Noreen Hehir (née McMahon) (born 1945)

Noreen Hehir (née McMahon), born in 1945, is a living link in one of Kylemore’s most respected musical families. Known affectionately as Noreen ‘Jacko’, she is the daughter of Jacko ‘John Tom’ McMahon, a well-known concertina, flute, and whistle player. Noreen grew up surrounded by music — one of four siblings in a household where playing tunes was as natural as speaking.

She learned to play the tin whistle alongside her brothers and sisters —

• Mary McDermot (née McMahon)
• Paddy McMahon
• and Pauline Morgan (née McMahon) —

all of whom shared in the family’s musical legacy, handed down from their father and their uncles and aunts, including Joe, Mary, and Annie McMahon, who were also traditional musicians.

Noreen passed on the tradition through her own family. She is the mother of Nuala O’Leary (née Hehir), a respected accordion player, and the grandmother of three young musicians who continue the family’s rich musical heritage:

• Daithí Hehir (whistle),
• Mícheál Hehir (flute),
• and Tadhg Hehir (fiddle).