Swinging on Birches
Swinging on Birches play traditional music with influences from Scotland, America and England.
An innovative female powerhouse trio featuring Juliette Lemoine (cello), Madeleine Stewart (fiddle) and Heather Cartwright (guitar & vocals). Weaving seamlessly between songs, tunes and close harmonies, the trio create lush, intricate soundscapes rooted in Scottish traditional music. Individually, each member is established on the Scottish music scene: Heather Cartwright supported Kris Drever on his UK solo tour (2024); Juliette Lemoine’s debut album was long-listed for the Scottish Album of the Year Award (2023); and Madeleine Stewart was a finalist in the BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician of the Year Award (2023). Collectively, they have performed at prestigious festivals including Edinburgh International Festival, Celtic Colours, and Rudolstadt Festival. Since launching in Autumn 2025, Swinging on Birches have had a highly successful UK tour, a sold-out performance at Celtic Connections (2026), and performed at the Groundbreaking Ceremony of the Dunard Centre. Their programme features self-penned tunes from Juliette and Madeleine alongside original songs by Heather, interspersed with carefully collected traditional material. Their music feels both grounded and exploratory, balancing rich tradition with fresh, contemporary energy.
“For me, the hardest thing for any band to pull off is making really complex music feel completely natural and enjoyable for every listener. Swinging on Birches managed that with ease. The compositions, the arrangements, the playing — everything was top-level. Each set felt like its own little world, and they held the audience with real confidence from start to finish. It’s a standard of musicianship and professionalism that you rarely encounter. I’ll be following their journey with great excitement to see where they go next.”
Jani Lang (Ando Glaso, 2025)
“Combining virtuoso performance with a carefully chosen repertoire and entertaining chat, Swinging on Birches is one of our favourite finds of 2025. Three of Scotland’s most engaging performers – Heather Cartwright, Juliette Lemoine and Madeleine Stewart – have joined forces in some style. Don’t miss out on a chance to see them live.”
Jane-Ann Purdy (Soundhouse, 2025)
2026 Dates
17.06
Chester
19.07
Three Rivers Festival Stirling
24.07
Ceilidh Place Ullapool
14.08
Corner Room Edinburgh
17.10
Armathwaite
About
Heather Cartwright is a Glasgow-based folk guitarist and singer from Cumbria. Her virtuosic fingerstyle and flat-picked guitar playing provides a vibrant backdrop to her well-crafted self-penned songs and interpretations of traditional material. Her song writing draws upon old stories, her own life experiences growing up in the Lake District, and poetry, old and new. Her budding solo career has lead to her supporting Kris Drever in his Autumn tour (2024) and performing at the likes of the prestigious Ullapool guitar festival. Heather is also regularly seen performing with her duo partners; Scots Singer of the Year (2022), Beth Malcolm; Young Traditional Musician of the year finalist (2022), Sam Mabbett; and has also toured and performed with Hannah Rarity, Josie Duncan and Ainsley Hamill. These ensembles have taken her playing all over Scotland, such as at Orkney and Shetland Folk Festival, Edinburgh Tradfest, The Reeling, and Celtic Connections, as well as internationally, including festivals such as Rudolstadt, FÁILTE Scottish and Irish weekend. Heather is a proud member of Live Music Now Scotland, delivering a range of interactive and formal performances in community settings.
Scottish cellist Juliette Lemoine is looking to explore and redefine the cello’s role within Scottish Traditional Music. She burst on the scene with her debut album ‘Soaring’ which launched with a sold-out headline show at Celtic Connections 2023, going on to be long-listed for the Scottish Album of the Year Award 2023. Juliette is fascinated by the cello’s potential to take on a lead melodic role in a traditional music context, in the way a fiddle typically would, and finding ways to retain the same fluidity, bowing style, ornaments and authenticity. In addition to playing her own music with her band, she performs in a duo with tenor guitarist Chris Amer and the newly formed trio ‘Swinging on Birches’. Recent highlights include joining the band MONO on their ‘OATH’ European tour (2024), performing at London Jazz Festival with duo partner Chris Amer (2024) and performing in the GRIT orchestra at Edinburgh International Festival (2023,2024).
‘A seamless fusion of Scottish traditional music and jazz, with the cello — an unusual star in both these traditions — to the fore.’ —The Arts Desk
Madeleine’s music is rooted in the traditional music of New England. She moved to Glasgow from New Hampshire in 2014 to study at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and earned a BMus (Hons) in Traditional Music. In 2023, she was a finalist in the BBC Young Traditional Musician of the Year competition, and her trio was nominated for Up and Coming Musician of the Year at the MG Alba Scottish Music Awards. She has played at festivals including Celtic Connections and Celtic Colours, and has toured in the UK, the US and Europe. She currently plays with the Routes Quartet, folk-fusion band Eriska, fiddle-cello duo the Peanut Gallery, and with Rory Matheson and Craig Baxter in the Madeleine Stewart Trio. Routes is a string quartet that plays traditional music and original compositions; in contrast, Eriska explores the wide ranges of influences and musical tendencies of each of its individual members. The Peanut Gallery is a blend of Scottish and American styles, while the trio is grounded by Madeleine’s own tunes and style.
Swinging on Birches 