SIDETRACKS & DETOURS: 17th May 2026, introducing Sophie Rose Music; + r.i.p. Chip Taylor + serendipity with Duo Bravo + classical piano by Natalia Nikolaeva
INTRODUCING SOPHIE ROSE MUSIC
AN ARTIST´S NEWSLETTE
sharted by Norman Warwick
Sophie Rose (left) is a writer, a producer, a singer, a friend, a daughter, an avid reader, an amateur chef, and more, but what Sophie is to her core is an artist. She takes her life experiences and transforms them into music and lyrics to create clever, honest, and beautiful pieces of work. She expresses that same care and thoughtfulness in all aspects of her life, striving to always be a self-proclaimed “work in progress.” In her song “Freda Kahlo,” she writes, “let my heart break, it’s fine, if it’ll open my mind.”
Sophie has always been introspective, even in childhood. She began writing songs at age 9, returning home from school and running straight to her bedroom with a guitar and a notebook – in between episodes of Hannah Montana, of course. She then started performing those songs at local events in her hometown of Calabasas, CA to audiences of supportive friends and family. As her love for her craft grew, Sophie started homeschooling to fully focus on music then graduated high school at the age of 14.
As a young teen, Sophie attended countless music events and conferences with her mom, including Durango Songwriters Expo, where she met her first collaborators. At an event put on by AIMP, she ended up connecting with songwriter Ester Dean, which lead to a publishing deal with the hit writer and indie powerhouse Prescription Songs. Around that time, Sophie decided to learn how to produce as well as write, and quickly landed a MasterCard commercial using a song she wrote and produced by herself when she was 14 years old. Since signing her publishing deal, Sophie has balanced writing and producing for other artists with writing and producing for herself.
Behind the scenes, Sophie’s work has spanned many genres and mediums. Recently, Sophie co-wrote many songs on Alexander Stewart’s debut EP Aftermath, as well as Executive Producing the project. She co-wrote and produced Nick Galitzine’s debut single “Comfort,” which has seen a major uptick in streams since the release of the viral Netflix movie Purple Hearts inwhich he stars. In the film and TV world, Sophie’s work includes co-writing the single “Ugly” by Anitta for the UglyDolls movie soundtrack, Martina McBride’s “Girls Like Me” from Songland, and “When I’m Crying” by Megan McKenna performed on X Factor.
As an artist herself, Sophie has released two solo EPs and many collaborations. Her first release, “Limitless” with Sam F, has gone on to amass over 10 million streams, reach #2 at Dance Radio and #9 on the Billboard Dance Mix Show/Airplay Chart, and secure a major synch in the Samsung Galaxy S8 campaign.
Sophie’s self-written and self-produced debut solo single “Two Young Lovers” was featured on Spotify’s New Music Friday playlist, streaming 50,000 times on its first day. Shortly after, Taylor Swift added it to her Favorite Songs playlist on Apple Music.
Sophie then released her debut EP which she wrote and produced herself, with single “Best Friend” landing on 18 of Spotify’s New Music Friday playlists across the world and streaming over 100,000 times on its first day.
The EP, Spring, came out shortly after Sophie wrapped up her first ever tour. She secured the support slot on Nina Nesbitt’s North American tour after posting a cover of Nina’s song “The Best You Had,” which was also featured on Taylor Swift’s Favorite Songs playlist, on her Instagram and catching Nina’s attention.
Since then, Sophie has continued collaborating as well as making her own music, releasing her second EP This Is What 21 Feels Like in 2021. Created mostly during lockdown, this body of work is Sophie’s most introspective yet.
Sophie’s most recent EP Natural Disaster was released October 13th and is her favorite music she’s made to date. Over 2 years in the making, the highly anticipated release is finally here.
Chip Taylor
CHIP TAYLOR:
Songwriter & Invisible Angel. (obituary)
by Norman Warwick
Whenever I hear of the passing of any artist I have interviewed I feel a sadness as deep as that of losing a good friend.. At the passing of Guy Clark and John Stewart I felt devastated as I thought back on the all the codes to liove by had adopted from their songs. I have mourned the death of the passing of Townes Van Zandt every day since he left us.
The often enigmatic Chip Taylor (right, real name James Wesley Voight) is a man who certainly qualified as the kind of songwriter Peter Pearson extols in our series of SONGWRITERS & INVISIBLE ANGELS. Chip also wrote songs that, themselves, became visiting invisible angels to those who would receive them. I have been grateful to Chip every day for nearly forty years now, since I heard his song, I Want The Real Thing, that introduced me to the music I still love today, rather than the soda pop songs my radio was playing. His song changed my life, taking me from Englsih folk, across country to Americana.
