This edition of the live music roundup covers what you can still catch around Pasadena in December 2026, when the calendar turns from rock rooms to holiday programs: the POPS Holiday Candlelight at All Saints Church, the long-running Candlelight and Carols service at Pasadena Presbyterian, the Christmas Joy Concert at First United Methodist, the candlelight concert series that keeps the month warm, and two ways to spend New Year's Eve. Every date and time below was verified on September 25, 2026 against the venue or a published event listing, and anything that could not be confirmed for these exact dates was left out. Your host is Alejandro Espitia, Broker Associate and REALTOR with Apex Realty and Investments, California license 01213999, with 18+ years across Los Angeles, San Bernardino, San Gabriel, and Riverside, in English and Spanish.
The POPS Holiday Candlelight returns to All Saints Church
The Pasadena Symphony and POPS Holiday Candlelight is the anchor of the season: three performances at All Saints Church at 132 N. Euclid Avenue on Friday, December 11 at 7:00 p.m. and Saturday, December 12 at 4:00 and 7:00 p.m. Conductor Larry Blank leads vocalist Sarah Uriarte Berry, the Los Angeles Children's Chorus, the Donald Brinegar Singers, and the LA Bronze Handbell Ensemble through a program that runs about 75 minutes with no intermission, and doors open an hour before each show. All Saints is one of Pasadena's landmark acoustics, the kind of room that makes the season sound like itself. Tickets are on the Pasadena Symphony and POPS site, linked below.
Candlelight and Carols at Pasadena Presbyterian Church
Pasadena Presbyterian Church keeps one of the city's oldest holiday traditions: its annual Candlelight and Carols evening, a free program of carols, choir music, and candlelight coming up Saturday, December 5 at 7:30 p.m. at 585 E. Colorado Boulevard, with a voluntary offering in place of a ticket. The church also holds its Christmas Eve family service on December 24 at 4:00 p.m. It is the sort of night that costs nothing, fills early, and reminds you why Old Town's blocks feel different in December.
Christmas Joy Concert at First United Methodist
First United Methodist Church Pasadena continues its holiday programming with the Christmas Joy Concert on Sunday, December 20 from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m., an afternoon built around the Chancel Choir, handbells, and pipe organ, with sing-alongs woven through. It is a relaxed, family-friendly way to spend the late-afternoon light of the season, and the church's Advent calendar runs from the first Sunday of December through Christmas Eve.
Candlelight Pasadena keeps the month lit
The Fever candlelight series at Pasadena Presbyterian Church carries straight through the holidays. The long-running Candlelight: Tribute to Queen and The Beatles continues from August into January, and the Best of Cantonese Pop edition, covered in the October edition of this guide, plays October 10. Fever also programs a holiday-focused Christmas Classics set in Los Angeles; Pasadena-specific dates for that program were still being confirmed at verification time, so this guide says that plainly rather than guessing.
New Year's Eve: one ticketed show, one big party
Two reliable ways to close the year. Fever's New Year's Eve Juan Gabriel Tribute and Dinner Show lands in Pasadena on Thursday, December 31, a live tribute with a three-course dinner and a DJ dance party, ticketed through Fever and linked below. And Cantina Ixtapa hosts its New Year's Eve Masquerade Ball with music on the same night, the restaurant's own annual party with details on the venue site. Both are the kind of plans that need a reservation before the week of, so book early.
Live music and performances around Pasadena, December 2026
| Date | What | Where | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat, Dec 5, 7:30 p.m. | Candlelight and Carols | Pasadena Presbyterian Church, 585 E. Colorado Blvd. | Free with voluntary offering |
| Fri, Dec 11, 7:00 p.m. | POPS Holiday Candlelight | All Saints Church, 132 N. Euclid Ave. | 75 minutes, no intermission |
| Sat, Dec 12, 4:00 & 7:00 p.m. | POPS Holiday Candlelight | All Saints Church | Second and third performances |
| Sun, Dec 20, 4:00 p.m. | Christmas Joy Concert | First United Methodist Church Pasadena | Chancel Choir, handbells, organ, sing-alongs |
| Thu, Dec 24, 4:00 p.m. | Christmas Eve family service | Pasadena Presbyterian Church | Family service with candlelight |
| Thu, Dec 31 | New Year's Eve Juan Gabriel Tribute and Dinner Show | Pasadena | Fever ticketed dinner show with DJ dance party |
| Thu, Dec 31 | New Year's Eve Masquerade Ball | Cantina Ixtapa | Annual New Year's Eve party with music |
Holiday programming shifts year to year, so confirm times on the venue calendar as the season gets closer.
Every program in this guide was re-verified on September 25, 2026 against the venue's own page or a published event listing. The Rose Bowl's December calendar stays quiet this year outside the football season already covered, and Sid The Cat's December dates, Evil Island on December 12 and Willi Carlisle on December 17, are covered in the November and early December edition of this guide, linked below.
Where the shows are listed
- Pasadena Symphony and POPS, Holiday Candlelight
- Candlelight and Carols, Friends of Music at Pasadena Presbyterian Church
- First United Methodist Church Advent and Christmas events, Pasadena Now
- Candlelight concerts in Los Angeles, Fever
- New Year's Eve Juan Gabriel Tribute and Dinner Show, Fever
- Cantina Ixtapa, New Year's Eve
What a live calendar says about a neighborhood
Live music is one of the fastest ways to read a neighborhood, and December is the clearest month of the year: the churches and halls that fill the first cold weekends, the candlelight rooms that keep the season warm, and the restaurants that throw New Year's parties all show where a community actually gathers. The tree-lined blocks around All Saints, the streets near Pasadena Presbyterian, and the condos within stroll of Old Pasadena all do their best on nights like these, and that matters if you are weighing a move. Alejandro Espitia of Apex Realty and Investments brings 18+ years of local real estate and home financing experience to that decision, in English or Spanish, for buyers, sellers, and investors across Los Angeles, San Bernardino, San Gabriel, and Riverside.
Got a show you want to check before you tour the neighborhood? Text Alejandro at 626-314-9170, or use the form below to leave your name, email, and optional phone number for a personal reply from the Find Homes and Loans desk.
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