Debbie Brewin-Wilson

"An original artist, a tunesmith, and a songwriter of considerable skill..."
Steve Winick, Dirty Linen

Debbie has been performing at festivals, concerts and coffeehouse venues throughout the Northeastern United States for more than twenty years. She has a rich, expressive voice that is perfectly complemented by her harp. She is well-steeped in traditional Scottish music and her song-writing talents bring a fresh perspective to that heritage as well as many of life’s journeys.

As one reviewer noted, she has
“the perfect blend of harp and voice.”

Debbie has a wide repertoire of traditional centuries-old Scots ballads and songs, many in Scots Gaelic. Not only does she accompany her singing on the harp, but Debbie adds the Scottish jigs, reels, and strathspeys, to her performances as well.

Debbie's performance of The Slave's Lament by Robert Burns in the Sunday concert at the 2009 Somerset Folk Harp Festival.

She has three solo CDs, Dream of Calendonia, Roots and Wings, and a Christmas CD of traditional music from Scotland, Ireland and the Isle of Man as well as her originals, Love Came Down at Christmas. Check out the sound clips. She also recorded a compilation CD, Ten Years of Tunes, with Kathy DeAngelo and Grainne Hambly and co-authored the accompanying music book for the tenth anniversary of the Harpers Escape, the harp retreat she founded. She has published her own two song book and harp arrangement collections: Burns for Bairns and Wood Notes Wild.

Debbie has a Scottish Certificate in Traditional Music from the University of St. Andrews, Scotland and she is a respected adjudicator for the Scottish Harp Society of America.

Debbie teaches at the annual Harpers Escape Weekend, a nationally-recognized harp retreat that she co-founded in 1992. She has taught other workshops as well on Scottish music, learning by ear, and Robert Burns at harp conferences, including HarpCon and the Somerset Folk Harp Festival.