This tablet is dedicated to the memory of W. Hartley of Dewsbury bandmaster, W. T. Brailey of London R. Bricoux of Lille, France J. F. Clarke of Liverpool J. L Hume of Dumfries G. Krins of Leige, Belgium P. C. Taylor of London J. W. Woodward of Headington members of the band on board the "Titanic", they bravely continued playing to soothe the anguish of their fellow passengers until the ship sank in the deep April 14th 1912. Courage and compassion joined make the man complete.

This plaque was installed in the Philharmonic Hall in the same year as the disaster at the suggestion of Liverpool stockbroker Henry Rensburg, who was also a director of the Liverpool Philharmonic Society. The reason for the choice of location was as follows. Although Titanic viola player John Frederick Preston Clarke had never been a member of the Philharmonic Orchestra, he was a Liverpool man, and had played once or twice at the Philharmonic Hall. The Philharmonic Society also held a benefit concert on 10th May 1912 for Fred Clarke's wife Ellen and his sister who were resident in Liverpool. The plaque is of particular interest as it correctly describes the musicians as passengers, although Titanic buffs will no doubt quibble with the date inscribed - the ship actually sank in the early hours of the 15th April 1912.The plaque also survived largely undamaged when the Philharmonic Hall, which had stood here since 1849, was completely destroyed in a fire in July 1933.The above is extracted from this detailed story of the plaque: http://www.titanictown.plus.com/titanictown/titanic_band_memorial.htmWe are grateful to the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic for taking the close-up photograph and donating it to us on 3rd May 2012, and also to @HistoryNeedsYou on Twitter for informing them of our service.