Zitkála-Šá (1876-1938)
Jan 26 Native American (Yankton Dakota) writer, violinist, librettist (The Sun Dance Opera), educator, and political activist, dies at 61
- Feb 21 Albert Huybrechts, Belgian composer, dies at 39
- Mar 2 Ben Harney, American composer and 'Father of Ragtime Piano' ("You've Been a Good Old Wagon, But You Done Broke Down"), dies of a heart attack at 66 [1]
- Mar 9 Sydney Baynes, British conductor, arranger, bandleader and composer (Destiny Waltz; Endure to Conquer), dies at 59
- Mar 18 Cyril Rootham, English composer, dies at 62
- Apr 10 Joseph "King" Oliver, American jazz cornet player, composer, bandleader, and mentor to Louis Armstrong, dies of arteriosclerosis at 56 [1]
- Apr 12 Feodor Chaliapine, Russian operatic bass-baritone singer (Man and Mask: Forty Years in the Life of a Singer), dies of leukemia at 65
- Apr 18 Richard Terry, English organist and musicologist, dies at 73
James Weldon Johnson (1871-1938)
Jun 26 American Harlem Renaissance poet, lyricist ("Lift Every Voice And Sing"), civil rights activist, and leader of the NAACP, dies in a car crash at 67
- Aug 2 Bjarni Thorsteinsson, Icelandic organist, composer, musical folklorist, and priest, dies at 76
- Aug 4 Rudolf Georg Binding, German songwriter and writer (Legenden Der Zeit), dies at 70
- Aug 10 Joseph Moorat, British composer (Prunella), dies at 73
- Aug 14 Landon Ronald, British composer, pianist and teacher (Guildhall School of Music), dies at 65
Robert Johnson (1911-1938)
Aug 16 American blues singer-songwriter, and guitarist (King of Delta Blues Singers), poisoned at 27
- Sep 27 Elmer Feldcamp, American big band baritone vocalist, saxophone, and clarinet player (Freddy Martin Orchestra), dies of heart failure at 36
- Sep 28 Con Conrad, American songwriter and producer, dies at 48
- Oct 3 Viktor Kosenko, Russian-Ukrainian pianist, composer (Moldavian Poem), and educator, dies of kidney cancer at 41
- Oct 22 May Irwin, Canadian comedienne and singer (Hot Time in the Old Town), dies at 76
- Nov 21 Leopold Godowsky, Polish-American pianist, composer (Java Suite; Triakontameron; 53 Studies on Chopin's Études), and pedagogue, dies of stomach cancer at 68
- Dec 4 Dina Appeldoorn, Dutch classical pianist and composer, dies at 54
- Dec 10 Mario Pilati, Italian composer, dies at 35
- Dec 14 Maurice Emmanuel, French composer and musicologist (Salamine), dies at 76