Singer, harpist and composer Rachel Newton draws on poems, ballads and stories that are hundreds of years old, working them into her contemporary compositional style to create a rich sound that is ambitious, original and unique. Rachel has performed and made work for projects that sit within a wide range of disciplines including theatre, dance, storytelling and visual art. In addition to her solo work, Rachel is a skilled collaborator and has toured internationally with various bands and projects, including most recently, the Lost Words: Spell Songs. Together with long time friend and colleague Lauren MacColl, she co-produces Heal & Harrow, a multi-disciplinary project based on the Scottish Witch Trials.

Rachel was named Musician of the Year at both the Scots Trad Music Awards and the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. Her albums To The Awe and Here's My Heart Come Take It were shortlisted as one of Scotland's top 10 outstanding albums in the Scottish Album of the Year (SAY) Award. She was awarded a PRS Composer of the Year in the Scots Trad Music Awards alongside Heal & Harrow collaborator Lauren MacColl and a Critics Award for Theatre in Scotland (CATS) for Best Music and Sound for her work with the Rowantree Theatre Company.

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Co-founder and now board member of The Bit Collective, a group focusing on equality and diversity in folk and traditional music, Rachel has organised various campaigns and events, including the Trad. Reclaimed: Women in Folk festival at Kings Place, London in 2019. 

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Her most recent album Sealladh, music commissioned by the National Galleries of Scotland, was released in 2024 on Hudson Records. 

'A beauty'  **** Observer 

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'Haunting and compelling'  **** The Guardian

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'Harp and strings blur the border between worlds' **** The Financial Times

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'This is the sound of modern Scotland, as surely as draws on folklore and tradition, Newton'ssinging and harp at the heart of a singular vision.' **** The Herald

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'Newton has made the leap to a fine solo performer and this album is perhaps her best yet' **** The Telegraph

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'Rachel Newton is well equipped to take centre stage in her own right and this second solo album is a beauty...fascinating stuff' (Playlist Selection) - ***** fRoots Magazine

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Top of the World Editor's Pick - Songlines Magazine