1935 in music

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This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1935.

Events

• February 26 - Georges Bizet's Symphony in C (1855) is performed for the first time, under Felix Weingartner, in Basel, Switzerland.
• April 8 - Béla Bartók's String Quartet No. 5 is premièred in Washington, DC
• April 23 - Your Hit Parade is broadcast for the first time on radio.
• June 14 - Three X Sisters "2000 requests for the number (The Three Little Pigs Are Porkchops Now), over W1XBS (radio), Waterburians went into a spin. Many from this city."
• December 1 - Sergei Prokofiev's Violin Concerto No. 2 is premièred in Madrid
• Soprano Bidu Sayão marries baritone Giuseppe Danise.
• Swing music achieves popularity.
• Frank Sinatra begins his professional singing career as a member of the Hoboken Four.
• Natalino Otto makes his debut on US radio.
• Brussels Philharmonic is founded as Groot Symfonie-Orkest within Dutch-language public broadcaster NRI/INR.

Albums released

• Highlights from Porgy and Bess - Various Artists

Biggest hit songs

The following songs achieved the highest chart positions in the limited set of charts available for 1935.

#	Artist	Title	Year	Country	Chart Entries
1	Fred Astaire	Cheek to Cheek	1935		US Billboard 1 - 1935 (18 weeks), Your Hit Parade 1 of 1935, Grammy Hall of Fame in 2000 (1935), RYM 1 of 1935, US BB 2 of 1935, POP 2 of 1935, Oscar in 1935 (film 'Top Hat') (Nominated), AFI 15, Scrobulate 19 of vocal, nuTsie 27 of 1930s, Brazil 38 of 1936
2	Eddy Duchin	Lovely to Look At	1935		US Billboard 1 - 1935 (14 weeks), Oscar in 1935 (film 'Roberta') (Nominated), Your Hit Parade 5 of 1935, US BB 12 of 1935, POP 12 of 1935, Brazil 49 of 1935
3	Shirley Temple	On The Good Ship Lollipop	1935		US BB 1 of 1935, POP 1 of 1935, Music Imprint 9 of 1930s, AFI 69, RYM 109 of 1935, RIAA 136
4	The Carter Family	Can the Circle be Unbroken	1935		Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998 (1935), RYM 5 of 1935, Music Imprint 13 of 1920s, nuTsie 14 of 1930s, US Billboard 17 - 1935 (1 week), RIAA 116, Acclaimed 735 (1935), Song of 1935
5	Bing Crosby	Silent Night, Holy Night	1935		Europe 2 of the 1930s (1935), nuTsie 5 of 1930s, US Billboard 6 - 1928 (3 weeks), UK 8 - Dec 1952 (2 weeks), DMDB 21 (1935), Global 4 (20 M sold) - 1935

