Fort Good Hope (May 31/04) - The Wood Block Music Society is gearing up for its fifth music festival this July.

Wood Block music society vice-president Edna Tobac said the biannual festival draws about 150 people into Fort Good Hope every two years.

"People come by boat from Tulita, Norman Wells, Tsiigehtchic, and fly in from Inuvik," she said.

"We also get visitors from Colville Lake, Fort McPherson and Yellowknife, and performers, too."

The festival only happens every two years to give the society time to raise enough money to stage it, and also to keep the anticipation high.

The Music Society is looking for a variety of bands who want to perform at this year's festival, which will run from July 23 to 25.

Previous music styles at the festival have included country, folk, rock and heavy metal. The Fort Good Hope drummers always make an appearance. Tobac said one genre they haven't seen yet is hip hop, but that could always change this year.

Two Fort Good Hope couples have scheduled their weddings to coincide with the festival.

"They have relatives travelling a long way," said Tobac.

"For some of them this will be their first time in Fort Good Hope."

The stage and sound system gets set up in the centre of town and everybody gathers in the centre field in the late afternoon to listen to the performers. After that there are fiddle dances in the evening.

In the beginning, the society had to fly in sound equipment, but four years ago they bought their own equipment, which they now lend out to other events.

Tobac is proud of the fact that festival goers tend not to do a lot of drinking.

"People are respectful of that," said Tobac.

Bands who want to perform at the festival can contact the Wood Block Music Society at P.O. Box 199, Fort Good Hope, X0E 0H0.