# 1950 in music

"none" is preferred when the title is sufficiently descriptive; see [[WP:SDNONE]]
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1950.

## Specific locations

* 1950 in British music
* 1950 in Norwegian music

## Specific genres

* 1950 in country music
* 1950 in jazz

## Events

* January 3 – Sam Phillips launches Sun Records at 706 Union Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee.
* March 14 – Pablo Casals terminates his recording contract with RCA Records and signs with their chief competitor, Columbia Records.
* June 26 – Louis Armstrong records the first American version of C'est si bon with the English lyrics by Jerry Seelen.
* August 29 – The first American Music Competition of the Sigma Alpha Iota music fraternity is won by Richard Winslow for Huswifery, a choral composition for women's voices.
* August – Herbert Howells' Hymnus Paradisi is premiered at the Three Choirs Festival.
* September 24 – Alan Lomax sets sail from the United States for London and spends until 1959 recording in Europe for the Columbia World Library of Folk and Primitive Music.
* October 1 – Italian composer Luciano Berio marries American mezzo-soprano Cathy Berberian.
* October 11 – On temporary release from Ellis Island pending a deportation decision from U. S. immigration authorities, 20-year-old Friedrich Gulda makes his Carnegie Hall debut.
* November – The Eleanor Steber Award is won by soprano Willabelle Underwood.
* Johann Sebastian Bach is reburied in St. Thomas Church, Leipzig.
* Malcolm Sargent becomes chief conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra.
* Isaak Dunayevsky is named People's Artist of the USSR.
* Mitch Miller signs as A&R man with Columbia Records.
* Patti Page becomes the first (and only) artist to have a Number One record on the Pop, R&B and Country charts concurrently.
* Al Cernick is signed to Columbia by Mitch Miller, who changes the singer's name to Guy Mitchell.
* Columbia Records lures Jo Stafford away from Capitol.
* Georgia Gibbs leaves the Majestic label and scores her first charting single with Coral.
* Bandleader Les Baxter founds the school of "Outer Space" exotica.
* Sam Cooke replaces R. H. Harris as lead singer of The Soul Stirrers.

## Albums released

* American Folks Songs – Jo Stafford
* Auld Lang Syne – Bing Crosby
* Autumn in New York – Jo Stafford
* Barber Shop Ballads – The Mills Brothers
* Blue of the Night – Bing Crosby
* The Famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Jazz Concert – Benny Goodman
* Christmas Greetings – Bing Crosby
* Cole Porter Songs – Bing Crosby
* Country Feelin – Dinah Shore
* Dedicated to You – Frank Sinatra
* Drifting and Dreaming – Bing Crosby
* Dulce Patria – Jorge Negrete
* Ella Sings Gershwin – Ella Fitzgerald
* Frankie Laine – Frankie Laine
* Going My Way – Bing Crosby
* Historical America in Song – Burl Ives
* King Cole Trio – King Cole Trio
* King Cole Trio Volume 2 – King Cole Trio
* Live at Carnegie Hall – Benny Goodman
* Oh! Susanna – Al Jolson
* Patti Page – Patti Page
* Popular Classics for Four Pianos – Philharmonic Piano Quartet
* Porgy and Bess – Various Artists
* Sing a Song of Christmas – The Ames Brothers
* Sing and Dance with Frank Sinatra – Frank Sinatra
* Songs By Gershwin – Bing Crosby
* Songs of Faith – Jo Stafford
* Songs for Sunday Evening – Jo Stafford
* Tea for Two – Doris Day
* Two Loves Have I – Frankie Laine
* Voice of the Xtabay – Yma Sumac
* Young Man with a Horn – Doris Day

## No. 1 hit singles

These singles reached the top of Billboard magazine's charts in 1950.
| First week | Number of weeks | Title | Artist |
| January 7, 1950 | 1 | "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" | Gene Autry, 7,000,000 sold by 1969 |
| January 14, 1950 | 4 | "I Can Dream, Can't I?" | The Andrews Sisters |
| February 11, 1950 | 1 | "Rag Mop" | The Ames Brothers |
| February 18, 1950 | 4 | "Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy" | Red Foley |
| March 18, 1950 | 4 | "Music! Music! Music!" | Teresa Brewer |
| April 15, 1950 | 2 | "If I Knew You Were Comin' I'd've Baked a Cake" | Eileen Barton |
| April 29, 1950 | 11 | "The Third Man Theme" | Anton Karas, 4,000,000 sold |
| July 15, 1950 | 5 | "Mona Lisa" | Nat King Cole |
| August 19, 1950 | 13 | "Goodnight, Irene" | Gordon Jenkins & The Weavers, 2,000,000 sold |
| November 18, 1950 | 2 | "Harbor Lights" | Sammy Kaye |
| December 2, 1950 | 4 | "The Thing" | Phil Harris |
| December 30, 1950 | 9 | "The Tennessee Waltz" | Patti Page |