Published popular music

• "About A Quarter To Nine" words: Al Dubin music: Harry Warren. Introduced by Al Jolson in the film Go Into Your Dance
• "According To The Moonlight" w. Jack Yellen & Herb Magidson m. Joseph Meyer
• "Alone" w. Arthur Freed m. Nacio Herb Brown. Introduced by Allan Jones and Kitty Carlisle in the film A Night at the Opera
• "Animal Crackers in My Soup" w. Ted Koehler & Irving Caesar m. Ray Henderson. Introduced by Shirley Temple in the film Curly Top
• "A Beautiful Lady In Blue" w. Sam M. Lewis m. J. Fred Coots
• "Begin the Beguine" w.m. Cole Porter
• "Bess Oh Where Is My Bess" George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin, Dubose Heyward
• "Bess, You Is My Woman Now" w. DuBose Heyward & Ira Gershwin m. George Gershwin
• "The Blues Jumped A Rabbit" w.m. Jimmie Noone
• "Broadway Rhythm" w. Arthur Freed m. Nacio Herb Brown
• "The Broken Record" w.m. Cliff Friend, Charles Tobias & Boyd Bunch
• "But Where Are You?" w.m. Irving Berlin
• "The Buzzard" m. Bud Freeman
• "Buzzard Song" w. DuBose Heyward m. George Gershwin
• "Casino De Paree" w. Al Dubin m. Harry Warren. Introduced by Al Jolson in the film Go Into Your Dance
• "Cheek To Cheek" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Fred Astaire in the film Top Hat
• "Christopher Robin Is Saying His Prayers" w.m. A. A. Milne & Harold Fraser-Simson
• "Clouds" w. Gus Kahn m. Walter Donaldson
• "The Cockeyed Mayor Of Kaunakakai" w. R. Alex Anderson & Al Stillman m. R. Alex Anderson
• "Cosi Cosa" w. Ned Washington m. Bronislaw Kaper & Walter Jurmann
• "Curly Top" w. Ted Koehler m. Ray Henderson. Introduced by John Boles in the film Curly Top
• "Darling, Je Vous Aime, Beaucoup" w.m. Anna Sosenko
• "Dese Dem Dose" m. Glenn Miller
• "Dinner For One, Please James" w.m. Michael Carr
• "The Dixieland Band" m. Johnny Mercer m. Bernard Hanighen
• "Don't Give Up The Ship" w. Al Dubin m. Harry Warren
• "Don't Mention Love To Me" Oscar Levant & Dorothy Fields
• "Down By The River" w. Lorenz Hart m. Richard Rodgers
• "Dust Off That Old Pianna" w.m. Irving Caesar, Sammy Lerner & Gerald Marks
• "East of the Sun (and West of the Moon)" w.m. Brooks Bowman
• "Eeny, Meeny, Miney, Mo" w.m. Johnny Mercer & Matt Malneck
• "Every Little Moment" w. Dorothy Fields m.Jimmy McHugh
• "Every Now and Then" w.m. Al Sherman, Abner Silver and Al Lewis.
• "Everything's Been Done Before" w.m. Harold Adamson, Jack King & Edwin H. Knopf
• "Everything's In Rhythm With My Heart" w.m. Al Goodhart, Al Hoffman & Maurice Sigler
• "Fanlight Fanny" George Formby, Gifford, Cliffe
• "From The Top Of Your Head" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Revel
• "Got A Bran' New Suit" w. Howard Dietz m. Arthur Schwartz
• "Harlem Chapel Chimes" m. Glenn Miller
• "(Lookie, Lookie, Lookie) Here Comes Cookie" w.m. Mack Gordon
• "Honky Tonk Train" m. Meade Lux Lewis
• "Hooray For Love" w. Dorothy Fields m. Jimmy McHugh. Introduced by Gene Raymond in the film Hooray for Love
• "I Built a Dream One Day" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Sigmund Romberg. Introduced by Walter Slezak, Walter Woolf King and Robert C. Fischer in the musical May Wine.
• "I Can't Get Started" w. Ira Gershwin m. Vernon Duke
• "I Dream Too Much (Alone)" w. Dorothy Fields m. Jerome Kern
• "I Feel A Song Coming On" w. Dorothy Fields & George Oppenheimer m. Jimmy McHugh
• "I Feel Like A Feather In The Breeze" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Revel
• "I Got Plenty o' Nuttin'" w. Ira Gershwin & DuBose Heyward m. George Gershwin
• "I Loves You Porgy" w. DuBose Heyward & Ira Gershwin m. George Gershwin
• "I Wish I Were Aladdin" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Revel
• "I Wished on the Moon" w. Dorothy Parker m. Ralph Rainger
• "I Won't Dance" w. Dorothy Fields & Jimmy McHugh m. Jerome Kern
• "I'd Love To Take Orders From You" w. Al Dubin m. Harry Warren
• "I'd Rather Lead A Band" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Fred Astaire in the film Follow the Fleet
• "I'll Never Say "Never Again" Again" w.m. Harry M. Woods
• "I'm Building Up To An Awful Letdown" w. Johnny Mercer m. Fred Astaire
• "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down And Write Myself A Letter" w. Joe Young m. Fred E. Ahlert
• "I'm in the Mood for Love" w. Dorothy Fields m. Jimmy McHugh. Introduced by Frances Langford in the film Every Night at Eight.
• "I'm Living In A Great Big Way" w. Dorothy Fields m. Jimmy McHugh. Introduced by Bill Robinson and Jeni Le Gon in the film Hooray for Love.
• "I'm Shooting High" w. Ted Koehler m. Jimmy McHugh
• "I'm Sitting High On A Hilltop" w. Gus Kahn m. Arthur Johnston
• "I'm Wearin' My Green Fedora" Al Sherman, Al Lewis, Joseph Meyer.
• "In A Little Gypsy Tea Room" w. Edgar Leslie m. Joe Burke
• "In A Sentimental Mood" w. Manny Kurtz & Irving Mills m. Duke Ellington
• "In The Middle Of A Kiss" w.m. Sam Coslow
• "Isn't This a Lovely Day?" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Fred Astaire in the film Top Hat
• "It Ain't Necessarily So" w. Ira Gershwin m. George Gershwin
