY  MAY 14, 2022

WHERE:  VIETNAM VETERANS PAVILION (Schenley Park)

NEED TO KNOWS

  • Festival begins at 1pm
  • Parking around the park is limited so we strongly encourage
    • ride share
    • biking,
    • public transportation
    • uber/lyft
  • BIKE PARKING is available thanks to BikePgh (Bikes must be removed by the end of the event)

WHAT TO BRING

  • Reusable water bottle
  • blanket for the grass
  • sunscreen, umbrella, sweatshirt
  • earplugs
  • money for the bands, potluck, and vendors (most accept cards)
  • your I.D. (state id, passport, other form of valid identification)

POTLUCK INFO

1pm -5pm join us for a community potluck.

Bring a family size dish of food to share.

 

How it works

  • Label your container with your name and cell number
  • Please list ingredients including any allergens and dietary
  • Please do not bring single use containers unless they 100% recyclable or compostable (we are aiming to be a zero waste event)

 

Items NOT to bring:

  • Chips, pretzels, other junk food
  • Bottled Water
  • items that need to be reheated

Items that we encourage

  • Pasta salads
  • fruit salads
  • fresh veggies (washed and prepped)
  • homemade breads or deserts
  • couscous
  • quinoa salads
  • fresh garden salads

 

AFTER THE POTLUCK

FOOD VENDORS

BEVERAGES

  • EAST END BREWING,
  • BARMY SODA
  • GOODLANDER COCKTAILS

 

PITTONK IS GOING GREEN!!!

Pittonkatonk has gone Zero Waste! Since 2019!!!

  • We have partnered with the PA Resources Council to reduce waste and divert it from the landfill through recycling and compost.
  • In 2021, the festival diverted 83% of its waste – the most diversion yet– and in 2022 we aim to be a recognized Zero Waste Event by diverting 90%+ from the landfill! We need your help to get there!

Here’s how you can help:

    • Reduce the landfill items you bring into the festival:
      • When packing for the potluck, choose reusable trays that you can bring home with you, or use aluminum foil trays – we can clean and recycle these.
      • Bring your own reusable utensils, refillable water bottle, Tupperware container and cloth napkin to the festival – take it home with at the end of the potluck.
      • Pittonkatonk will provide compostable plates, utensils, and cups for the potluck, so no need to bring your own single use plates/utensils/cups!
      • Avoid landfill items like vinyl tablecloths or other decorations
    • Use PRC’s Zero Waste Stations, located throughout the festival:
      • Compost
        • All potluck materials can go in the compost! Food, plain paper plates, paper napkins, wooden utensils, and BPI-certified compostable cups can go in the compost.
        • Late night food vendor packaging is also compostable!
        • Cups from East End are compostable!
      • Recycling
        • Aluminum cans, plastic bottles, glass bottles (please empty before throwing them in!)
        • Cardboard and paper
        • NO other plastic (cups, containers, clamshells, plastic utensils)
      • Landfill
        • Everything else! Zip ties, plastic clingwrap, etc
        • NO food, liquids, or compostable or recyclable items
  • For more Zero Waste tips, visit www.prc.org/programs/zwpa/

RULES

  • RESPECT THE PARK!
  • RESPECT THE PEOPLE!
  • RESPECT YOURSELF!

We encourage visitors to bring their own water bottle, blankets, camping chairs.

Clean up after yourself and your neighbor.

 

The bands!

 

OUR 2022 LINEUP

SON ROMPE PERA
Gili Yalo & ANBESSA ORCHESTRA
KIKO VILLAMIZAR
UNDERTOW BRASS BAND
(formerly What Cheer? Brigade)
DETROIT PARTY MARCHING BAND
BITCH THUNDER
COL EAGLEBURGER BAND
BIG BLITZ
1HOOD MEDIA
TIMBELEZA
MAY DAY MARCHING BAND
AFRO YAQUi MUSIC COLLECTIVE

Son Rompe Pera

Born and raised in the deep outskirts of Mexico City, the Gama brothers are keeping alive  the rich legacy of marimba music running through their family with their latest project, Son  Rompe Pera. While firmly rooted in the tradition of this historic instrument, their fresh  take on the folk icon challenges its limits as never before, moving it into the garage/punk  world of urban misfits and firmly planting it in the 21st century.

Gili Yalo & Anbessa Orchestra

Gili Yalo is one of the most intriguing musicians in the music scene in Israel. Gili combines Ethiopian roots with Soul, Funk, Psychedelic and Jazz music. Gili Yalo incorporates sounds from traditional Ethiopian music into a contemporary music production. The result is an exceptional, rich, vivid melody accompanied by Gili’s unique voice with lyrics in both English and Amharic. 

Anbessa Orchestra is a 7 piece band based in Brooklyn NY that draws its inspiration from the diverse musical culture of Ethiopia, combining these unique sounds with the more western sounds of Funk, Jazz, R&B and Rock. The band has been a prominent figure on the NY scene and has played alongside legendary Ethiopian keyboardist/composer Hailu Mergia. 

Detroit Party Marching Band

An ever-evolving collective of Detroit area musicians devoted to unanticipated revelry, driving jams, and the power of the un-amplified horn blast. DPMB blurs the line between performance space and public space, bringing the Party to the audience with aggressive intimacy and an in-your-face attitude.

Undertow Brass Band

Undertow Brass Band (fwa What Cheer? Brigade) is a 20-piece brass band from Providence, RI, USA. We prove that great parties need no electricity. A Pittonkatonk staple are returning in 2022

Kiko Villamizar

Kiko is a Colombian American musical storyteller . Born in Miami and raised in Colombia on a coffee farm, he learned Colombian folk music orally through his family. He then went on to pursue music and theater at Miami Dade College. After this, Kiko traveled and played music, collecting rhythms and sounds from different cultures until reaching his ever changing Colombian fusion.

1HOOD

We seek to establish a platform for artistic expression in efforts to further the economic and creative advancement of artists, as well the active engagement of diverse audiences.

Afro Yaqui Music Collective

An encounter with the Afro Yaqui Music Collective may be the most inspiring musical experience of your life.” Afro Yaqui creates music in which culture and language fuse with catchy melodies and mind-bending harmony to enhance appreciation for diversity in an increasingly multicultural world.

Big Blitz

They are inspired by the sounds of saxophone and percussion-based bands known to busk in the subway stations of New York City. The band writes and performs their own, original tunes, which contain a spacious, powerful, hip sound. Whether plugged in or acoustic, Big Blitz delivers a high energy performance that funkies with your brain and flows down to your feet.

May Day Marching Band

We are a community-based band that welcomes members of all skill levels. We like playing fun and funky music at parades, rallies, protests, picnics, fiestas and other events. We also love to show up random places and surprise ya!

come visit & participate in the activist greenhouse.

A community resource tent of Social and Environmental Justice Organizations. Presented in collaboration with New Sun Rising
MORE INFORMATION COMING SOON!!!

Pittonkatonk is commissioning new music about justice to world premiere on May 11, 2019, featuring collaborations with:

May Day Marching Band & Casa San Jose SOY

Focusing on
Immigration & Equality

Afro Yaqui Music Collective & 1Hood & Sio-Rox Marching Band

Focusing on
Water Quality

Lemon Bucket Orkestra and Sto Rox Marching Band

Focusing on
Cultural Exchange

Hugo Cruz and Caminos

Collaboration with Cuba percussionist and African American Music Institute

But, What is Pittonkatonk?

Education

Through educational programming and community events, Pittonkatonk encourages social engagement between musicians, audiences, and community members, in ways that blur the lines between performer and spectator. We focus on supporting music education in Pittsburgh area high schools.

Event

The annual Pittonkatonk May Day BBQ is a volunteer-supported celebration attended by more than 3,500 people. On a Saturday in May, [the Pittsburgh community] gathers at the Schenley Park Veterans Pavilion to hear performances from local, national and international activist bands, and interact with social and environmental justice organizations.

Activism

This year, three Pittsburgh artists will write new songs in collaboration with social justice organizers, The Social Impact Experience. The project encourages artists to form deep working relationships with environmental and social justice organizations that work to get their message out in creative ways.

show your pittonka-pride

 

Pittonkatonk is
supported by

PARNTERSHIPS