- Jan 10 Heinrich Köselitz [Peter Gast], German composer, born in Annaberg-Buchholz, Kingdom of Saxony (d. 1918)
- Feb 16 Oscar Fetrás [Otto Faster], German composer (Mondnacht auf der Alster), born in Hamburg, German Confederation (d. 1931)
- Feb 20 Louis van Westerhoven, Dutch actor, singer and opera director (Youth), born in Amsterdam, Netherlands (d. 1912)
- Feb 28 Juliusz Zarębski, Polish pianist, composer, and pedagogue, born in Zhytomyr, Kingdom of Poland, Russian Empire (now Ukraine) (d. 1885)
- Mar 26 Braulio Dueño Colón, Puerto Rican composer, born in San Juan, Puerto Rico (d. 1934)
- Apr 5 Vicente Goicoechea Errasti, Basque composer, born in Ibarra, Álava (d. 1916)
- Apr 9 Seaborn McDaniel Denson, American composer, born in Cleburne County, Alabama (d. 1936)
- Apr 21 Władysław Rzepko, Polish composer, born in Piórków, Poland (d. 1932)
- May 5 Antonio Smareglia, Italian composer, born in Pola, Austrian Empire (now Pula, Croatia) (d. 1929)
- May 13 Paul Klengel, German pianist, violinist, composer and educator, born in Leipzig, Kingdom of Saxony (now Germany) (d. 1935)
- May 18 Bernard Zweers, Dutch composer (Gisbertus of Aemstel; To My Fatherland), born in Amsterdam, Netherlands (d. 1924)
- Jun 14 Frederik Rung, Danish composer, born in Copenhagen, Denmark (d. 1914)
- Jun 19 Alfredo Catalani, Italian operatic composer, born in Lucca, Grand Duchy of Tuscany (now Italy) (d. 1893)
Leoš Janáček (1854-1928)
Jul 3 Czech composer, born in Hukvaldy, Moravia, Austrian Empire
- Jul 4 Heinrich Zöllner, German composer, born in Leipzig, Germany (d. 1941)
- Jul 14 Alexander Kopylov, Russian imperial composer and violinist, born in Saint Petersburg, Russia (d. 1911)
- Aug 3 Fernand de La Tombelle, French organist and composer, born in Paris, France (d. 1928)
- Aug 23 Moritz Moszkowski, Polish-German composer, born in Breslau, Prussia (d. 1925)
- Aug 24 Nikolay Vladimirovich Scherbachov, Russian pianist and composer, born in St. Petersburg, Russia (d. 1922)
- Sep 1 Engelbert Humperdinck, German opera composer (Hansel and Gretel), born in Siegburg, Westphalia (d. 1921)
- Sep 17 Hans Müller, German music historian and writer, born in Cologne, Kingdom of Prussia (now Germany) (d. 1897)
- Sep 29 Martin Pluddemann, German composer, born in Kolberg, Pomerania, Kingdom of Prussia (d. 1897)
- Oct 10 Gerónimo Giménez, Spanish composer, born in Seville, Spain (d. 1923)
John Philip Sousa (1854-1932)
Nov 6 American composer and march king (Stars & Stripes Forever), born in Washington, D.C.
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