• "It's An Old Southern Custom" w. Jack Yellen m. Joseph Meyer
• "It's Easy To Remember" w. Lorenz Hart m. Richard Rodgers
• "I've Got My Fingers Crossed" w. Ted Koehler m. Jimmy McHugh
• "Just One of Those Things" w.m. Cole Porter
• "The Lady In Red" w. Mort Dixon m. Allie Wrubel. Introduced in the film In Caliente by Wini Shaw, Edward Everett Horton, George Humbert and Judy Canova.
• "Last Night When We Were Young" w. E. Y. Harburg m. Harold Arlen
• "Let's Dance" w.m. Fanny Baldridge, Gregory Stone & Joseph Bonime
• "Life Is A Song (Let's Sing It Together)" w. Joe Young m. Frank E. Ahlert
• "Lights Out" by Billy Hill
• "A Little Bit Independent" w. Edgar Leslie m. Joe Burke
• "Little Girl Blue w. Lorenz Hart m. Richard Rodgers. Introduced by Gloria Grafton in the musical Billy Rose's Jumbo.
• "A Little White Gardenia" w.m. Sam Coslow
• "Love Is a Dancing Thing" w. Howard Dietz m. Arthur Schwartz
• "Love Me Forever" by Gus Kahn
• "Lovely to Look at" w. Dorothy Fields & Jimmy McHugh m. Jerome Kern
• "Lullaby of Broadway" w. Al Dubin m. Harry Warren
• "Lulu's Back In Town" w. Al Dubin m. Harry Warren. Introduced by Dick Powell and The Mills Brothers in the film Broadway Gondolier.
• "Maybe" w.m. Allan Flynn & Frank Madden
• "Men About Town" w.m. Noël Coward
• "Miss Brown To You" w. Leo Robin m. Ralph Rainger & Richard A. Whiting
• "Moon Over Miami" w. Edgar Leslie m. Joe Burke
• "Moonburn" w. Edward Heyman m. Hoagy Carmichael
• "The Most Beautiful Girl In The World" w. Lorenz Hart m. Richard Rodgers. Introduced by Donald Novis and Gloria Grafton in the musical Jumbo.
• "Mrs Worthington" w.m. Noël Coward
• "The Music Goes 'Round And Around" w. "Red" Hodgson m. Edward Farley & Michael Riley
• "My Heart And I" w. Leo Robin m. Frederick Hollander
• "My Man's Gone Now" w. DuBose Heyward m. George Gershwin
• "My Romance" w. Lorenz Hart m. Richard Rodgers
• "My Very Good Friend The Milkman" w. Johnny Burke m. Harold Spina
• "No Strings (I'm Fancy Free)" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Fred Astaire in the film Top Hat
• "Nobody's Darlin' But Mine" w.m. Jimmie Davis
• "On the Beach at Bali-Bali" w.m. Al Sherman, Abner Silver, Jack Meskill
• "On Treasure Island" w. Edgar Leslie m. Joe Burke, Myers, Wendling
• "Paris in the Spring" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Revel. Introduced by Mary Ellis in the film Paris in Spring
• "The Piccolino" by Irving Berlin. Introduced by Ginger Rogers in the film Top Hat
• "A Picture Of Me Without You" w.m. Cole Porter. Introduced by June Knight and Charles Walters in the musical Jubilee
• "Red Sails In The Sunset" w. Jimmy Kennedy m. Will Grosz
• "Roll Along, Prairie Moon" w.m. Albert Von Tilzer, Harry McPherson & Ted Fiorito
• "The Rose In Her Hair" w. Al Dubin m. Harry Warren. Introduced by Dick Powell in the film Broadway Gondolier.
• "Say "Si Si"" w. (Eng) Al Stillman (Sp) Francia Luban m. Ernesto Lecuona
• "Shadow Play" w.m. Noël Coward
• "She's A Latin From Manhattan" w. Al Dubin m. Harry Warren. Introduced by Al Jolson in the film Go Into Your Dance
• "Shoe Shine Boy" w. Sammy Cahn m. Saul Chaplin
• "So Long, It's Been Good To Know You" w.m. Woody Guthrie
• "Solo Hop" m. Glenn Miller
• "Soon (Maybe Not Tomorrow)" w. Lorenz Hart m. Richard Rodgers
• "Summertime" w. DuBose Heyward m. George Gershwin
• "Take Me Back To My Boots And Saddle" w.m. Walter G, Samuels, Leonard Whitcup & Teddy Powell
• "Thanks a Million" w. Gus Kahn m. Arthur Johnston. Introduced by Dick Powell in the film Thanks a Million.
• "There's A Boat Dat's Leavin' Soon For New York" w. Ira Gershwin m. George Gershwin
• "There's No One With Endurance Like The Man Who Sells Insurance" Frank Crumit, Curtis
• "These Foolish Things" w. Holt Marvell m. Jack Strachey & Harry Link
• "This Time It's Love" by Sam M. Lewis
• "Tomorrow's Another Day" w.m. Glenn Miller
• "Top Hat, White Tie and Tails" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Fred Astaire in the film Top Hat
• "When Icky Morgan Plays the Organ" w.m. Glenn Miller
• "When Somebody Thinks You're Wonderful" Harry M. Woods
• "Who's Been Polishing The Sun" w.m. Noel Gay
• "Why Shouldn't I?" w.m. Cole Porter. Introduced by Margaret Adams in the musical Jubilee.
• "Why Stars Come Out At Night" w.m. Ray Noble
• "With All My Heart" w. Gus Kahn m. Jimmy McHugh. Introduced by Peggy Conklin in the 1936 film Her Master's Voice
• "A Woman Is A Sometime Thing" w. DuBose Heyward m. George Gershwin
• "You Are My Lucky Star" w. Arthur Freed m. Nacio Herb Brown
• "You Hit the Spot" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Revel. Performed by Frances Langford in the 1936 musical film Collegiate.
• "You Let Me Down" w. Al Dubin m. Harry Warren. Introduced by Jane Froman in the film Stars Over Broadway
• "Your Feet's Too Big" w.m. Ada Benson & Fred Fisher
• "You're an Angel" by Jimmy McHugh
• "You're an Eyeful of Heaven" w. Mort Dixon m. Allie Wrubel. Introduced by Patricia Ellis in the film Bright Lights.
• "You're The Only Star (In My Blue Heaven)" w.m. Gene Autry

