The polished performances of the Bermuda Regiment Band have long impressed Bermudians and visitors alike, but in August 2003 the band will be playing to audiences numbering in the millions as they fulfil an invitation to perform in Edinburgh's famed Tattoo.

The opportunity arose out of a Beat Retreat ceremony in St. George's two years ago which the late Scottish Baron of Lee attended. He was so impressed with what he saw that he immediately asked to meet the Regiment's Director of Music, Major Barrett Dill, to discuss the possibility of the Band and Corps of Drums participating in a Tattoo. The Baron's enthusiasm was subsequently conveyed to Brigadier Melville Jameson, CBE, executive producer and director of the Edinburgh Tattoo, who in turn contacted Maj. Dill.

"He asked if I could put on a special performance for him to attend in order to review the Band and evaluate the standard, so I arranged January 17 for a command performance at Warwick Camp," Maj. Dill says.

Meanwhile, knowing that they would have to be absolutely spot-on to warrant inclusion in this prestigious event, the volunteer musicians, who are male and female and aged 14 to 45, worked tirelessly under Maj. Dill's direction to meet the challenge. On the night they shone - so much so that the following day the Brigadier indicated he would like to 'star' the Band and Corps of Drums in the Edinburgh Tattoo, 2003, and in a subsequent letter confirming their inclusion he indicated how pleased he was to have them participate.

"I was amazed, and very proud of the men and women," a delighted Maj. Dill says. "In addition to the Regiment Band performing, the Brigadier also asked for a bit of Bermudian culture to be included, so he has invited a gombey troupe to perform at the same venue."

There is, however, one problem: there are 53 musicians in the Regiment band, but Tattoo requirements will only permit 40.

"So I will have to choose the best players for the occasion, and the members are feverishly working towards gaining a place," Maj. Dill says. "The commitment, dedication, discipline and determination is there. In fact, it constantly amazes me what they can produce."

In terms of the music, in addition to its own repertoire, the Regiment must also learn specific pieces to be played by the massed bands at the opening and closing ceremonies, of which they will be part.

When the Bermudians are featured on their own, however, audiences can expect an interesting mixture.

"The Brigadier has asked for some special music to be performed. He was very impressed with our repertoire and asked if we could also play what I would call "sub-tropical" music, so I am coming up with a special arrangement which will have its premiere performance in Edinburgh. I am also considering including something that is patriotic to Bermuda. We have excellent voices in the Band, so one idea is to have someone singing the Bermuda song."

Leaving nothing to chance, Maj. Dill hopes to fly Edinburgh this year to witness his first tattoo.

"It is a very highly choreographed performance," he says.

As great an honour as this is for the Regiment Band, it also means a huge commitment from not only its members, but also their employers, for they will be in Edinburgh for a month.

"I cannot give enough thanks to the employers for all the time they allocated to their employees in the past so that they could represent Bermuda in such a splendid and magnificent manner, and I am now calling on them again to be 100 percent behind us as this is going to be the most momentous occasion in the history of the Regiment," Maj. Dill says.

Meanwhile, a host of peripheral details must be attended to, including special tailoring of the uniforms. For this event the drummers will wear the scarlet jackets while the rest of the band will wear white because the latter show up better on television - an important consideration when one million people tune in to BBC's extensive coverage. A further 250,000 people will attend in person.

Small wonder, then, that the Bermudian public are already booking for 2003, when performances will be from August 1-23, and Maj. Dill, who plans to step down in a few years' time, is ecstatic.

"This is definitely one of the climaxes of my military career," he says.