## Biggest hit singles

The following songs achieved the highest chart positions in the limited set of charts available for 1950.
| # | Artist | Title | Year | Country | Chart entries |
| 1 | Nat King Cole | Mona Lisa | 1950 | US | US 1940s 1 – Jun 1950, US 1 for 5 weeks Jul 1950, Oscar in 1950, US BB 2 of 1950, POP 2 of 1950, DDD 4 of 1950, Italy 48 of 1951, RIAA 109, Acclaimed 1292 |
| 2 | Patti Page | Tennessee Waltz | 1950 | US | US 1940s 1 – Nov 1950, US 1 for 9 weeks Dec 1950, US BB 4 of 1950, 6,000,000 sold by 1967 |
| 3 | Phil Harris | The Thing | 1950 | US | US 1940s 1 – Nov 1950, US 1 for 4 weeks Dec 1950, Peel list 1 of 1950, US BB 12 of 1950, POP 12 of 1950 |
| 4 | Red Foley | Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy | 1950 | US | US 1940s 1 – Jan 1950, US 1 for 4 weeks Feb 1950, DDD 17 of 1950, US BB 18 of 1950, POP 25 of 1950 |
| 5 | Teresa Brewer | Music! Music! Music! | 1950 | US | US 1940s 1 – Feb 1950, US 1 for 4 weeks Mar 1950, US BB 3 of 1950, POP 3 of 1950 |

## Top hit records

* "A-Razz-A-Ma-Tazz" – Georgia Gibbs
* "All My Love (Bolero)" – Patti Page
* "Anema e core" – Tito Schipa
* "Are You Lonesome Tonight?" – Al Jolson
* "Ballin' the Jack", recorded by
** Georgia Gibbs
** Danny Kaye
* "Be My Love" – Mario Lanza
* "Bewitched" – Doris Day
* "Black Lace" – Frankie Laine
* "Boo-Hoo" – Guy Lombardo & The Lombardo Trio
* "A Bushel And A Peck" – Perry Como & Betty Hutton
* "Can Anyone Explain? (No, No, No!)" – The Ames Brothers
* "Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy" – Red Foley
* "Count Every Star", recorded by
** Ray Anthony and His Orchestra
** Dick Haymes and Artie Shaw
** Hugo Winterhalter
* "Cry Of The Wild Goose" – Frankie Laine
* "Daddy's Little Girl" – The Mills Brothers
* "Dear, Dear, Dear" – Frankie Laine
* "Domino" – André Claveau
* "Dream a Little Dream of Me" – Frankie Laine
* "A Dreamer's Holiday" – Buddy Clark & The Girlfriends
* "El rancho 'e la Cambicha" – Antonio Tormo
* "Enjoy Yourself" – Guy Lombardo (Kenny Gardner & The Lombardo Trio vocals)
* "Goodnight, Irene" – The Weavers
* "Harbor Lights" – Sammy Kaye
* "Here Comes Santa Claus" – Andrews Sisters
* "Hymne à l'amour (Hymn To Love)" – Édith Piaf
* "I Can Dream, Can't I?" – The Andrews Sisters
* "I'll Never Be Free", recorded by:
** Kay Starr and Tennessee Ernie Ford
** Louis Jordan and Ella Fitzgerald
** Annie Laurie and Paul Gayten and His Orchestra
** Dinah Washington
* "I Love You For That" – Patti Page & Frankie Laine
* "I Wanna Be Loved" – The Andrews Sisters
* "If I Knew You Were Comin' I'd've Baked a Cake" – Eileen Barton
* "I'm Movin' On" – Hank Snow
* "It Isn't Fair" – Sammy Kaye (Don Cornell vocal)
* "Let's Go West Again" – Al Jolson
* "A Man Gets Awfully Lonesome" – Frankie Laine
* "Mona Lisa" – Nat King Cole
* "Music, Maestro, Please" – Frankie Laine
* "Music! Music! Music!" – Teresa Brewer
* "My Foolish Heart, recorded by
** Billy Eckstine
** Gordon Jenkins
* "My Heart Cries For You" – Guy Mitchell
* "Nevertheless" – The Mills Brothers
* "No Other Love" – Jo Stafford
* "The Old Piano Roll Blues" Al Jolson & The Andrews Sisters
* "Patricia" – Perry Como
* "Peter Cottontail" – Gene Autry
* "Play A Simple Melody" – Gary Crosby & Friend (Bing Crosby)
* "Rag Mop" – The Ames Brothers
* "Red Hot Mama" – Georgia Gibbs
* "The Roving Kind" – Guy Mitchell
* "Sentimental Me" – The Ames Brothers
* "Sleepy Ol' River" – Frankie Laine
* "Someday", recorded by
** The Mills Brothers
** Vaughn Monroe
* "Sometime" – The Mariners
* "Stars & Stripes Forever" – Frankie Laine
* "Swingin' In A Hammock" – Guy Lombardo (Don Rodney & The Lombardo Trio vocals)
* "The Tennessee Waltz" – Patti Page
* "There's No Tomorrow" – Tony Martin
* "The Thing" – Phil Harris
* "Thinking of You" – Don Cherry
* "The Third Man Theme" from the film The Third Man, recorded by
** Anton Karas
** Guy Lombardo
* "With My Eyes Wide Open I'm Dreaming" – Patti Page