Christmas songs

• "När ljusen tändas därhemma" - translated into Swedish by Nils Hellström
• "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town" by J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie

Top hit recordings

• "Ah! Sweet Mystery of Life" by Nelson Eddy, accompanied Nathaniel Shilkret Orchestra, from film version of Naughty Marietta
• "Blue Moon" by Glen Gray & The Casa Loma Orchestra
• "Chasing Shadows" by The Dorsey Brothers Orchestra
• "I'm Falling in Love with Someone" by Nelson Eddy, accompanied Nathaniel Shilkret Orchestra, from film version of Naughty Marietta
• "I'm Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself A Letter" by Fats Waller & His Rhythm
• "I'm in the Mood for Love" by Frances Langford
• "In A Little Gypsy Tea Room" by Bob Crosby & His Orchestra
• "It's A Sin to Tell a Lie" by Fats Waller & His Rhythm
• "The Lady In Red" by Louis Prima
• "The Object Of My Affection" by the Boswell Sisters
• "On the Isle Of Capri" by Ray Noble & His Orchestra
• "On the Beach at Bali-Bali" by Henry "Red" Allen
• "Red Sails In the Sunset" by Guy Lombardo & His Royal Canadians
• "When I Grow Too Old To Dream", recorded by:
  • Nelson Eddy, accompanied by the Nathaniel Shilkret Orchestra
  • Glen Gray & The Casa Loma Orchestra

