Edinburgh Tattoo crowds to see Mongolian military musicians perform Genghis Khan story

GENGHIS Khan is to march on the capital in a major coup for the producers of the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

The musicians of the Mongolian armed forces have been lined up to make their first ever visit to Britain.

And we can reveal their performance on the castle esplanade in August will be based on the life of the 13th century warrior who rose from humble roots to conquer parts of central Asia and China.

Around 70 performers will use music, song and dance to tell the story of the ruthless invader and military tactician, and his blood-soaked campaigns.

Rehearsals are well under way for the six-minute spectacular portraying the conquests of the leader whose name is revered in Mongolia and central Asia.

Tattoo producer Brigadier David Allfrey said yesterday he was excited about it.

He said: “Genghis Khan was an uncompromising man who grew up in an uncompromising place and, notwithstanding the popular image, when you visit Mongolia you can’t help but be drawn into the magic of the story.

“He was an extraordinary soldier by any standards, and as a military strategist he was frankly without compare.”

Brigadier Allfrey went to Mongolia in February as part of a global talent-spotting mission for the Tattoo which has seen him visit 24 countries in as many months and cover every continent except Antarctica.

He saw the band, enjoyed the spectacle of the Mongolians’ traditional horsehair banners, and held talks with defence, foreign affairs and business chiefs to outline the benefits and potential global exposure they would enjoy from a slot at the Tattoo.

He said: “We are now very much looking forward to seeing how their performance has developed between February and August.”

Among the Mongolian military musicians taking part in the show will be traditional throat singers, who can produce two or more distinct pitches at the same time.

Brigadier Allfrey said: “It’s incredible – something which sounds as if it should not come from a human being. It’s half-way between a yodel and a bath emptying.”

But most of all the Tattoo chief is looking forward to bringing to Edinburgh a little bit of a country which intrigued him.

He said: “My four-day visit in February was the most marvellous experience.

“It is one of these places where you land and your pulse instantly quickens.

“To get there you fly over miles and miles of steppe, and when I went there it was swathed in snow and it went on forever.

“You land at Ulan Bator airport and you find yourself in an arrivals hall filled with tough-looking people, then you step outside and the temperature is minus 34.

“In the middle of this landscape grew up a man we know as Genghis Khan who created an extraordinary nation and a military culture that dominated that part of the world for many, many years.”

David Scott, the Honorary Consul for Mongolia in Scotland, said the performance would mark the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Britain and Mongolia.

He said: “I know it will be very interesting, and that Mongolians will be coming up from London in droves to see it.”

David added: “I saw the Tattoo last year and it was spectacular, but I think this year will top it.”

Genghis Khan, who died in 1227, came to power by uniting many of the nomadic tribes of northeast Asia and he was also responsible for fou nding the Mongol Empire.

In just 25 years, his horsemen conquered a larger area and greater population than the Romans did in four centuries.

Share this post