I think It was a friend of Ian Johnson´s , living on the Wirral, who offered me a free second generation cassette of Chip Taylor´s Last Chance album, and from then on I gathered his back catalogue, and them in later times, as Chip seemed to release very regular albums on Train Wreck records, I accumulated those, too, until Chip had become the artists with the most albums in my collection. Reading Chip´s obituary from Train Wreck Records a few days ago, forwarded to me by Peter Pearson, our Americana Correspondent here at Sidetracks & Detours, I felt ashamed to learn that, in fact, Iwas still a few albums shy of Chiip´s entire discography ! Still, I´ve now got a few albums to look forward to hearing and enjoying.
Chip, who was the brother of the great actor, James Voight dipped under the radar and even the best music press such as Omaha Rainbow and Stillwater Times did nto seem to know of his whereabouts. I remember how excited I was when, during an interview with Katy Moffatt, she mentioned a Chip Taylor song to me and I eagerly asked if she knew where Chip was living these days and what he was doing .
Katy smiled and said ´oh, he´s become a very dapper gentleman and seems to have become a professional gsmbler in the casinos and at the racecourses´.
There had been clues to that propensity in some of his lyrics on his early albums,
I kept my ears to the ground but heard no further news for years to come, until suddenly was born Chip Taylor and Carrie Rodriguez a hand made duo that endured for quite a few more albums over quite a few more years.
As surprisingly as the duo had appeared it disappeared , amicably, as Carrie set off on a successful solo career of her own. Thankfully, not only did Chip continue to perform live appearances with assorted line ups but he also continued to release regular recordings.
These albums sold well to his loyal fans and probably even corralled in some new ones too, but it seemed like his voice might not hold out mush longer. His writing, still, was full of family anecdotes, worldy wisdom, and a childlike love of adventure.
I miss him already, as it seems I have always missed him: he was the greatest singer-writer I never interviewed.
EMBRACE THE SERENDIPITYOF LIFE, trust the timing of the universe,
as you follow sidetracks & detours to meet DUO BRAVO
with Norman Warwick
My staff and our regular readers of Sidetracks & Detours already know how much we should always value those rare moments of serendipity. We should never look for such moments for that is not serendipitous but we should never overlook such moments of serendipity, else all it has to offer might drift away. We must always be brave and receptive to what serendipity offers, and use its gifts wisely.
The dictionary definition of the word serendipity is, according to the famous Collins English Dictionary,
the faculty of making fortunate discoveries by accident.
The word was first coined by Horace Walpole, from the Persian fairy-tale, The Three Princes of Serendip, in which the heroes possess this gift
I learned that from my English teacher at a secondary modern school in England in 1964. Mr. Drury, a giant of a man, with long, but receding, red hair, introduced me, at the age of fourteen, to the literature of Steinbeck and Hemingway, and Shakespeare and to the poetry of Longfellow, Wordsworth and Robert Frost, In fact
I did not know then that I was receptive to serendipity and wouldn´t have, even had I understood then what the word serendipity actually meant.
However serendipity took a hand. One day in the year before, I actually took a class under Mr. Drury. He had apparently been walking along the touchline whilst I was playing for the school team. A couple of days later he stopped me in the corridor and told me how interested he was in my methods of doing very little running, but plenty of shouting of instructions to my team mates. He was, he said, glad to hear my ´stentorian´ voice and that was early evidence ofhow this teacher used to talk in grown up words !
He explained that I yelled out my orders in the voice of a sergeant major, and he was pleased to hear my tones because he was looking for a pupil who would bellow out selected bible passages in school assemblies each morning. He told me to volunteer my services and I was scared enough to whisper that I would. He rehearsed me up over the next week or so and then I found myself alone on stage with Mr. Drury in front of the whole assembly of circa 450 pupils and around twenty staff members and the headmaster. Suddenly, it was my cue to step to the microphone on a podium to my left.
I immediately knew I was speaking loudly enough and that, with the aid of a microphone, I was reaching the back row of sixth form prefects with my tale of bread and fishes feeding the five thousand.
The wonderful serendipity of all this was that I suddenly learned that I loved being on stage. I must have had a thin paste of basic narratorial skills, and a better than average reading skill, breadth of vocabulary and presentational tone. I can remember thinking, in the midst of telling a story about Lazarus, that I knew I was unlikely to achieve O levels in History, Geography, French, Maths or Science,…nor even Religious Instructio.
