SPENCE BAY - What do 50 traditional Inuit drums sound like played together?

Since most gatherings of drum dancers are much smaller than 50, very few people in Nunavut can answer that question.

Now, the people in Taloyoak can answer, and they say it is loud.

Taloyoak invited 50 drum dancers from different communities to their hamlet for their first ever drum dancing festival. It was so successful that the mayor and the SAO are already talking about next year.

"This festival is a way of healing, it is a healing tool," said Mayor Jimmy Oleekatalik. "We have had nothing but positive from this."

Drum dancers from Repulse Bay, Rankin Inlet, Kugaaruk and Gjoa Haven traveled to Taloyoak for the event.

"When you have that many people, it is a definite economic boost to the community," said hamlet SAO Stephen King.

One of the highlights was the grand opening of the festival. Drum dancers entered under the sign of their home community, much like the Olympics or Canada Games.

The recreation department organized the event, and aside from being able to enjoy the festival, there were other less tangible benefits.

"It helps in a lot of ways," said King. "First of all it helps to promote traditional Inuit culture. Besides that, a lot of people get to see their relatives. It was very successful, and we hope to do it again next year."

For the mayor, getting to learn from elders was a highlight.

"They taught us a lot about the drum itself," said Oleekatalik.

"We had elders strip the drum down and teach us the names for all the parts. It was great."

While the festival was scheduled to begin on April 24, many of the performers arrived the day before. Rather than wait for everyone else, they had an impromptu jam the night before the festival began.