The annual Hays City Music Festival is scheduled for 8 a.m.  to 8 p.m. Saturday.  Students from throughout the region will take part in the daylong contest, including groups from Dodge City, Abilene, Beloit and Garden City.

Approximately 600 students are expected to take part, said Jalynn Nolte, vocal director at Hays Middle School.

“It’s a longstanding tradition,” she said, noting vocal, band and orchestra students will take part in everything from solos to large groups .

The festival has been a tradition since at least the 1970s.

The public is invited to attend.