Even as that thought ran free, serendipity tapped me on the shoulder to remind me that with the only two O levels I might achieve (in English Language & English Literature) and my stentorian voice and presentational skills, I could become the next Bamber Gascoine.
Ever since then serendipity has helped me through life, and although the tale I have just regaled to all of you (PAY ATTENTION AT THE BACK) is a history of child of the sixties serendipity has led me here to the age of seventy three.
In fact the most recent occasion when serendipity last gave me a nudge on May 13th 2026 and pointed me down a road less taken I was in the Tourist Information Office in Teguise on Lanzarote, enquiring about any forthcoming concerts. As I asked
the question, the kind and lovely lady behind the counter pointed out a male on female on the stage at the back of the room. She told me to go and introduce myself because the two on stage would be performing in this very theatre in two nights hence.
It seemed that both the couple and myself recognised this as a form of serendipity and that this fortunate accidental meeting might prove beneficial to all parties. Duo Bravo offered me a very presentable and professional publicity sheet from which the short introduction below has been downloaded. There is often a spike in our readership whenever we proclaim the qualities of newly formed groups, and that spike usually benefits all parties..
That serendipity is a two handed invisible angel is evidenced by the fact that Duo Bravo are likely to benefit from the coverage we can offer in our weekly blog at sidetracks & detours.
Sidetracks & detours will of course benefit from enjoying a synergy with a noteworthy and credible act emerging on the arts. We can offer, in return, to carry free news, previews, interviews and reviews about the progress of Araceli and Fran.
Araceli has a voice you never forget: a charisma that fills everything. She is much more than a singer: she is a magnetic stage-presence, an impeccable professional, and an artist with a unique sensitivity.
Her sweet, personal, unmistakable voice connects directly with the hearts of the audience always leaving a deep and lasting impression.
Fran turns every note into pure emotion. His sensitivity at the piano creates the perfect space for Araceli’s voice to breathe, soar, and move the audience. His musical connection with her goes beyond the stage: it is complicity, intuition, and constant dialogue.
He is a tireless professional and a natural-born creative, lasting impression.
I am looking forward already to learning how serendipity might have already played a part in the formation of the duo, or in the creation of their playlists, or how simple word of mouth might have already raised their profiles.
About DUO BRAVO EVENTS
These two musicians specialize in creating unique and elegant moments for special occasions. Whether you are looking to create an immersive, relaxed, or dynamic atmosphere, DUO BRAVO is undoubtedly the ideal choice, turning each moment into a truly unique and special experience. Their repertoire is irresistible for venues that dream of a magical and entertaining moment, where guests ultimately find themselves fully enjoying the experience
About DUO BRAVO SERVICES
Their proposal is based on providing live music entertainment (piano and voice) for wedding cocktails and dinners, as well as music for private events such as anniversaries, hotels, corporate celebrations, ceremonies, and more.
With a versatile style ranging from romantic classics and boleros to acoustic versions of international pop, They tailor the repertoire to the essence of your event and guarantee a professional, discreet, and high-quality service, all with full interaction with the audience.
Stop imagining it and turn it into reality!
INFORMATION &
CONTACT
+ 34 609 86 52 58
+ 34 636 64 83 00
We will bring you a comrehensive review of DUO BRAVO in concert aloigside an interview exclusive with the duo in a few weeks time, so we shook hands.and we stepped into the town sqaare and gasped at scenes of carnage you can read the story of the this second moment of serendipity one day in our edition of sidetracks & detours on Sunday 11th October 2026
UNA VIADAS DEDICADA A LA CIENCIA Y LAS LETTRES of Jose Clavijo
a recital byClassical Pianist Natalia Nikdaeva and narrated Franciso Hernandez and imaged Rufinaa Santana
review by Norman Warwick
Anyways, on the 15th May in plenty of time to see a classical piano recital by Natalia Nickolaeva, a well known and much loved musician. We, that is my wife Dee and I and our friends Iain and Margaret, have attended many of her concerts down the years and have seen her play in a duo with a violinist and sometimes as a trio with the violinist´s son, and you will be able to find several reviews of her work in our easy to navigate, free-to-read items in our archives of more than 1,800 pieces. Simply type Natalia Nickolaeva into our search engine.
She was joined tonight by Francisco Hernandez who delivered occasional addition narrations throughout the evening and by visual artist Rufina Santana who used some sort of etch-a-sketch device to ´paint´ around a portrait of the artist being shown on a huge smart whiteboard. It allowed her to amplify Natalia´s playing and show the audience just how immersed in his work was Clavijo..
