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FESTIVAL DU BOIS today announced the festival’s 2009 dates, a spectacular roster artists from across Canada - and extended an open invitation to join them in celebrating 20th years of great music and cultural presentation at Maillardville / Coquitlam’s Mackin Park on March 7 and 8.

Authentically rooted in French-Canadian heritage and creativity, Festival du Bois has grown over two decades to become BC’s premiere celebration of francophone music, dance, craft, food, customs and culture. Now considered one of this province’s major annual festival events, Festival du Bois also reaches beyond tradition to showcase the vibrant and eclectic music and dance of some of the finest Québécois, francophone, world and folk artists performing today. What continues to draw upwards of 5,000 people of all ages and backgrounds daily to the big tents and activities on the festival site is the successful melding of a world-class music festival with an accessible, affordable and entertaining family-friendly community event. Festival-goers can wander the expansive park-site to learn about the history of Maillardville in fun and interactive ways, play games, shop, and sample a range of delicious treats like tourtière, maple taffy and poutine. Under the roofs of the massive Grand Chapiteau (Main Tent), Petit Chapiteau (Children’s Tent) or popular Tente des Ateliers (Workshop Tent), they can experience great music that stirs their hearts, gives them new insights and inspires them to dance. And that’s not all! This year’s hot Saturday night ticket is a must-attend event for music lovers of every kind, as Québec super group La Bottine Souriante returns to help celebrate this special year!

The 2009 roster of music artists offers a wealth of diversity and excellence. From tradition to original creation, from festival favourites to fresh new faces – here are some of the folks who are performing during the daytimes:

De Temps Antan: André Brunet, Pierre-Luc Dupuis and Eric Beaudry, three venerated Québécois traditional musicians pool their extraordinary talents to create an original sound rooted in the stomping grounds of Québec’s musical heritage.

BardeFou: An alchemy of seven Québec-based musicians from various backgrounds who successfully marry traditional Quebecois music and French chanson with Celtic and worldly influences into a festive, happy and dance-friendly music.

Zal Idrissa Sissokho: A descendant of the great griot families of Senegal, now Montréal-based singer, composer and kora player extraordinaire, Zal Idrissa Sissokho performs centuries-old traditional Mandingo classics sung in Malinke & Wolof – renewed with a contemporary feel.

Delhi 2 Dublin: Five Vancouver-based musicians mesh scorching electronic beats with traditional instruments such as the tabla, fiddle, dhol and electric sitar to create an original hybrid blending Bhangra, Celtic and dub.

Jou Tou: Vancouver’s “play everything” quartet combines member’s four different heritages – Québécois, Brazilian, Chinese and Irish – into a new world music that takes the best of each to create an inspired fusion.

Other artists performing on Main Tent, Children’s Tent and/or Workshop Tent stages include Manitoba Métis singer/storyteller Ted Longbottom, the family music of Nova, Isa and Chou, comic/clown Sand Northrup, the French-Canadian family band Famille Léger and Coquitlam’s Chorale des Pionniers.

SATURDAY NIGHT, MARCH 7: “La Grande Veillée! / The Big Night Out!” presents the gold standard of Québec traditional music, the internationally-renowned La Bottine Souriante. This special evening of music opens with the young virtuosos of the North Shore & Coquitlam Celtic Ensemble. Great music, yes – and there will be dancing!

TICKETS: March 7 & 8 daytime general admission: $5 (children), $8 (students/seniors), $12 (adults) per day – at Gate. Saturday night concert tickets are $30 ($25 for Société francophone de Maillardville members). General info and advance tickets for Saturday night’s concert: Festival du Bois 604-936-0039 Stay tuned for the full festival schedule at: www.festivaldubois.ca