You will be captivated by her warm and inviting voice. You will be charmed to see her accompany herself on a small, red accordion or a toy piano. And her fiery band will certainly get your toes tapping.

Jessica Fichot will bring her intoxicating fusion of French chanson, 1940s Shanghai jazz, gypsy swing and international folk to Ashland’s Grizzly Peak Winery, 1600 E. Nevada St., on Wednesday, Aug. 30, for a concert from 7 to 9 p.m.

The Los Angeles-based Jessica Fichot Quartet is one of four groups to be featured in a summer-fall concert series running Aug. 13 through Oct. 27 that celebrates Siskiyou Music Project’s 20th anniversary.

Fichot has developed an enthusiastic following in the Rogue Valley, having performed here several times, including at OSF Green Shows.

“The very first tour I did, we stopped in Ashland,” she said. “So, I feel like I have a special connection with the area, musically. The band always has a lot of fun staying in Ashland, so I really look forward to being back.”

The quartet includes Chloe Feoranzo on clarinet and sax, Alexis Soto Jr. on upright bass, and Tom Moose on guitar.

Multilingual

Fichot’s music draws from a rich blend of cultural influences, based in part on her multi-ethnic French, Chinese and American upbringing. She was born in New York to a French father and Chinese mother. She grew up in France, in a suburb of Paris near Versailles.

“My band will be performing songs in at least seven languages,” she said, “with a lot of French, of course.”

At the Grizzly Peak concert, she will take the audience on a twisting trans-world musical journey. In addition to songs in the French chanson tradition, she’ll also venture into the lands of gypsy jazz, music from China and Latin America, and classic American repertoire. She performs covers as well as her own compositions.

“Lately, I’ve also been performing many call-and-response songs, which are usually really fun for the audience and the band, especially when the responses are in different languages,” she said.

Which brings up an unexpected surprise during a Bastille Day (July 14) concert she performed on a trip to France last month.

“I sang a call-and-response song, but instead of singing just the response part, the audience sang the entire song with me. I didn’t realize the song was so well-known here,” she said, speaking from France.

Started with piano lessons

Fichot grew up in a family of engineers.

“My mom, dad and brother all chose that profession,” she said. “But both my parents are now enjoying playing music since they retired.”

She started playing the piano at a young age after her parents signed her up for piano lessons

“But singing was always a true joy for me, something that I didn’t have to overthink,” she said. “I found my love of piano by accompanying myself singing.”

As a youth, Fichot played music in Parisian coffeehouses and concert halls. She remembers attending her first “big” concert, a performance by South African singer-songwriter Johnny Clagg, playing in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, the Parisian suburb where she attended school.

“He blended African music with European influences, and his records seemed to be the only ones my brother and I could agree to listen to on long car rides,” she said. “He was my first introduction to ‘world music.’”

When the family returned to the U.S., she enrolled at Berklee College of Music in Boston, earning a Bachelor of Music degree in songwriting.

Soon after graduating, she found a gig as a songwriter, writing and producing songs for an English as Second Language program and other educational material.

“I wrote hundreds of songs destined to teach English to children around the world,” she said. “I wasn’t performing live at all. However, I did sing and play on many of the songs I recorded for those programs.”

It was only after moving to L.A. that she started to write songs to perform live. Inspired in part by L.A.’s multiculturism, she started writing French chanson, a style of music she heard as a child in France.

“I had previously ignored the style because I thought it was a bit old-fashioned. But I found writing in French was liberating, because I was writing in a language my audience did not always understand, but could appreciate the sound of.”

Band formed in 2007

It was at that time, in 2007, that she formed her band, a quintet composed of Fichot on vocals, accordion and toy piano; and four others on upright bass, clarinet, guitar and drums.

“Now I perform mostly as a quartet,” she said, “because it’s much easier to tour as four musicians rather than five. I rarely play with drums anymore, although I always like it when I can.”

She started playing the accordion because she couldn’t find an accordionist when she put her band together to play original French music.

“I play a smaller accordion because it’s easier to play it standing up,” she said. “I bought my first toy piano on eBay, after I got tired of carrying a heavy keyboard to performances. Now, I continue playing it because it has such a special sound — a sound that has been described as both ‘fairytale-like’ and ‘a bit creepy.’”

Fichot’s mother was originally from Shanghai, but Fichot never lived in China herself.

“I didn’t learn the Mandarin Chinese language as a kid, so performing songs in Chinese came from a conscious effort to connect with that part of my heritage,” she said. Many of the Shanghai jazz songs she sings are reminiscent of America’s Big Band Era, but imbued with a Chinese essence.

Adding music in other languages was a natural progression. “Somehow, the blend of languages and styles seems to work,” she said.

Hiring up

Fichot’s fans also appreciate the energy and virtuosity of her band members.

“I always play with musicians who are better instrumentalists than I am, and who have a great energy in their performances,” she said.

“Bass and guitar keep the groove together, and having a reed instrument adds a bit of a melodic element so that everything is not so reliant on the vocals.”

Her music has evolved over the years. Whereas French was the focus in her early shows, these days she is embracing the multilingual aspect more and more.

“I hope people know that despite the different languages, my songs are very accessible — and fun, I hope — to all audiences.”

She has learned that successful shows are not just about the music, but also about the presentation.

“The stories I tell behind the songs, the audience participation, and even the layout of the stage all matter a bit more than I previously thought.”

She still continues to compose children’s songs as well as music for video games, apps and other commercial projects. She has three albums under her belt, with a fourth planned.

“I am working with a producer who goes beyond acoustic instruments and adds creative and modern aspects to the music production,” she said.

When Fichot and her band perform, you can tell they are having a very good time. If you look around the audience, you can see that it’s contagious.

For more information about the Siskiyou Music Project concert series and to purchase tickets, go to siskiyoumusicproject.com.

To learn more about Jessica Fichot, her music and her concert schedule, see jessicasongs.com.