The Folk Festival. The first notes from the Lava Hot Springs Folk Music Festival filled the mountain air in April of 2016. Envisioned by local musicians, parents, and community merchants, the festival was created as a funding vehicle for a new music program in the Lava Hot Springs elementary school.

The program provides weekly music classes for the K-6 students, with instruction by a certified music teacher, and purchase of a variety of child-friendly instruments, such as xylophones, metallophones, glockenspiels, drums, tone bells, triangles, and maracas. The festival also provides arts-centric events, workshops, and opportunities for the children themselves to perform. The purpose is to both educate and inspire, instilling in each child an appreciation for music and the beauty of the arts.

The growing success of the festival has allowed for expansions in venue capacity, the addition of a third festival day, and a new fall festival weekend—the third weekend in September. The event is in coordination with the support of The Greater Lava Hot Springs Prosperity Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, and the Greater Lava Hot Springs Chamber of Commerce Main Street Businesses.