Tonight´s concert was a celebration of the noted engraver José Clavijo y Fjardo, born 1726. So this was the three hundredth anniversary of the birth of a man who now has a foundation in his name. The blurb on the poster spoke of Una Vida Dedicada A La Cienca Las Letra.
José Clavijo y Fajardo was born in the town of Teguise (Lanzarote) in March 1726. After beginning his education at the Convento de San Pedro Mártir in Las Palmas and completing his legal studies with the regent of the Royal Court of Las Palmas, he travelled to the Iberian Peninsula.
In 1749, he was in Madrid as secretary to Commander José Vázquez Priego. This marked the beginning of a period of close ties at Court, which allowed him to obtain a position in the Secretariat of the Universal War Office (1750). Between 1756 and 1761, he travelled through various Spanish cities and France. In Paris, he came into direct contact with prominent Enlightenment figures of the time, including Voltaire and the naturalist Buffon, whose works he would later translate with great skill. In 1763, he was appointed Official of the State Archives, obtained the special privilege of publishing El Pensador , and spearheaded the initiative to publish a weekly newspaper for the Spanish Military State , which would endure for almost a century.
In 1764, Pedro Agustín Caron de Beaumarchais, a Frenchman skilled in intrigue and a writer of moderate talent, denounced him for breaking his promise of marriage to his sister; the matter transcended the private sphere, managing to temporarily remove our writer from his post as Royal Archivist and, it seems, from the Court. It also succeeded in making him the central figure in several literary dramas: first, in two texts by Beaumarchais (the drama Eugénie and a fragment of his Memoirs ) and in other French texts, and finally in the five-act tragedy Clavigo, which premiered in Hamburg in 1775 by the great Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. At the time, other texts addressed the issue, and some were exculpatory: the first and most decisive was that of José Viera y Clavijo, in connection with the “Library of Canary Island Authors” which he included in the pages of his Historical Account of the Canary Islands . Perhaps the matter did not deserve the effect it produced, as it did momentarily tarnish the opinion of José Clavijo as an authoritative and serious writer, and as a recognized and respected “thinker.”
This, to me, suggested the man was immersed in his work throughout his lifetime and that immersion seemed to be a running theme of tonight´s performance that was reflected by Francisco Hernandez frequent short readings about Clavijo´s life and in the fascinating contribution of Rufina Santana embellishments of the cover portrait on the poster, by some sort of etch-a-sketch device that showed a colouring and surrounding aspects of Clavijo´s life so that we were effectively drawn into a sustained 300 year legacy of the engraver´s work and sing-posted a widespread diaspora of its impact.
There was one recital in the programme that was a duet between the spoken word by Francisco and the piano by Natalia that was especially moving, and was a revelation to me as I had never heard a serious duet between piano and the spoken word before. The two performers interacted with true empathy and produced an emotional portrait of José Clavijo´s love of the arts and music.
During 1764-1767, José Clavijo remained away from the Court. Upon his return in 1767, he received from Minister Campomanes the appointment of Senior Officer for correspondence regarding matters related to the occupation of Jesuit properties, and in 1770, Charles III appointed him Director of the Royal Site Theaters, which allowed him to contribute to the revision of many of the dramas performed during his time.
In 1773, by order of Minister Grimaldi, he continued the publication of the Mercurio Histórico y Político de Madrid,which had been directed by Tomás de Iriarte from La Orotava, a task he continued until 1779.
In 1776, the Natural History Cabinet of Madrid opened its doors, starting with a curious collection of minerals, skeletons, taxidermied animals, and other curiosities. Clavijo was linked to the Cabinet from its inception: first as Librarian and Index Compiler, then as Deputy Director, and always as the Cabinet’s key contact for all royal ministers.
In 1800, King Charles IV granted him the title of Member of the Court of the High Court of the Treasury. He was also admitted to the Academies of Natural History in Berlin and Copenhagen and was received as a special member of the Society of Friends of the Country of Las Palmas
Jose died in Madrid on November 3, 1806.
Tonight´s set had also included music composed by Nino Diaz, undoubtedly one of the most prolific living Canarian composers with the greatest international reach. His more than 100 published works have been performed in almost every country in the world by musicians such as Valery Gergiev, Carlos Karlmar, Harry Sparnaay, Kai Gleusteen, Jean Pierre Dupui, and Salvador Brotons, among others, and in venues such as the Konzerthaus in Berlin, the Great Hall of the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, the Auditorium of Barcelona, the Gran Teatre del Liceu, the Alfredo Kraus Auditorium, the Guimerá Theatre, and the Jameos del Agua Auditorium.
