The band that went down with the Titanic

Who were those eight musicians who kept things calm, but lost their seats on the lifeboats?

By Rob Kerby

The eight members of the Titanic’s band weren’t even crew members – instead they had been booked for the cruise through a Liverpool talent agency. All eight, bandmaster Wallace Hartley, Roger Bricoux, John Frederick Preston Clarke, Percy Cornelius Taylor, Georges Alexandre Krins, William Theodore Brailey, John Law Hume and John Wesley Woodward, perished. But they will be forever remembered by their acts of courage that fateful night.

Photos courtesy of Thomas Nelson Inc.

Taken from the bookThe Band That Played On by Steve Turner from Thomas Nelson. To purchase your copy, click here!

No need to panic

They are perhaps one of the most famous bands in the world, a string octet that serenaded the first-class passengers at dinner.

However, the night that the Titanic sank, these eight musicians are credited with keeping the mood light and passengers calm. As the Titanic dropped lower and lower in the frigid water, they played light ragtime and gave the impression to the passengers on deck that all was under control - and that there was no need to panic.

Many of the survivors expressed their gratitude to the band for helping to maintain decorum during the disorganized evacuation to the lifeboats -- which left 1,500 people aboard with only the hope that rescuers would arrive before the Titanic slipped beneath the waves.

Why did they stay?

Why didn’t they get aboard the last boat, Collapsible D, that left the ship at 2 a.m.?

The rule was “women and kids first.” But even those passengers couldn't fit onto the few lifeboats - which designers had decided to limit lest they clutter the sleek ship's majestic profile.

As Collapsible D pushed away, more than 1,500 doomed people were still aboard – many of them traveling on heavily discounted Third Class tickets and told to stay in their cabins. Not only were there no lifeboats for them, but few lifejackets as well.

And so as disaster became inevitable, the band calmly continued to play – hoping that the radio operator's desperate SOS would be heard and that the Carpathia or other nearby ocean liners would respond in time.

Above and beyond the call of duty

When alarms first sounded, the eight musicians had already retired for the evening. Still, they put on overcoats and came out to play in the lounge. When most of the women and children of the First Class passengers had been put aboard the ship's 16 lifeboats, the band could have followed them to safety.

Instead, they moved to the deck and continued to play as Second and Third Class passengers took what few seats remained on the last lifeboats and on the four collapsible liferafts ... as the ship slowly sank.

Those who knew bandleader Hartley describe him as a man of faith, character and moral strength. At Sunday school and church, the importance of sacrifice and putting the needs of others first had been stressed throughout his life.

There are accounts of discussions he had with friends about what he would do in the face of death. They describe him as more prepared than most to meet his Maker.

His longtime friend John Carr told the New York Times:

"I don't suppose he waited to be sent for, but after finding how dangerous the situation was, he probably called his men together and began playing. I know that he often said that music was a bigger weapon for stopping disorder than anything on earth. He knew the value of the weapon he had, and I think he proved his point."

Eight brave men

Today, a number of monuments still stand in honor of those who perished aboard the Titanic, such as this one in Belfast, Northern Ireland. But the greatest monument, some say, is the legacy of bravery of those who gave up their seats on the lifeboats, and thus their lives, so that others could live.

Of the eight musicians, one grateful survivor said:

"Many brave things were done that night, but none was more brave than those done by men playing minute after minute as the ship settled quietly lower and lower in the sea. The music they played served as their own immortal requiem and their right to be recalled on the scrolls of undying fame."

To read more about these eight musicians, enjoy the newly released book The Band That Played On by Steve Turner, published by Thomas Nelson. To get your copy, click here!