Tradfest event to end with special Ashling Murphy memorial concert

A special concert to celebrate the life of Ashling Murphy will be held on the last night of this year's Tullamore Tradfest in April.

The young teacher and musician, whose murder last month led to an outpouring of grief, was a popular and well respected member of the traditional music community both in Offaly and further afield.

One of the organisers of the concert James Hogan said that Ashling and her family have been an integral part of Tradfest since it beginning.

"It's a special concert to remember Ashling for who she was. Ashling reached out to so many people, locally, nationally and internationally.

"She just had a great love for it [traditional music] and we feel that it is important to maintain her dream. She was a talented teacher of music as well. The fiddle was her primary instrument but she had great interests in playing in groups and ensembles and she performed worldwide [with Comhaltas].

“We are going to bring all that back to Tullamore and show her family that while she is gone she will never be forgotten.”

Mr Hogan said that festival organisers have been “overwhelmed” by the messages of support and sympathy from members of the traditional Irish community over the past month.

While the final line-up has not been confirmed yet, he says that musicians from around the country and abroad will be performing at the concert in the Tullamore Court Hotel on April 10.

“In the traditional music scene from the minute you start learning an instrument and start attending fleadhs and festivals, it's such a great social network. You automatically make friends for life. Whether a person met Ashling once or numerous times, you had a personal connection with her. She toured Ireland and the world and her death has struck many,” he said.

Mr Hogan, who knew Ashling since she was a young child through their involvement in the traditional music scene, is also the principal of Durrow National School where she was a valued member of staff. He says that the school community is “heartbroken”.

“We are still very numb and it is still very raw. We saw her everyday, but the show has to go on, unfortunately. The kids have been amazing. We have provided the supports needed for children and staff. For the staff in particular, we have lost a family member, a very vibrant family member. She was with us for a short time, but she might as well have been with us for a long time because that's the character she was.

“We are just taking it one hour at a time. The week that's in it, it's her month's mind. We celebrated a mass yesterday [Wednesday] in our local church. It was pupil led and it was lovely, her family attended too.

“It was another step for us to reach. It reassured people that she is gone but she will always be remembered.

“It is hard. There are dark days ahead. It is going to be a long, long haul. Please God it will get a little bit earlier,” he said.