Events in Music
- 1887 Emmanuel Chabrier's opera "Le Roi Malgré Luis" premieres in Paris
- 1889 Jules Massenet's opera "Esclarmonde" premieres in Paris
- 1897 Irish Music Festival 1st held (Dublin)
- 1948 "Ballet Ballads" opens at Music Box Theater NYC for 62 performances
- 1950 "Liar" opens at Broadhurst Theater NYC for 12 performances
- 1959 "Castin' My Spell" by Johnny Otis Show hits #52
- 1959 "Judy" by David Seville hits #86
- 1959 "Russian Band Stand" by Spencer & Spencer hits #91
- 1961 "Donnybrook!" opens at 46th St Theater NYC for 68 performances
- 1963 "Beast in Me" closes at Plymouth Theater NYC after 4 performances
- 1963 "If You Wanna Be Happy" by Jimmy Soul hits #1
- 1969 "Canterbury Tales" closes at Eugene O'Neill Theater NYC after 122 performances
- 1970 Beatles' last released LP, "Let It Be", released in US
- 1974 "Streak" by Ray Stevens hits #1
- 1985 "One Night In Bangkok" by Murray Head hits #3
- 1986 "Singin' in the Rain" closes at Gershwin Theater NYC after 367 performances
- 1996 41st Eurovision Song Contest: Eimear Quinn for Ireland wins singing "The Voice" in Oslo
- 1997 "King David" opens at New Amsterdam Theater NYC
- 1999 "Millennium" 3rd studio album by the Backstreet Boys is released - one of the best-selling albums of all time, over 30 million copies sold
Music Awards
2008 43rd Academy of Country Music Awards: Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, and Carrie Underwood win
Carrie Underwood
- 2013 58th Eurovision Song Contest: Emmelie de Forest for Denmark wins singing "Only Teardrops" in Malmo
Birthdays in Music
- 1744 Joseph Beer, Bohemia clarinetist/composer (5th clarinet flap)
- 1759 Charles Duquesnoy, composer
- 1819 Julius Hopp, Austrian composer, born in Vienna (d. 1885)
- 1830 Karl Goldmark, Keszthely Hungary, composer (Sakuhtala)
- 1836 Isidor Vorobchievici, composer
- 1854 Bernard Zweers, Dutch composer (Gisbertus of Aemstel, To My Fatherland), born in Amsterdam (d. 1924)
- 1875 Guido Alberto Fano, Italian composer and pianist, born in Padua (d. 1961)
- 1882 Eduardo Fabini, composer
- 1886 Ole Windingstad, composer
- 1901 Harry Robert Wilson, composer
- 1901 Henri-Pierre Sauguet, composer (La Chotte), born in Bordeaux, France
- 1902 [Robert] Meredith Willson, Mason City Iowa, composer (Music Man)
- 1905 Eric Zeisl, Austrian American composer, born in Vienna (d. 1959)
- 1907 Clifford Curzon, pianist (MacFarren Gold Medal), born in London, England
- 1911 Joe Turner, KC, blues singer (Corrine Corrina, Shake Rattle & Roll)
- 1912 Perry Como, [Pierino], Canonsburg Pa, singer/TV (Perry Como Show)
- 1913 Charles Trenet, French singer and songwriter (d. 2001)
- 1919 Margot Fonteyn, English prima ballerina (Giselle), born in Reigate, England (1991)
- 1920 Lucia Mannucci, Italian singer (Quartetto Cetra)
- 1922 Kai Winding, Danish-American Jazz musician and trombonist (Georgia On My Mind), born in Aarhus, Denmark (d. 1983)
- 1923 Liam Sullivan, American singer and actor (Star Trek, The Magic Sword, Monroes), born in Jacksonville, Illinois (d. 1998)
- 1929 Roger Matton, composer
- 1931 Robert Morse, American singer and actor (Mad Men, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying), born in Newton, Massachusetts
- 1939 Gary S. Paxton [Larry Wayne Stevens], American musician and songwriter (Monster Mash, Alley Oop), born in Coffeyville, Kansas (d. 2016)
- 1942 Rodney Dillard, rocker (Glittergrass)
- 1944 Albert Hammond, rocker (It Never Rains In Southern California ), born in London
- 1948 Joe Bonsall, country singer (Oak Ridge Boys-Elvira), born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- 1949 Bill Wallace, rocker/actor (Fear, Avenging Force, Desperate)
- 1949 Rick Wakeman, English, rock keyboardist (Yes), born in London
- 1949 William Wallace, rocker (Guess Who)
- 1952 George Strait, Pearsall Tx, country singer (All My Exes Live in Texas)
