- 1788 Charles Wesley, English Methodist leader (brother of John Wesley) and hymn writer (Hark! The Herald Angels Sing), dies at 80
- 1802 Frederic Thieme, French composer, dies at 51
- 1803 Gottfried van Swieten, Dutch composer (b. 1733)
- 1880 Jacob Axel Josephson, Swedish composer, dies at 62
- 1888 Charles-Valentin Alkan, French pianist and composer, dies at 74
- 1911 Alexandre Guilmant, French organist (La Trinitié, 1871-901), composer and pedagogue (Schola Cantorum, 1894-1911), dies at 74
- 1917 Fran Gerbič, Slovenian composer, dies at 76
- 1924 Charles Villiers Stanford, Irish organist, conductor, composer, and music teacher (Royal College of Music, 1882-1924), dies at 71
- 1933 Alexander Schmuller, Russian-Dutch violinist and conductor, dies at 52
- 1937 Karol Szymanowski, Polish pianist and composer (Symphony No. 3 - Song Of The Night), dies of tuberculosis at 54
- 1953 Arthur Fields [Abraham Finkelstein], American singer-songwriter (Aba Daba Honeymoon), dies in a fire at his nursing home residence at 68 [1]
- 1955 Zlatko Baloković, Croatian-American concert violinist, dies at 69
- 1959 Sara Wennerberg-Reuter, Swedish composer, dies at 84
- 1977 Madeleine Dring, British composer and pianist, dies of a cerebral hemorrhage at 53
- 1979 Ray Ventura, French jazz pianist and big band bandleader ("Tout va très bien, Madame la Marquise"), dies at 69
- 1980 Annunzio Mantovani, Italian orchestra leader (Mantovani), dies at 74
- 1982 "Fatty" George [Pressler], Austrian swing jazz clarinettist, dies of a heart attack at 54
- 1982 Carl Orff, German composer (Carmina Burana; Der Mond; Mozart Prize - 1969), dies of cancer at 86
- 1982 Floyd "Guitar" Smith, American jazz and blues guitarist and record producer, dies at 65
- 1982 Ray Block, French orchestra leader (Ed Sullivan; Jackie Gleason), dies at 79
- 1985 Jeanine Deckers, Belgian singer-songwriter, and Dominican nun known as 'The Singing Nun' ("Dominique"), cities financial difficulties, and commits suicide with barbiturate overdose at 51
- 1995 Jimmy McShane, Irish singer (Baltimora - "Tarzan Boy"), dies of AIDS at 37
- 1999 Joe Williams [Goreed], American jazz singer (Everyday I Have The Blues), dies of natural causes at 80
- 2001 John Lewis, American jazz pianist, arranger, and composer (Modern Jazz Quartet, 1952-97), dies of prostate cancer at 80
- 2006 Werner Wolf Glaser, German-Swedish composer, dies at 95
- 2009 Andy Hallett, American actor and singer (b.1975)
- 2009 Maurice Jarre, French Academy and Grammy Award-winning film composer (Lawrence Of Arabia; Doctor Zhivago; Witness; Fatal Attraction), dies at 84
- 2014 Billy Mundi [also Tony Schnasse, born Antonio Salas], American session musician and drummer (The Mothers of Invention; Rhinoceros), dies of complications from diabetes at 71
- 2018 Michael Sahl, American contemporary classical composer (Civilization and its Discontents; Jungles), dies at 83
- 2020 Alan Merrill [Allan Sachs], American vocalist and songwriter (The Arrows -"I Love Rock 'n' Roll"), dies from COVID-19 complications at 69
- 2020 Jamary Oliveira, Brazilian composer (Sanctus; Piano Pièce), and music professor, dies at 76
- 2020 Joe Diffie, American country singer and guitarist (Home), dies of COVID-19 complications at 61
Krzysztof Penderecki (1933-2020)
Polish composer ("Threnody to the Victims of Hiroshima"), dies at 86
Assassination
Car Crash
Hanging
Killed in Action
Plane Crash
Poisoning