Top Christmas Recordings

• "Jingle Bells" by Benny Goodman & His Orchestra
• "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" by Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra
• "Silent Night" by Bing Crosby

Classical music

• Alban Berg - Violin Concerto
• Sir George Dyson - Belshazzar's Feast
• Hanns Eisler - Lenin Requiem
• Rudolf Escher - Piano Sonata No. 1
• Pierre-Octave Ferroud - Sonnerie pour le Hérault
• Vittorio Giannini - Piano Concerto
• Paul Hindemith - Der Schwanendreher for Viola and Orchestra
• André Hossein - Towards the Light (ballet)
• Akira Ifukube - Japanese Rhapsody
• Uuno Klami - Psalmus (oratorio)
• Hans Pfitzner - Cello Concerto No. 1 in G Major
• Sergei Prokofiev - Violin Concerto No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 63
• Roger Sessions - Violin Concerto in B minor
• Petar Stojanović - Sava (symphonic poem)
• William Walton - Symphony No. 1

Opera

• Brian Easdale - The Corn King
• Reynaldo Hahn - Le marchand de Venise
• Karl Amadeus Hartmann - Simplicius Simplicissimus Jugend (composed between 1934 and 1936; performance of Hartmann's works banned by the Nazis after 1933)
• Arthur Honegger - Jeanne d'Arc au bûcher (dramatic oratorio)
• Pietro Mascagni - Nerone
• Alexander Zemlinsky - Der Konig Kandaules (first performance 1996)

Musical theater

• Anything Goes London production opened at the Palace Theatre on June 14 and ran for 261 performances
• The Gay Deceivers London production opened at the Coliseum on September 7 and ran for 123 performances
• Glamorous Night (w. Christopher Hassall m. Ivor Novello) - London production opened at the Theatre Royal on May 2 and ran for 243 performances
• Jubilee Broadway production opened at the Imperial Theatre on October 12 and ran for 169 performances.
• Jumbo Broadway production opened at the Hippodrome on November 16 and ran for 233 performances.
• May Wine Broadway production opened at the St. James Theatre on December 5 and ran for 213 performances.
• Porgy And Bess (George Gershwin) - Broadway production opened at the Alvin Theatre on October 10 and ran for 124 performances
• Stop Press London production opened at the Adelphi Theatre on February 21.

