[photo credit: Levitt VIBE Pasadena Music Series]
She comes back Saturday to the same shell at 85 East Holly Street, on a bill that gathers three inherited traditions into one evening. Fichot, a Los Angeles songwriter who performs in French, Mandarin Chinese, Spanish and English, shares the August 8 program with Melo Gía, a Puerto Rican and African-American singer, and Ara Dabandjian, founder of the ensemble Element Band, which reworks traditional Armenian songs. It is the fifth of 10 free Saturday concerts in the first season of the Levitt VIBE Pasadena Music Series, which returned free music to the bandshell after the earlier Levitt concerts ended in 2017.
Organizers bill the night as world fusion. The event runs from 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., with music beginning at approximately 6:30 p.m., and the season runs through September 12. Fichot lists her own set for 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., and local and emerging artists open each week in The Vibe Set.
Her history here runs deeper. Fichot played Levitt Pavilion Pasadena on July 11, 2008, returned to the Memorial Park bandshell in June 2010 and played the Levitt stage again on August 26, 2011. She draws on a French, Chinese and American upbringing, mixing chanson, Shanghai jazz, gypsy swing and international folk on accordion and toy piano, and will preview songs from a forthcoming album, “L’échappée Belle,” organizers said.
Melo Gía, born Patricia Lewis, released her debut EP, “Exhala Vol. 1,” on February 14, 2026, mixed and mastered in Pasadena. Her songwriting is shaped by her displacement after Hurricane María and blends Puerto Rican folklore with jazz, R&B and soul, organizers said. Dabandjian founded Element Band in 2005.
“I have always aspired to make this music palatable to non-Armenian ears,” Dabandjian told the Armenian Weekly in August 2025.
The City of Pasadena’s Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department and the Pasadena Recreation and Parks Foundation present the series in partnership with the Old Pasadena Management District. Koko Panossian, the department’s director, said “our parks bring people together through music, culture, and shared experiences” in a July 2, 2026 news release announcing the lineup.
Residents helped put the season on the calendar. The Pasadena Recreation and Parks Foundation applied for a Levitt Foundation matching grant in 2025, and public voting that September carried Pasadena into the national finalist pool before the Levitt Foundation announced its recipients on November 18.
“They voted for us, which was a huge deal,” Treasure Sheppard, president and chief executive of the Pasadena Recreation and Parks Foundation, told Pasadena Now in July.
Admission is free and open to all ages, and no ticket or registration is required. Cross streets are Raymond Avenue and Walnut Street, and the Metro A Line’s Memorial Park Station is at 125 East Holly Street. There is no dedicated parking lot; Old Pasadena’s three Park & Walk garages charge $1 for the first two hours and $12 for the day. Old Pasadena restaurants sell food on-site at most concerts, and outside food, coolers, lawn chairs and blankets are welcome; alcohol, glass, smoking, tents, umbrellas and drones are not. A Kid Zone is on-site, ADA seating is limited and first-come, first-served, and sign language interpretation or assistive listening devices must be requested in advance at (626) 744-7311. Concerts run rain or shine, though organizers may cancel in extreme weather. For more information, visit levittvibepasadenamusicseries.com.
Eighteen years separate her July 2008 set at 85 East Holly Street from the one she plays Saturday.
NEED TO KNOW
The Levitt VIBE Pasadena Music Series presents Jessica Fichot, Melo Gía and Ara Dabandjian on Saturday, August 8, 2026, from 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., with music beginning at approximately 6:30 p.m.; Fichot lists her own set for 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Admission is free and open to all ages, and no ticket or advance registration is required. The concert is at the Memorial Park Bandshell, 85 East Holly Street, Pasadena, California 91103, at Raymond Avenue and Walnut Street. Parking: Old Pasadena’s three Park & Walk garages — the Marriott facility at 171 North Raymond Avenue, the De Lacey facility at 45 South De Lacey Avenue and the Schoolhouse facility at 33 East Green Street — charge $1 for the first two hours, $2 per hour after that and $12 for the day, and metered street parking runs $1.25 per hour in the heart of Old Pasadena. The Metro A Line’s Memorial Park Station is at 125 East Holly Street. Restrooms, a water refill station, basic first aid and a Kid Zone are on-site. For more, call (626) 744-7311 or visit levittvibepasadenamusicseries.com.
