- Oct 9 Thurlow Lieurance, American composer (By the Waters of Minnetonka; Sad Moon on Falling Leaf), ethnomusicologist (Indigenous peoples), and educator, dies at 85
Edith Piaf (1915-1963)
Oct 10 French singer (No, I Don't Regret Anything; Le Vie En Rose), dies of liver failure at 47
- Oct 18 Cláudio Carneyro, Portuguese violinist, composer, and educator, dies at 68
- Oct 25 Abu-Bakr Khairat, Egyptian composer, dies at 53
- Oct 28 Mart Saar, Estonian composer, dies at 81
- Oct 29 Michael Holliday [Norman Milne], British pop singer ("The Story of My Life"), dies of a suspected drug overdose at 38
Country Singers
Jazz Singers
Opera Singers
Pop Singers
Rappers
Rock Singers