Musicians of the Titanic

The musicians of the "Titanic" all perished when the ship sank in 1912. They played music, intending to calm the passengers, for as long as they possibly could, and all went down with the ship. All of the men were recognized for their heroism, especially during the final hours of the sinking.
Timeline.
Eight musicians – members of a three-piece ensemble and a five-piece ensemble – were booked through C.W. &amp; F.N. Black, in Liverpool. They boarded at Southampton and traveled as second-class passengers. They were not on the White Star Line's payroll but were contracted to White Star by the Liverpool firm of C.W. &amp; F.N. Black, who placed musicians on almost all British liners. Until the night of the sinking, the players performed as two separate groups: a quintet led by violinist and official bandleader Wallace Hartley, that played at teatime, after-dinner concerts, and Sunday services, among other occasions; and the violin, cello, and piano trio of Georges Krins, Roger Bricoux, and Theodore Brailey, that played at the À La Carte Restaurant and the Café Parisien.
After the "Titanic" hit an iceberg and began to sink, Hartley and his fellow band members started playing music to help keep the passengers calm as the crew loaded the lifeboats. Many of the survivors said that Hartley and the band continued to play until the very end. Reportedly, their final tune was the hymn "Nearer, My God, to Thee". One second-class passenger said: All eight musicians died in the sinking.
Musicians.
William Brailey.
William Theodore Ronald Brailey (25 October 1887 – 15 April 1912) was an English pianist. Born on 25 October 1887 in Walthamstow in Greater London (then part of Essex), he was the son of William "Ronald" Brailey, a well-known figure of Spiritualism. Brailey studied piano at school, and one of his first jobs was performing in a local hotel.
In 1902, he joined the Royal Lancashire Fusiliers regiment signing for 12 years service as a musician. He was stationed in Barbados but left the army prematurely in 1907. He returned to England and lived at 71 Lancaster Road, Ladbroke Grove, London. In 1911, he enlisted aboard ship, playing first on the , prior to joining the Cunard steamer in 1912, where he met the French cellist Roger Bricoux. Both men then joined the White Star Line and were recruited by Liverpool music agency C.W. and F.N. Black to serve on the "Titanic". Brailey boarded the "Titanic" on Wednesday 10 April 1912 in Southampton. His ticket number was 250654, the ticket for all the members of Hartley's orchestra. His cabin was in the second class quarters.
Brailey was 24 years old when he died; his body was never recovered.
Roger Bricoux.
Roger Marie Bricoux (1 June 1891 – 15 April 1912) was a French cellist. Born on 1 June 1891 in Rue de Donzy, Cosne-Cours-sur-Loire, France, Bricoux was the son of a musician. The family moved to Monaco when he was a young boy, and he was educated in various Catholic institutions in Italy. It was during his studies that he joined his first orchestra and won first prize at the Conservatory of Bologna for musical ability. After studying at the Paris Conservatory, he moved to England in 1910 to join the orchestra in the Grand Central Hotel in Leeds. At the end of 1911, he moved to Lille, France, lived at 5 Place du Lion d'Or, and played in various locations throughout the city.
Before joining the "Titanic", Bricoux had served with Brailey on the Cunard steamer "Carpathia" before joining the White Star Line. He boarded the "Titanic" on Wednesday 10 April 1912 in Southampton. His ticket number was 250654, the ticket for all the members of Hartley's orchestra. His cabin was second class, and he was the only French musician aboard the "Titanic".
Bricoux was 20 years old when he died; his body was never recovered.
In 1913, after his apparent disappearance, he was declared a deserter by the French army. It was not until 2000 that he was eventually officially registered as dead in France, mainly due to the efforts of the Association Française du Titanic. On 2 November 2000, the same association unveiled a memorial plaque to Bricoux in Cosne-Cours-sur-Loire.
Wallace Hartley.
Wallace Henry Hartley (2 June 1878 – 15 April 1912), an English violinist, was the bandleader on the "Titanic". Hartley's body was recovered by the CS "Mackay-Bennett", before being returned to England for burial in his home town of Colne, Lancashire.
Jock Hume.
John Law "Jock" Hume (9 August 1890 – 15 April 1912) was a Scottish violinist. Hume was born on 9 August 1890 in Dumfries, Scotland and lived with his parents at 42 George Street, Dumfries. He had already played on at least five ships before the "Titanic", and was recruited to play on its maiden voyage due to his good reputation as a musician.
He boarded the "Titanic" on Wednesday 10 April 1912 in Southampton. His ticket number was 250654, the ticket for all the members of Hartley's orchestra. His cabin was in the second class quarters.
Hume was 21 years old when he died and his fiancée, Mary Costin, was pregnant with his child. His body was recovered by the CS "Mackay-Bennett", and was passed into the care of John Henry Barnstead who arranged for his burial in grave 193 of the designated Titanic plot at Fairview Cemetery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada on 8 May 1912. A memorial was erected for Hume and Thomas Mullin (third class steward) in Dock Park, Dumfries. It reads:
Hume and the other members of Hartley's orchestra all belonged to the Amalgamated British Musicians Union and were employed by a Liverpool music agency, C.W. and F.N. Black, which supplied musicians for Cunard and the White Star Line. On 30 April 1912, Hume's father, Andrew, received the following note from the agency:
The letter caused controversy at the time when it was reprinted in the Amalgamated Musicians Union's monthly newsletter. Andrew Law Hume decided not to settle the bill.
In April 1914 John W. Furness, the violinist of the Canadian liner made a pilgrimage with Anglican Church officials to visit the grave of John Law Hume at the Fairview Lawn Cemetery and pay his respects. Furness himself died in a shipwreck only a few weeks later when "Empress of Ireland" sank on 29 May 1914.
Georges Krins.
Georges Alexandre Krins (18 March 1889 – 15 April 1912) was a Belgian violinist. Born on 18 March 1889 in Paris, France, his family was from Belgium, and soon after his birth they moved back there to the town of Spa. He first studied at Academie de Musique de Spa. He then moved to the Conservatoire Royal de Musique in Liège, Belgium, where he studied from 30 October 1902 until 1908, when he won first prize for violin, with the highest distinction.
As a young man he wanted to join the army; however, his parents persuaded him otherwise. He worked in his father's shop and played in La Grande Symphonie, Spa, and in 1910 he moved to Paris to be first violin at Le Trianon Lyrique. He subsequently moved to London and played for two years at the Ritz Hotel until March 1912. He lived at 10 Villa Road, Brixton, London and became bandmaster of the Trio String Orchestra, which played near the Café Français. This led to his being recruited by CW &amp; FN Black, Liverpool to play on the "Titanic".
He boarded the "Titanic" on Wednesday 10 April 1912 in Southampton. His ticket number was 250654, the ticket for all the members of Hartley's orchestra. His cabin was second class, and he was the only Belgian musician aboard the "Titanic". After the "Titanic" began to sink, Krins and his fellow band members assembled in the first class lounge and started playing music to help keep the passengers calm. They later moved to the forward half of the boat deck, where they continued to play as the crew loaded the lifeboats. Krins was 23 years old when he died. His body was never recovered.
In media.
Film.
Two documentary films have been made about the "Titanic's" band.
Literature.
Books written specifically about the "Titanic"'s musicians include: