- 1765 Antonio Tonelli, Italian cellist and composer, dies at 79
- 1788 John Logan, Scottish conductor (Ode to the Cuckoo), dies at about 40
- 1842 Bedrich Divis Weber, Bohemian composer and musicologist, dies at 76
- 1848 Johan Erik Nordblom, Swedish composer, dies at 60
- 1883 Marek Konrad Sokolowski, Polish guitarist and composer, dies at 65
- 1904 Vilhelm Svedbom, Swedish composer, dies at 61
- 1921 Hans Huber, Swiss composer and pedagogue, dies at 69
- 1921 Vladimir Korolenko, Russian writer (The Blind Musician), dies at 68
- 1922 Alphonse Goovaerts, Belgian composer and musicologist (Histoire et Bibliographie de la Typographie Musicale dans les Pays-Bas), dies at 75
- 1930 Harvey Worthington Loomis, American composer (Lyrics of the Red Man), dies at 65
- 1936 Pierre Maurice, Swiss composer, dies at 68
- 1942 Vojislav Vuckovic, composer, dies at 32
- 1943 Ilona Durigo, Hungarian contralto singer, dies at 62
- 1943 Raymond Huntington Woodman, composer, dies at 82
- 1954 Johnny Ace, American rhythm and blues singer, accidentally shoots himself in the head at 25
- 1954 Rosario Scalero, composer, dies at 84
- 1971 Byron Arnold, American composer, dies at 70
- 1980 (Ludwig) "Louis" Neefs, Belgian pop singer (Eurovision, 1967 & 1969), dies, along with his wife, in a car accident at 43
- 1985 George Rhodes, American pianist, composer, arranger, and music director (Sammy Davis, Jr. Show), dies of a heart attack at 66
- 1989 Georgy Mushel, Uzbek pianist and composer, dies at 80
- 1989 Jean-Etienne Marie, French composer of microtonal music and electroacoustics, dies at 72
Dean Martin (1917-1995)
American singer ("That's Amore"; "Everybody Loves Somebody"; "Sway"), comedian and actor (Martin and Lewis, The Dean Martin Show), dies of throat cancer at 78
- 1995 Marijan Lipovsek, Slovenian pianist, composer, and teacher, dies at 85
- 1995 Nicolas Slonimsky, Russian-American pianist, conductor, musicologist (Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns; Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians), and composer, dies at 101
- 1997 Giorgio Strehler, Italian opera and theatre director, dies at 76
- 1998 Bryan MacLean, American singer, musician and songwriter (Love) (b. 1946)
- 2005 (Märta) Birgit Nilsson, Swedish operatic soprano (Elektra, Salome), dies at 87
- 2005 Derek Bailey, English guitar virtuoso (b. 1930)
James Brown (1933-2006)
American R&B, gospel, soul and funk singer-songwriter known as 'The Godfather of Soul' ("Sex Machine"; "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag"; "Hot Pants"), dies of heart failure at 73
- 2007 Hans Otte, German composer and pianist (The Book of Sounds, Book of Hours), dies at 81
- 2007 Mighty King Kong, Kenyan reggae musician. (b. 1973)
- 2008 Eartha Kitt, American singer (Santa Baby), dancer, comedian, actress and activist (Catwoman-Batman), dies at 81
- 2009 Tony "T-Bone" Bellamy, American rock guitarist (Redbone), dies of liver failure at 63
- 2009 Vic Chesnutt, American singer-songwriter, dies of an overdose of muscle relaxants at 46
- 2011 Israel Baker, American concert and session violinist (NBC Symphony; Paramount Studios Orchestra), dies at 92
- 2011 Jim "Motorhead" Sherwood [Euclid James Sherwood], American rock musician (Mothers Of Invention), dies at 69
- 2016 Alphonse Mouzon, American jazz musician (Weather Report, Tenacious Records), dies from cancer at 68
George Michael (1963-2016)
English singer-songwriter and pop superstar (Wham! - "Careless Whisper"; "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go"; solo - " I Want Your Sex"; "Faith"), dies of suspected heart failure at 53
- 2016 Valery Khalilov, Russian military conductor and composer, dies in a plane crash in the Black Sea, near Sochi, at 64
- 2017 Vladimir Shainsky, Soviet and Russian composer, dies at 92
- 2019 Peter Schreier, German tenor and conductor (Dresden State Opera, 1962-2000), dies at 84 [1]
- 2020 Jaan Rääts, Estonian pianist, orchestral and film score composer, dies at 88
- 2020 Tony Rice, American bluegrass guitarist (J.D. Crowe and the New South), dies at 69 [1]
- 2021 Tifini Hale, American pop singer (Party - "Rodeo"; "That's Why"), dies of cardiac arrest at 46
Assassination
Car Crash
Hanging
Killed in Action
Plane Crash
Poisoning