Wrangling 40 mismatched musicians is no easy task, 但是3月4日游行乐队的领队约翰·阿弗里尔在字面上和艺术上都让他们步调一致
John Averill '89 has a sweet ride these days一辆珍珠白色的45英尺的客车，樱桃红色的油毡地板，可容纳24人. Trombones, saxophones, trumpets, drums, cymbals, 和阿弗里尔的无线贝斯吉他填满了巴士下面的车厢，旁边是高跷, Hula Hoops, 还有其他的工具是由蜡胡子的男人和穿着亮片的舞者使用的. Then there are the drum harnesses, shiny Mad Max contraptions welded from recycled bike parts, 从旧货店收集的不匹配的军乐队制服和帽子, fishnet stockings, leather garters, red snakeskin print pants, and maybe a shimmering pair of silver bell-bottoms.
作为乐队指挥和三四游行乐队的联合创始人, Averill marshals something between a saucy vaudeville show, a Bootsy Collins groovefest, and a three-ring circus. The Portland, Ore.-based band counts 40-plus members, but trims the ranks to 23 when touring, mostly playing music festivals and smaller venues. Whatever the gig, the band's sound is huge—an original melding of Afrobeat, rock, ska, Dixieland jazz, and gypsy brass. 3月4日，舞台上挤满了盛装打扮的鼓手和圆号手，而一群令人眼花缭乱的美女和高跷舞者则涌入观众，表演令人难以置信的舞蹈和旋转. And that guy on stilts? He might crowd-surf during the finale. 似乎不受混乱的影响，艾弗里尔用一个时髦的电低音把它连接在一起.
“我一生都着迷于人类化学以及人们如何相处," says Averill. 要留住这么多的艺术家和一个五人鼓队的复杂性不是一件容易的事, at least eight horns, 还有一小群舞者和高跷表演者朝同一个方向移动, but Averill takes a Zen approach. "You can't control that many musicians," he adds, 但你可以引导它向任何方向发展."
A Eugene native, Averill主修工作室艺术，他说他选择Oxy的原因之一是因为帕萨迪纳艺术中心设计学院提供的交流项目, where he studied graphic design. 他还将“艺术之事”活动——由学生组织的校园活动——归功于融合了艺术的活动, film, music, and poetry—as an influence. 奥施康定是他第一次拿起吉他的地方，当时他意识到校园里的朋友们都自学了吉他，并组建了乐队. “我想，见鬼，也许现在成为一名音乐家还不算太晚."
Following graduation, Averill spent several years in an L.A. 在搬到波特兰的一家动画工作室工作之前，他和其他Oxy校友一起乐队. After he was laid off in 2003, 他和他91届的好友兼邻居丹·斯托弗以及其他三位当地音乐家一起萌生了组建行军乐队的想法. 像阿弗里尔的许多其他音乐项目一样，这是一次演出. 这支乐队是为了一个盛大的星期二聚会(3月4日，因此得名)而组织的，会场里挤满了人. Several weeks later, prior to the U.S. 在美国入侵伊拉克之后，3月4日又在波特兰举行了反战示威. "We marched for three hours in the rain with 18,000 people downtown, playing the same seven songs over and over," Averill recalls.
“我们把周围的人从愤怒变成了鼓掌和跳舞," says Stauffer, 演奏钹和其他打击乐的人，包括牛铃和拉丁美洲的g
At the time of the band's creation, Stauffer was developing the Egg, 这是一个由波特兰仓库改造而成的艺术家团体，现在为该团体提供了一个练习空间. The title of the band's fourth and latest album, Magnificent Beast, describes the transformation that has occurred since. Once a local Portland favorite, the band now spends more time touring than at home, including an overseas tour to Germany, 在那里，即使是最保守的观众也会在表演结束时站起来跳舞, says Averill. (A 28-minute documentary, Was Ist Das?, captures the behind-the-scenes antics.)
For his part, Stauffer添加了大量的高能量，旨在鼓励观众加入到乐趣中来，以补充Averill的镇静. 当乐队开始巡回演出时，他也扮演了船长的角色, routing, 他说，这种心态在一定程度上是通过Oxy的海外学习项目在英国度过的一年而形成的, as well as a year post-graduation living in Tokyo. But more than anything, says Stauffer, 他在厄德曼大厅担任首席住院医生的角色，使他能够处理与这样一个庞大而多样化的群体一起工作和旅行的动态和问题.
While Averill never worked as an RA, 他说，卡帕·西格玛兄弟会的经历教会了他与一大群人合作所需的社交工具. 创始成员兼舞者费斯·詹宁斯说:“约翰真的在乐队里营造了一种家庭氛围."
在此过程中，一个挑战是如何将企业转变为能够为其成员提供适度收入的企业. To that end, some band members design and stitch their own costumes, or sell handcrafted hats and other wearable art at shows. In March 2007, 他们在eBay上花了10美元买了一辆1984年的MC9汽车，行驶了100多万英里,000, dubbed it Razzle Dazzle, and retrofitted it with bunks, a tiny sink and cooktop, 在屋顶上放上一排排沉重的塑料箱，用来装野营装备.
但他们的经营不仅仅是巡回演出和卖cd. A slice of the proceeds from MarchFourth's 2009 album Rise Up was donated to Sweet Home New Orleans, 一个非营利组织，帮助这座城市的音乐和文化传统永久化. 乐队成员Ariel Brantley-Dalglish和Robin Jackson共同创立了Joy Now Foundation, 这个组织举办工作坊，吸引波特兰的年轻人参与音乐和表演艺术. 以3月4日的音乐为模板，在乐队的一些音乐家和表演者的帮助下, 孩子们学习如何作为一个合奏团演奏和为观众表演.
Occasionally, that goodwill yields musical gifts: The clarinetist, tuba player, 新奥尔良的Preservation Hall爵士乐队的萨克斯手即兴创作了几首独奏，并被收录到《十大正规网赌平台》(由Los Lobos乐队的Steve Berlin制作)的曲目中。. But other dividends have resulted as well. After logging more than 300,000 miles on Razzle Dazzle, 去年冬天，该乐队发起了一项在线筹款活动，帮助购买一款新款, larger, and more fuel-efficient ride. Fans pitched in $46,000 and, after some modifications for on-the-road living, 这个乐队今年春天开着它的新巴士登台演出(名字待定)。.
Although MarchFourth isn't entirely sustainable yet, 阿弗里尔说，这已经成为他的一门生意，以至于他在表演时都要打领带、穿背心. 他说:“我们在那里追求梦想，并一步步实现梦想。. "I think the band is poised for a breakthrough."
罗宾·莫里森(Robyn Morrison)是一名自由撰稿人，现居住在科罗拉多州帕尼奥亚.
