RSPBA Northern Ireland branch unveils ambitious “Every Beat, Every Note, Every Flourish” tagline

The relatively progressive Northern Ireland branch of the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association has put another stake in the ground in terms of its desire to do things differently with the unveiling of a new brand tagline intended to support its “Rebuild, Restart, Rediscover” campaign launched in 2022 as the pipe band world emerged from the two-year competition shutdown.

“Every Beat, Every Note, Every Flourish” is now a mantra by which the branch will operate. The words sound compelling and the RSPBANI intends to put them into action with a variety of initiatives, some yet to be unveiled.

“We believe that every band matters, every contest matters, every college student matters, every tutor matters and in-keeping with our main passion, we think we can illustrate what matters most going forward with our new tagline,” the branch said in a statement.

The Northern Ireland branch is considered to be one of the most influential branches in the RSPBA. That may not come as a surprise, since Northern Ireland with a population of approximately 1.9-million, supports more competing pipe bands per capita than any country on earth. The branch lists some 93 competing bands under its umbrella, including reigning World Champions Field Marshal Montgomery.

“Our branch is its bands and its people. Through the participation of everyone, all coming together with a shared passion we will strive to continue moving forward together.”

The statement goes on to read, “Our branch is its bands and its people. Through the participation of everyone, all coming together with a shared passion we will strive to continue moving forward together. We will continue to support our bands and players in the best way we can; we will strive to promote a musical community that reaches out to everyone; we will develop and maintain mutually beneficial and strategic partnerships with other bodies and organizations for the benefit of everyone; we will continue to promote and represent piping, drumming and drum majoring throughout Northern Ireland and further afield.”

The branch is chaired by Alastair Patterson, a multiple World Champion drum-major and RSPBA drum-major judge. He took the role of branch chair in November 2022, and emphasizes how its new tagline will be reflected in a commitment to excellence in performance, teaching, inclusivity and other aspects of pipe band life.

“As a branch we delighted to be adopting our new tagline for 2023 and into the future,” Patterson said. “Coming from my drum-major roots, I feel that we are giving those words of command to get things started as we move forward in a positive way. Our new tagline will be at the centre of all our work and plans as we strive to feel Every Beat, hear Every Note and see Every Flourish.”

The campaign and tagline back up the branch’s mission statement, which is similar to most pipe band associations around the world: “to promote the culture and advancement of piping, drumming and drum majoring through education and competition to enable the wider pipe band community to reach its full potential.”

Like most of the rest of the pipe band world, Northern Ireland has seen a decline in the number and overall size of competing bands, along with reduced crowds attending many events.

In addition to Northern Ireland, the RSPBA maintains eight other branches: Ayr, Dumfries & Galloway; Dundee, Perth & Angus; Glasgow & West of Scotland; London & South of England; Lothian & Borders; Midlands; North of Scotland; and North of England.