- 1953 [Feliciano] Butch Tavares, rocker (Tavares)
- 1954 Wreckless Eric, rocker (Waxworks, Be Stiff)
- 1954 Reinhold Heil, German composer
- 1957 Michael Cretu, rocker (Enigma)
- 1958 Toyah Wilcox, rocker (I Want to Be Free), born in Birmingham, England
- 1962 Nanne Grönvall, Swedish singer
- 1962 Sandra Cretu, German singer
- 1965 Ingo Schwichtenberg, German drummer (d. 1995)
- 1966 Michael Tait, American musician (dc Talk, Tait)
- 1967 Rob Base, American rapper
- 1969 Martika [Marta Marrero], Cuban-American singer (Toy Soldiers), born in Whittier, California
- 1975 Jack Johnson, American musician
- 1980 Ali Zafar, Pakistani singer and model
- 1982 Eric West, American singer and actor
Weddings in Music
Wedding of Interest
1964 Guitarist Ritchie Blackmore (19) weds Margrit Volkmar
Ritchie Blackmore
Wedding of Interest
2007 Grammy award-winning singer Amy Winehouse (23) weds former video production assistant Blake Fielder-Civil (25) in Miami, Florida
Amy Winehouse
Deaths in Music
- 1733 Georg Bohm, German organist/composer, dies at 71
- 1767 Thaddaus Ferdinand Lipowsky, German composer, dies at 28
- 1829 Bernardo Bittoni, Italian composer, dies at 72
- 1832 Bonafacio Asioli, composer, dies at 62
- 1909 Isaac Albéniz, Spanish pianist and composer (Suite española, Tango in D), dies from nephritis at 48
- 1910 Flor van Duyse, composer, dies at 66
- 1910 Pauline Viardot, French mezzo-soprano and composer, dies at 88
- 1911 Gustav Mahler, Austrian composer and conductor (Children's Death Songs), dies of heart disease at 50
- 1913 Otto Reubke, German composer and brother of Julius Reubke, dies at 70
- 1918 Toivo Kuula, Finnish composer, dies after being shot in a quarrel at 34
- 1930 João Marcellino Arroyo, Portuguese composer, dies at 68
- 1936 Alick Maclean, composer, dies at 63
- 1952 Rossetter Gleason Cole, composer, dies at 86
- 1972 Eero Sipilä, Finnish composer, dies at 53
- 1972 Daniel Ray "Danny" Whitten, American musician and songwriter (Crazy Horse, Rod Stewart- "I Don't Want To Talk About It"), dies of a methaqualone overdose at 29
- 1975 Leroy Anderson, American composer (Syncopated Clock), dies at 66
- 1980 Ian Curtis, English rock vocalist (Joy Division), commits suicide at 23
- 1986 John Bubbles Sublett, tap dancer (Black & Bubbles), dies at 84
- 1995 Alexander Gudonov, Russian dancer/actor (Witness), dies at 45
- 1995 Gordon Reynolds, musician, dies at 74
- 1995 André-François Marescotti, Swiss organist and composer, dies at 93
- 1999 Augustus Pablo, Jamaican singer (b. 1954)
- 1999 Freddy Randall, English jazz trumpeter, dies at 78
- 2000 Stephen M. Wolownik, Russian musician and arranger (b. 1946)
- 2004 Elvin Jones, American jazz drummer (b. 1927)
- 2007 Yoyoy Villame, Philippine novelty singer and movie actor (b. 1932)
- 2009 Dolla American Rapper a.k.a. Roderick Anthony Burton II (b.1987)
- 2012 Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, German baritone, dies at 86
- 2014 Jerry Vale, American singer, dies at 83
- 2017 Chris Cornell, American musician (Soundgarden, Audioslave), commits suicide at 52
- 2017 Frankie Paul [Paul Blake], Jamaican reggae musician, dies of kidney disease at 51
May in History
Pope 'Turned Vatican Into Whorehouse'
Pope John XII who died – some say he was murdered – on this day lived a life of sin, corruption and murder. But is his reputation as the worst pope deserved?
May 14, 964 AD
Taxman Delivers Cruel Blow to Miss Whiplash
If I agreed to your demand for cash payment it means that you would be living off immoral earnings, celebrated Madam tells the tax authority.
May 15, 1990
My Fair Lady's Special Day
This was a day to remember for Eliza Doolittle, the 'My Fair Lady' of the stage and film musical that won and broke hearts.
May 20, 1956
Memories of Elvis
Only one actor has appeared on film with both the Beatles and Elvis Presley: the little-known Norman Rossington.
May 21, 1999