Musical films

• Be Careful, Mr Smith starring Bobbie Comber
• Bright Lights starring Joe E. Brown, Ann Dvorak and Patricia Ellis. Directed by Busby Berkeley.
• Broadway Gondolier released July 27 starring Dick Powell and Joan Blondell, and featuring The Mills Brothers and Ted Fio Rito & his Band.
• Broadway Melody of 1936 starring Jack Benny, Eleanor Powell, Una Merkel and Robert Taylor and featuring Frances Langford
• Casta diva, starring Mártha Eggerth
• Curly Top released August 2 starring Shirley Temple
• Dizzy Dames starring Marjorie Rambeau, Inez Courtney, Fuzzy Knight and Kitty Kelly
• El caballo del pueblo, starring Irma Córdoba
• Every Night at Eight starring Alice Faye, Frances Langford and Patsy Kelly
• First a Girl starring Jessie Matthews and Sonnie Hale
• George White's 1935 Scandals starring Alice Faye, Cliff Edwards and Eleanor Powell
• Go Into Your Dance released April 20 starring Al Jolson and Ruby Keeler
• Heart's Desire starring Richard Tauber
• Hooray for Love starring Ann Sothern, Gene Raymond and Pert Kelton, and featuring Bill Robinson and Fats Waller
• In Caliente starring Dolores Del Rio, Pat O'Brien, Leo Carillo and Edward Everett Horton and featuring Wini Shaw
• Invitation to the Waltz, starring Lilian Harvey
• King Solomon of Broadway starring Edmund Lowe, Dorothy Page and Pinky Tomlin
• Königswalzer, starring Paul Hörbiger, Curd Jürgens and Carola Höhn
• Naughty Marietta starring Jeanette MacDonald, Nelson Eddy and Elsa Lanchester
• The Night Is Young starring Ramon Novarro, Evelyn Laye, Charles Butterworth, Una Merkel and Edward Everett Horton
• Paddy O'Day starring Jane Withers, Pinky Tomlin and Rita Hayworth
• Reckless starring Jean Harlow and William Powell and featuring Allan Jones and Nina Mae McKinney.
• Redheads on Parade starring John Boles, Dixie Lee and Jack Haley
• Roberta starring Ginger Rogers, Fred Astaire, Irene Dunne and Randolph Scott.
• She Shall Have Music starring Jack Hylton, June Clyde and Brian Lawrance. Directed by Leslie S. Hiscott.
• Shipmates Forever starring Dick Powell and Ruby Keeler
• Stars Over Broadway released November 5 starring Jane Froman and James Melton
• Sweet Music starring Rudy Vallee, Ann Dvorak and Helen Morgan
• Thanks a Million starring Dick Powell and Ann Dvorak
• Top Hat starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers
• Two for Tonight starring Bing Crosby, Joan Bennett and Thelma Todd
• Two Hearts in Harmony starring Bernice Claire and George Curzon and featuring Chick Endor, Charles Farrell and Jack Harris & his Orchestra. Directed by William Beaudine.

Births

• January 8 - Elvis Presley, rock & roll singer (died 1977)
• January 10 - Sherrill Milnes, operatic baritone
• January 11 - Ronnie Hawkins, rockabilly singer (The Hawks)
• January 19 - Johnny O'Keefe, Australian singer-songwriter (d. 1978)
• February 5 - Alex Harvey, rock singer (died 1982)
• February 11
  • Gene Vincent, rock & roll singer (died 1971)
  • Bent Lorentzen, composer
• February 12 - Gene McDaniels, singer and songwriter
• February 16 - Sonny Bono, singer, actor and record producer (died 1998)
• February 18 - Ciaran Bourke, folk musician (died 1988)
• February 27 - Mirella Freni, operatic soprano
• March 29 - Ruby Murray, singer (died 1996)
• March 31 - Herb Alpert, trumpeter and bandleader
• April 5 - Peter Grant, manager and record executive (died 1995)
• April 7 – Bobby Bare, American singer/songwriter
• April 9 - Aulis Sallinen, Finnish composer
• April 16 - Bobby Vinton, singer
• April 19 - Dudley Moore, English composer, jazz pianist and actor (died 2002)
• April 22 - Paul Chambers, jazz bassist (died 1969)
• April 23 - Ray Peterson, singer (died 2005)
• May 9 - Nokie Edwards, American guitarist and actor (The Ventures)
• May 10 - Larry Williams, American singer, songwriter and pianist (died 1980)
• May 27 - Ramsey Lewis, African American jazz musician and composer
• June 24 - Terry Riley, American minimalist composer
• June 25 - Eddie Floyd, African American soul singer and songwriter
• June 26 - Dwight York, American singer (Passion)
• July 8 - Steve Lawrence, American singer (Steve and Eydie)
• July 15 - Diahann Carroll, American actress and singer
• July 17 - Peter Schickele, American composer and classical music parodist
• July 24 - Les Reed, songwriter and light orchestra leader
• July 29
  • Jacques Levy, songwriter (died 2004)
  • Morella Muñoz, mezzosoprano (died 1995)
• August 2 - Hank Cochran, country music singer/songwriter (died 2010)
• August 15 - Jim Dale, singer, songwriter and actor
• August 16 - Bobby Mitchell, New Orleans do-wop and R&B singer (died 1986)
• August 18 - Sir Howard Morrison, concert singer
• August 30 - John Phillips, singer, guitarist and songwriter (The Mamas & the Papas) (died 2001)
• September 1 - Seiji Ozawa, Japanese conductor
• September 9 - Chaim Topol, singer and performer (Fiddler on the Roof)
• September 11 - Arvo Pärt, classical composer
• September 19 - Nick Massi, rock bass singer/guitarist (The Four Seasons) (died 2000)
• September 29 - Jerry Lee Lewis, singer, songwriter and pianist
• September 30
  • Johnny Mathis, singer
  • Z. Z. Hill, blues singer
• October 1 - Julie Andrews, singer and actress
• October 12
  • Luciano Pavarotti, operatic tenor (died 2007)
  • Samuel David Moore, Southern soul and R&B singer (Sam and Dave)
• October 14 - La Monte Young, composer
• October 15 - Barry McGuire, singer and songwriter
• October 20 - Jerry Orbach, musical theatre actor (died 2004)
• October 21 - Derek Bell, harpist and composer (died 2002)
• November 27 - Al Jackson, Jr., R&B drummer, producer and songwriter (Booker T. & the M.G.'s)
• December 1 - Lou Rawls, singer (died 2006)
• December 23 - Little Esther Phillips, singer (died 1984)
• December 26 - Abdul "Duke" Fakir, singer (Four Tops)

