There are a few contenders for the most famous element in the story of the sinking of the Titanic. That there weren’t enough lifeboats, that the ship was thought to be “unsinkable”, that third class passengers died disproportionately to their richer counterparts in second and first class. And then there’s the thing about the band. That the musicians kept playing right up until the moment the ship sank beneath the waves, taking every one of them with it, is a fact that everyone who knows about what happened to the Titanic, also knows. It sticks in the mind. The fortitude it must have taken to lift up their bows in the face of certain death, the dignified acceptance that all they could do for their fellow passengers at the last was give them what little solace music might offer. The poignancy of playing their own elegy.
在“泰坦尼克號”沉沒的故事里，最著名的情節不止一個：救生艇數量不足；這艘船被認為“永不沉沒”；三等艙乘客的死亡率遠高于二等艙和頭等艙里更富有的乘客。還有一個廣為人知的傳說：樂隊的事。幾乎所有了解泰坦尼克號的人都知道——樂手們一直演奏到船體沉入海面之下，直至全數遇難。這一幕令人難忘。他們在必死無疑的境地中舉弓奏樂所需的堅毅，以及在最后時刻所體現的莊重：能為同船乘客做的，唯有用音樂獻上一點點安慰——為自己奏響挽歌的辛酸與凄美。