A Night to Remember - 60th Tattoo Season Spectacular

A panoply of international talent, including UK Tattoo debuts for performers from China and a Canadian Choir, will help celebrate the 60th Edinburgh Tattoo (7-29 August 2009) at this year’s Castle Esplanade Homecoming-themed spectacular.

With over 1,000 performers, featuring a Tongan cultural troupe, Swiss percussionists, Brit Award winning pipers and drummers as well as singers from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, the show is set to present an absorbing array of fresh content without diluting the popular format which attracts capacity audiences annually.

But, despite a markedly multinational flavour, the 60th Tattoo will pay tribute to the 250th anniversary of the birth of iconic Scottish poet Robert Burns, and the show will once again open to the heart-stopping sounds of the much-loved Massed Pipes and Drums.

Some 200 pipers and drummers representing ten different bands from home and overseas are expected to fill the Esplanade with their stirring sight and sounds, featuring rousing renditions of time-honoured favourites such as Scots Wha Hae and Duncan Gray.

Tattoo Chief Executive and Producer, Major General Euan Loudon said: “Whether it is award-winning pipers and drummers, Scottish Highland dancers, colourful representations from overseas, or some of Britain’s finest military bands, I believe an unforgettable experience awaits you.”

This prodigious cluster of musicians will embrace three pipe bands from the Southern Hemisphere – New Zealand’s Auckland Police, the Australian Federal Police from Canberra and the South African Cape Town Highlanders. They will join the military pipe bands of The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, The Royal Dragoon Guards, The 1st Royal Tank Regiment, The Royal Highland Fusiliers, 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, The Highlanders, 4th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, along with representatives from this year’s lead Service, the Royal Air Force.

Highlights of the 2009 event will also include a melodious display of South Sea Islands magic as the 50-strong Royal Corps of Musicians from Tonga – the Pacific’s only remaining kingdom - together with a charming cultural troupe, enriches proceedings.

Another major attraction will be the first ever Tattoo performances of Canada’s Calgary Burns Singers, who will assemble alongside vocalists from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. Together they will provide a special Burns homage to mark the 250th anniversary of the birth of the literary legend.

Commented the Tattoo Producer: “I am confident that this year’s Tattoo promises to be another remarkable three weeks which is, in no small measure, a tribute to all those involved.”

Then, as a contrast to the Burns tribute, a fast-moving, all-action interlude demonstrating the role of the RAF medical emergency response team in hostile environments is expected to electrify audiences.

One of China’s top cultural acts then follows with a colourfully compelling display of traditional song, dance, and acrobatics as the 90-strong She Huo cultural troupe from Edinburgh’s twin city of Xi’an present skills not previously witnessed at the Edinburgh Tattoo.

“I continue to scour the globe working towards securing and introducing new innovative features at the Tattoo from literally all points of the compass,” said the Major General.

Musical entertainment from Scotland is then expected to enthral 217,000 Tattoo-goers as the Classical Brit Award winning pipers and drummers of The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards along with The Band of the Royal Regiment of Scotland take to the arena. The musicians will together perform a special selection of tunes including the world premiere of a specially commissioned composition entitled Tour of Duty by Runrig founder member and Scottish Traditional Composer of 2008, Blair Douglas.

Tattoo first-timers, the Central Band of the Swiss Army, an elite military orchestra from the attractive old town of Aarau located by Switzerland’s Jura foothills on the river Aare, are then set to perform a captivating display of music and interchange, which will include a few surprises with Alpine Horns and illuminated drum sticks.

Each evening over 100 dancers from Australia and Scotland will present a dazzling routine of lively highland dancing – exclusively conceived to reflect this summer’s Homecoming Burns themed Tattoo – accompanied by a selection of pipers and musicians from the Royal Regiment of Scotland.

Audience favourite, the (now not-so-secret) Top Secret Drum Corps from the Swiss city of Basel, make a welcome return to the Scottish Capital after their triumphant appearances at the Tattoo in 2003 and 2006. Fusing a mesmerising mix of contemporary and traditional percussion, this unique drum music act is once again expected to take the Castle by storm.

The Bands of the Royal Air Force, encompassing the Central Band of the Royal Air Force, the Band of the Royal Air Force Regiment, the Band of the Royal Air Force College and the Royal Air Force Salon Orchestra – under the direction of Squadron Leader Duncan Stubbs, Principal Director of Music RAF and 2009 Tattoo Director of Music – will then parade with a repertoire which mixes music and sound effects to delight the audience.

They will be joined by the Bands of the Royal Regiment of Scotland, the Tongan Royal Corps of Musicians and the Swiss Army’s Central Band.

The Massed Pipes and Drums are then set to re-join proceedings to add their distinctive touch. They assemble for an exhilarating combined programme of music and movement which boasts Going Home, written by classical Czech composer Antonin Dvorak in 1893 and the powerful spiritual, Amazing Grace.

The grand finale, featuring the entire 1,000-strong cast and a special musical medley in honour of Scotland’s national bard, brings the show to a climactic close as the Lone Piper, high on the Castle ramparts, plays the thought-provoking refrain, A Gratefu’ Prayer.

While the Guard of Honour will be provided each evening by The Highlanders, 4th Battalion the Royal Regiment of Scotland, pilots from RAF stations across the UK will mark the RAF’s lead Service status at this summer’s Tattoo with an exciting nightly flypast.

Allan Watt, RBS Group Brand Communications, said: “RBS is a long term supporter of the Edinburgh Military Tattoo and we are once again proud to be associated with an event that draws audiences from around the world. The Tattoo is at the heart of the Edinburgh Festivals and makes a significant contribution to the Scottish economy each year.”

“In the face of the continuing contraction of the entire global economy,” remarked Tattoo Chief Executive Euan Loudon, “I am happy to report that the Tattoo is on course for another record-breaking year.”

Some tickets for the 2009 Tattoo (7-29 August) may still be available from the Tattoo Ticket Sales Office at 33-34 Market Street in Edinburgh, Tel: 0131 225 1188.