Deaths

• January 8 - Jesse Garon Presley, newborn twin of Elvis Presley
• January 9 - Dina Edling, operatic mezzo-soprano (born 1854)
• January 11 - Marcella Sembrich, coloratura soprano (born 1858)
• January 13 - Heinrich Schenker, music theorist (born 1868)
• January 22 - Zequinha de Abreu, musician and composer (born 1880)
• January 28 - Mikhail Ippolitov-Ivanov, composer (born 1859)
• February - Alice Esty, operatic soprano (born 1864)
• February 2 - Clara Smith, blues singer (born c. 1894)
• April 2 - Bennie Moten, jazz pianist and bandleader (born 1894)
• April 5 - Emil Młynarski, violinist, conductor and composer (born 1870)
• April 9 - Israel Schorr, cantor (born 1886)
• April 16 - Victor Ewald, composer (born 1860)
• April 23 - Georgina Stirling, operatic soprano (born 1866)
• April 29 - Leroy Carr, blues musician (born 1905)
• May 3 - Charles Manners, operatic bass (born 1857)
• May 10 - Herbert Witherspoon, operatic bass and opera manager (born 1873)
• May 16 - Leopold Lichtenberg, violinist (born 1861)
• May 17 - Paul Dukas, composer (born 1865)
• May 19 - Charles Martin Loeffler, composer
• May 28 - Jelka Rosen, wife of Frederick Delius (born 1868)
• May 29 - Josef Suk, composer (born 1874)
• June 6 - Jacques Urlus, operatic tenor (born 1867)
• June 24 - in an air crash in Colombia:
  • Carlos Gardel, tango singer (born 1887)
  • Alfredo Le Pera, lyricist (born 1900)
• July 21 - Honoré Dutrey, jazz trombonist (born c. 1894)
• August 2 - Isidore de Lara, composer (born 1858)
• August 20 - Otakar Ostrčil, composer and conductor (born 1879)
• August 21 - Marjorie White, actress, singer and dancer (born 1904) (in a car crash)
• September 11 - Evelyn Hoey, torch singer (born 1910) (suicide)
• September 20 - Amy Sherwin, operatic soprano (born 1855)
• September 23 - DeWolf Hopper, US actor and singer (born 1858)
• October 4 - Marie Gutheil-Schoder, operatic soprano (born 1874)
• October 13 - Dranem, French singer and music hall entertainer (born 1869)
• October 22 - Komitas, exiled Armenian priest and ethnomusicologist (born 1869)
• November 16 - Kurt Schindler, conductor and composer (born 1882)
• November 18 - Anton Hekking, cellist (born 1856)
• November 28 - Erich von Hornbostel, musicologist (born 1877)
• December 4 - Johan Halvorsen, violinist, conductor and composer
• December 9 - Nina Grieg, soprano and wife of Edvard Grieg (born 1845)
• December 24 - Alban Berg, composer (b. 1885)

Awards

• Henryk Wieniawski Violin Competition - Ginette Neveu