I’ve been following the news about the tragic accident of the Italian cruise ship, the Costa Concordia. As a violinist, I was especially saddened to hear that Hungarian violinist Sandor Feher was among the drowning victims. According to a post on NYDailyNews.com, the 38-year-old was working on the ship as a member of the Bianco Trio.
News organizations have compared the Costa Concordia disaster to the infamous sinking of the Titanic in 1912. After reading a post on VancouverSun.com, I came across an odd musical connection between the two ships. Feher happened to be on board with two relatives of musicians who died on the Titanic. Amelia Leon, a 22-year-old survivor of the Italian disaster, was related to one of the violinists who had played on the Titanic as the vessel sank. A British singer who also escaped the Costa Concordia claimed that one of her ancestors was a musician on the Titanic.
Feher was not playing his violin during the sinking of the ship. However, pianist Jozsef Balog told a Hungarian newspaper that he had seen Feher helping several crying children put on life jackets before going back to his cabin to retrieve his instrument.
Feher posted a YouTube video last month in which he shares his aspiration to become a violin teacher. You can watch the video below.
Related articles
- Tales Emerge of Missing and Dead in Ship Disaster (maboulette.wordpress.com)
- Video: Firefighters climb inside the Costa Concordia (cbsnews.com)
- Cruise ship rescue ‘like Titanic’ (bbc.co.uk)
- Incredible tales surface from Costa Concordia cruise ship disaster (news.nationalpost.com)
