The High Desert Music Hall in Redmond will host a spoken word night on Thursday.

Here’s a journalism fun fact: Some outlets have a rule that you don’t call any event the “first annual so-and-so,” because it can’t be annual if it has only happened once. It’s just the first. If it happens again the next year, then it has earned the term “second annual.”

Congratulations, then, to Redmond’s Music & Arts Festival, which will earn its “second annual” designation this weekend at the High Desert Music Hall. For three full days, the HDMH will host live performances from a whole bunch of local bands, as well as live painting and artists’ booths, pop-up vendors and workshops, food trucks, fun stuff for kids and more.

And this year, in an effort to be more accessible and family-friendly, organizers say, it’s all free.

The decision to bring the festival back after last year was an easy one, said Ilko Major and Cimarron Brodie, co-owners and general managers of HDMH.

“We love the idea of a recurring festival and intend to make it our new yearly tradition,” they said by email. “We also love the idea of being able to grow and expand, not only in our music and art lineup, but in different ways we can offer environments to engage with our community.”

The music lineup features a diverse array of artists, including popular local bands like The Color Study, Night Channels, Morrow and Dive Bar Theology as well as solo acts like Jeshua Marshall, Third Seven, Matti Joy and Brogan Woodburn.

On Sunday, the live music will move outside to highlight HDMH’s new outdoor food-and-drink area, which is located in the parking lot adjacent to the venue and is known as the 1/8th Street Patio. The area includes a tap house and food trucks.

And throughout the weekend, craft, writing and art tables will be set up in HDMH’s Backline Lounge, open for use any time during festival hours. There will be free materials for use and supplies for purchase, and people are encouraged to bring their current craft project and get creative. (If you have craft supplies you would like to donate, feel free to bring them.)

If it all sounds like more than just a music festival, well … that’s the idea, said Major and Brodie.

“We hope to offer people a space to feel creative and inspired. A place to experience great music and a variety of things to interact with and get excited about,” they said. “We love building environments for people to explore their passions and hope that by doing so it encourages the community to gather, celebrate, socialize and grow together.”

And to hear them talk, Major and Brodie are already thinking ahead to the third annual Music & Arts Festival and beyond.

“It’s our vision to make this a citywide event and we would be happy to include other locations as satellites to our festivities. We encourage other businesses to reach out and get involved,” they said. “We think Redmond and its surrounding Central Oregon community have a lot to celebrate and spotlight and we are happy to be a place to support that.”

What: Redmond’s Music & Arts Festival

When:

4-11 p.m. Friday

11 a.m.-11 p.m. Saturday

11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday

Where: High Desert Music Hall, 818 SW Forest Ave., Redmond

Cost: Free

Contact: highdesertmusichall.com