- Jan 2 Vera Zorina [Eva Hartwig], German-Norwegian ballet dancer, born in Berlin, Germany (d. 2003)
- Jan 5 Reginald Smith Brindle, British composer, born in Cuerden, Lancashire, England (d. 2003)
- Jan 5 Wieland Wagner, German opera director, born in Bayreuth, Germany (d. 1966)
- Jan 7 Ulysses Kay, American neoclassical composer (Of New Horizons: Overture), born in Tucson, Arizona (d. 1995)
- Jan 10 Jerry Wexler, American music producer who coined the term "rhythm and blues" (Aretha Franklin, Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan), born in The Bronx, New York (d. 2008)
- Jan 12 Walter Hendl, American conductor and composer, born in West New York, New Jersey (d. 2007)
- Jan 13 Felix Guerro Diaz, Cuban composer, born in La Habana, Cuba (d. 2001)
- Jan 17 Oskar Morawetz, Czech-Canadian composer (From the Diary of Anne Frank), born in Světlá nad Sázavou, Bohemia (now Czech Republic); (d. 2007)
- Jan 19 Rudolf Maros, Hungarian composer (Sirato/Lament; Euphonies), and pedagogue, born in Stachy, Bohemia (d. 1982)
- Jan 22 Albert "Pud" Brown, American jazz clarinetist and saxophonist, born in Wilmington, Delaware (d. 1996)
- Jan 25 Floyd "Guitar" Smith, American jazz and blues guitarist and record producer, born in St. Louis, Missouri (d. 1982)
- Jan 29 John Raitt, American stage and screen singer and actor (Carousel; Pajama Game), born in Santa Ana, California (d. 2005)
- Jan 31 José Maceda, Filipino composer and ethnomusicologist, born in Manila, Philippines (d. 2004)
About January 1917
How Old? 107 years old
Generation: Greatest Generation
Leap Year: No
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