## Top R&B hits on record

* "Double Crossing Blues" – Johnny Otis with Little Esther & The Robins

## Published popular music

* "Adelaide's Lament" words and music: Frank Loesser
* "African Bolero" m. John Serry Sr.
* "American Beauty Rose" w.m. Hal David, Redd Evans & Arthur Altman
* "Be My Love" w. Sammy Cahn m. Nicholas Brodszky
* "The Best Thing For You" w.m. Irving Berlin
* "Blind Date" w.m. Sid Robin
* "A Bushel And A Peck" w.m. Frank Loesser
* "Candy And Cake" w.m. Bob Merrill
* "Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy" w.m. Harry Stone & Jack Stapp
* "Choo'n Gum" w. Mann Curtis m. Vic Mizzy
* "Cold, Cold Heart" w.m. Hank Williams
* "The Cry of the Wild Goose" w.m. Terry Gilkyson
* "Dearie" w.m. Bob Hilliard & David Mann
* "Domino" w. (Eng) Don Raye (Fr) Jacques Plante m. Louis Ferrari
* "Freight Train" w. Paul James & Fred Williams m. trad arr. Elizabeth Cotton
* "The French Can-Can Polka" w. Jimmy Kennedy m. Jacques Offenbach
* "From This Moment On" w.m. Cole Porter
* "Frosty the Snowman" w.m. Steve Nelson & Jack Rollins
* "Fugue For Tinhorns" w.m. Frank Loesser
* "Get Out Those Old Records" w.m. Carmen Lombardo & John Jacob Loeb
* "Gone Fishin'" w.m. Nick Kenny & Charles Kenny
* "Guys and Dolls" w.m. Frank Loesser
* "Home Cookin"' w.m. Jay Livingston & Ray Evans
* "Hoop-Dee-Doo" w. Frank Loesser m. Milton De Lugg
* "The Hostess With The Mostes' On The Ball" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Ethel Merman in the musical Call Me Madam
* "I Almost Lost My Mind" w.m. Ivory Joe Hunter
* "I Didn't Slip, I Wasn't Pushed, I Fell" w.m. Edward Pola & George Wyle
* "I Don't Care If The Sun Don't Shine" w.m. Mack David
* "I Leave My Heart in an English Garden" w.m. Harry Parr-Davies and Christopher Hassall from the musical Dear Miss Phoebe
* "I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat" w.m. Alan Livingston, Billy May & Warren Foster
* "If I Knew You Were Comin' I'd've Baked A Cake" w.m. Al Hoffman, Bob Merrill & Clem Watts
* "If I Were A Bell" w.m. Frank Loesser
* "I'll Know" w.m. Frank Loesser
* "I'll Never Be Free" w.m. Bennie Benjamin & George David Weiss
* "I'm Movin' On" w.m. