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Jessie Firth, left, and John Norbert play Nobody's Darling but Mine for residents at the Inuvik Regional Hospital. The members of the Mackenzie River Ramblers put a show on for patients last week. - Brodie Thomas/NNSL photo

TSIIGEHTCHIC/INUVIK - A group of musicians from Tsiigehtchic travelled to Inuvik last week to visit with some old friends and deliver a dose of old-time medicine.

John Norbert plays guitar with the Mackenzie River Ramblers; a band composed of who ever is available at the time. He thought it would be a good idea to bring his show on the road to elders in the Inuvik Regional Hospital.

Norbert and his group came prepared for the show. They brought a nice collection of sound gear to ensure the sound quality was as good as any dance.

"When you become a musician, you have to do your best. You can't play any old way," said Norbert.

The care Norbert and the other band members put into the music did not go unnoticed by the audience.

Louie Paul of Aklavik said he has been in the hospital for nine months and he is ready to go back to his home in Aklavik. He said the music took him back to "the good old days."

Fiddler Noel Andre said he was glad to finally make the trip to Inuvik. He said that there has been talk of putting on a show in Inuvik for a while.

"We've been talking about it all the time. We just do it for free to entertain the elders," said Andre. Now 78, Andre has been fiddling for nearly 65 years. He often appears on stage at dances in Tsiigehtchic calling himself "The Lonesome Indian." With Norbert backing him up on guitar and Inuvik resident Bob Mumford on bass, Andre played old favorites such as White Rose of the Mountain and Over the Waves.

When Andre was finished, a member of the newest generation of fiddlers took the stage. Jessie Firth, 15, has lived most of her life in Tsiigehtchic, but is now finishing high school in Fort McPherson. She has been learning the fiddle for the past two years, following in the footsteps of her grandfather and uncle.

"It's a family tradition," said Firth.

It was easy to see the old-time music was having a good affect on the residents in the hospital.

The music seemed to work wonders on 89-year-old Catherine Mitchell, who got up out of her chair to dance a jig with fiddler Noel Andre.

Nurse Paula Lannon said she wants to get some tapes to play for residents after seeing how they reacted to the live musicians.

"It is comforting but it also aids in reminiscing, which is therapeutic," she said.

"It is better than any medicine we can give them."