to the Benton Fletcher collection of keyboard instruments, which was then in Chelsea, and measured a harpsichord by Jacob and Abraham Kirckman (1777). Back home, he made a copy of the instrument in a tiny conservatory at the back of his house in the Dublin suburb of Rialto. The harpsichord was played by John S. Beckett for the first time in public in 1959 as the continuo for Bach's Saint Matthew Passion and was praised in the national press. Beckett subsequently persuaded the authorities in the Guinness Brewery to provide Gannon with a special workshop, in which he made five harpsichords and restored several antique pianos. The first harpsichord made in the Brewery was donated to the Royal Irish Academy of Music in Dublin, The second was sold to Harrods of London, and the third was sold to Ireland's national radio and television station RTÉ. This third instrument was used regularly by the RTÉ Symphony and Concert orchestras and also by the well-known composer and performer of Irish traditional music, Seán Ó Riada. Retirement Gannon continued to make many more harpsichords and restore more pianos during the years to come. In all, he completed 20 harpsichords during his lifetime – the final four were completed by a friend, Patrick Horsley, in England. One of the harpsichords made by Gannon-Horsley returned to Ireland and was presented to NUI Maynooth. A piano of note that Cathal restored was a Broadwood square piano owned by the poet and composer, Thomas Moore, which belonged to Lord and Lady Elveden (later Iveagh). Gannon was the subject of several RTÉ radio programmes, three RTÉ television programmes (including The Late Late Show) and a television programme, Gallery, made by BBC Northern Ireland. He befriended a great many people, including the artist, writer and conservationist Peter Pearson, and regular musical evenings were held at the family home in Bryan Guinness's grounds in the suburbs of Dublin. Because of his interest in antique clocks and watches, he became a member of the Irish branch of the Antiquarian Horological Society, founded by his friend William Stuart. Honorary degrees In 1978, Trinity College Dublin gave Gannon an honorary MA degree for his contribution to the authentic performance of early music in Ireland. Two years later, Cathal was invited to travel with the New Irish Chamber Orchestra to China, where he tuned and maintained one of his harpsichords and celebrated his seventieth