In 2007, he was appointed a member of the Royal Canarian Academy of Fine Arts of San Miguel Arcángel, “for his international career as a performer and composer, and for his contribution to the generation and dissemination of new contemporary heritage.”
In 2008, he won the 15th Radio Composition Competition, organized by RNE-Radio Clásica and the Ministry of Culture, with his work El Muro (The Wall) . (“The truth is,” says Nino Díaz, “it was quite a challenge, since up until then all my compositions were contemporary music, some using electroacoustic means, but I had never ventured into the world of sound art, where all the rules I had learned at the conservatory were of little use.”)
In 2017, he founded the Nino Díaz Foundation in Lanzarote, through which he is carrying out extensive transformative work using music. Since 2012, he has divided his time between Berlin and Lanzarote, where he continues to work in his various roles as a composer and entrepreneur.
His latest album, “Miniatures”, where “I have gotten rid of all kinds of artifice, to focus on the essence of my compositional universe”.
Debussy´s always fragile but beautiful Claire Du Lune was perhaps the highlight this evening full of highlights.
There were six pieces altogether and, whilst listening to Natalia, I was reminded of one of her great skills. Not only can she play softly, capturing the frills and pretty trills of the music but also she can simultaneously punch the bass notes to deliver an almost contrapuntal gravitas.
By the way, this recital, by Natalia and her friends, was interrupted briefly for a presentation of a painting that seemed to deliver the wide span of the effect of Clavijo´s work and its impact. Commissioned by the Ayuntamiento from a local artists it was a fitting tribute to the artists who had delivered this fine concert.
There was a standing ovation by Natalia´s close-knit audience but perhaps feeling that no stand-alone piece of music could be ´tagged on´ to a recital that had told the complete story of Clavijo and his lasting achievements, she did not deliver an the requested encore.
Instead she stepped off-stage to mingle with her friends, including Nino Diaz, and I´m sure this story, so well told, will continue to provide plenty to talk about.
JAZZ WITH MIKE HALL
Sunday th June, St. Michael´s Church,, Bamford
Preview by Graham Masrshall
·
Rochdale Music Society will be ending its 2025-6 Concert Series with a JAZZ SESSION by MIKE HALL and some of his friends. As the poster shows, it’s in the afternoon of SUNDAY, 7 JUNE
Our jazz concerts have become welcomed by nearly all of our members. It’s a most enjoyable and satisfying musical experience to be in the presence of these extremely gifted and seasoned musicians who get together to play some of the last century’s most attractive music in their own distinctive way.
I look forward very much to this year’s jazz concert, and warmly invite you to come and enjoy it
SIDETRFACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY MAY 24TH 2026
Poets and rhyme, Rochdale Music Society
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY MAY 31st 2026
Choosin´ Texas,…or Country,…or Americana?
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY JUNE 7th 2026
A Town With A Feel Good Factor
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY JUNE 14th 2026
Music In Portsmouth, Alexandra Peel profile
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 21st JUNE 2026
Town Of Culture creative awards
SIDETRACKS AND DETOURS SUNDAY 28th JUNE 2026
In Search Of Where Truth Lies
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY JULY 5th 2026
The Radio Ballad Of The Miners´Strike
featuring
John Tams, Barry Coope, Sally Ward, Rube Leonard, Julie Matthews, Jez Lowe & Ray Hearne
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY JULY 12th 2026
Lendanear to Songs Of Old King Coal
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY JULY 19th 2026
Working In A Coal Mine with Lee Dorsey
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY JULY 26th 2026
jazz and classical music explore themes of unity and social progress
featurng
Wynton Marsalis
SIDETRACKS& DETOURS SUNDAY AUGUST 2nd 2026
Songwriters & Invisible Angels chapter 3
by Peter Pearson and Norman Warwick
featuring
Kate Wolf and Julie Matthews
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 9th AUGUST
a year as poet laureate
featuring
´´Sammy Weaver
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 16th AUGUST 2nd 2026
Michael: a film about art for arts´sake ?
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 23rd august 2026
Buddy Mondlock is a songwriter !
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 30th AUGUST 2026
Too Darn Hot: live jazz
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 6th SEPTEMBER 2026
Canary Cruising,…cool
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 13th SEPTEMBER 2026
secretly recorded live gigs legitimised on line?
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 20th SEPTEMBER 2026
Waiting For Godot and Music At Lunchtomes
SIDETRACKS & DETOURS SUNDAY 27th SEPTEMBER 2026
r.i.p. David Alan Coe, songwriter and unreliable narrator
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