Musicians Who Died on December 9

  • 1770 Gottlieb Theophil Muffat, German composer, dies at 80
  • 1814 Jose Angel Lamas, Venezuelan composer, dies at 39
  • 1827 François Léonard Rouwyzer, composer, dies at 90
  • 1893 George Elvey, British organist and composer, dies at 77
  • 1905 Henry Holmes, English violinist and composer, dies at 66
  • 1924 Bernard Zweers, Dutch composer (Gisbertus of Aemstel, To My Fatherland), dies at 70
  • 1925 Eugène Gigout, French organist (St Augustin de Paris, 1863-1925), and composer (10 pièces pour orgue), dies at 81
  • 1956 Hans Barth, German-born American composer, dies at 59
  • 1966 Yury Alexandrovich Shaporin, Russian-Ukrainian Soviet composer, dies at 79
  • 1974 Jorge Croner de Vasconcelos, Portuguese composer, dies at 64
  • 1975 Frank Signorelli, American swing jazz pianist (Original Dixieland Jazz Band; Joe Venuti's Blue Four), and songwriter (Stairway to the Stars), dies at 74
  • 1981 Sonny Til [Earlington Carl Tilghman], American doo-wop singer (The Orioles), dies from heart failure at 56
  • 1982 Paul Godwin, Polish-Dutch violinist, dies at 80
  • 1982 Roger Danneels, Flemish accordionist, Hammond organ player, and bandleader, dies at 55
  • 1994 Garnett Silk [Garnet Smith], Jamaican reggae singer and songwriter (Hey Mama Africa; Greenline), dies in a house fire while trying to save his mother at 28
  • 1994 Maureen Starkey [Mary Cox], English ex-wife of Beatle Ringo Starr, dies of leukemia at 48
  • 1995 Benny Lee, Scottish singer and actor (Are You Being Served), dies at 79
  • 1996 Patty Donahue, American new wave rock singer (The Waitresses - "I Know What Boys Like"; "Christmas Wrapping), dies of lung cancer at 40
  • 1997 Tamara Geva, Russian-born dancer and actress, dies at 91
  • 2002 Mary Hansen, Australian guitarist and singer (Stereolab), dies at 36
  • 2005 György Sándor, Hungarian pianist, dies at 93
  • 2006 Freddie Marsden, British rock drummer (Gerry & Pacemakers - "How Do You Do It?"; "Ferry Cross The Mersey"), dies at 66
  • 2006 Georgia Gibbs [Frieda Lipschitz], American jazz and pop singer ("Kiss of Fire"; "If I Knew You Were Comin' I'd've Baked a Cake"), dies at 88 [1]
  • 2010 James Moody, American Grammy Award-winning bebop jazz saxophonist, flutist, and orchestra leader, dies of pancreatic cancer at 85
  • 2011 Myra Taylor (née Render), American jazz singer ("Spider and the Fly"; Wild Women of Kansas City), songwriter, and actress, dies at 94
  • 2012 Charles Rosen, American pianist and musicologist (Sonata Forms), dies at 85

Jenni Rivera (1969-2012)

Mexican-American singer-songwriter (Jenni, 2008), dies in a plane crash at 43

  • 2014 José Feghali, Brazilian concert pianist (Van Cliburn Gold Medalist, 1985), takes his own life at 53
  • 2014 Winfred "Blue" Lovett, American singer (Manhattans - "One Life to Live"), dies at 71
  • 2019 Marie Fredriksson, Swedish singer (Roxette - Must Have Been Love), dies after a long illness at 61