Interview: Sylvie Lewis on Notes
Sylvie Lewis, the host and curator of Notes
Notes is a new regular series of nights taking place here at The Old Market, where music and wine combine to delight the senses!
We recently caught up with the host and curator of Notes, Sylvie Lewis, to get a bit more of the story behind the origin of the night and why wine and music go so well together…
How did Notes come about?
I've been working as a singer/songwriter for over twenty years and everywhere I toured I always took great interest in the local food and wine. Then during the pandemic I started studying wine more seriously and also began helping to run The Sussex Wine School. I now teach both music and wine (separately) and I was really looking for a way to bring those two passions together - I mean, I knew couldn't possibly be the only person in Sussex who enjoys combining music and wine!
What do you think the connection is between good wine and good music?
Well, it takes time (and practice) for both of them to become good, that's for sure. Wine and music both have this amazing quality of being imbued with history and culture and also of transmitting them. You can hear where someone comes from, and where they want to get to when you listen to their songs. Equally you can taste terroir in wine and you can also taste what the winemaker wants the wine to be.
Have you always been interested in wine?
Yes. I've lived in a lot of different places, among them California, Spain and Italy which coincidentally produce some of my favourite wines and tunes.
What made you want to become a wine educator?
The snobbery. It takes all the fun out of wine whereas education puts the fun back in. We train our ears in music but it's rarer to meet someone who trains their olfactory system. When you learn to listen to music it's similar to learning to taste wine. You begin to pick out the various components. And the more practice you do, the better you become at knowing how things are made.
Why Brighton & Hove?
There's such a vibrant artistic community here and we are in the heart of English wine country!
If you had to give just one reason - why should people come to Notes?
I can't give you just one reason but I can give you a lot of reasons! Firstly, it's such a cool hang. You can't beat the intimacy of live acoustic music. You get to taste and learn about 3 new wines while you listen to 3 new musicians. Each musician is paired with a wine. And the crowd is very intergenerational which always adds so much depth to any event.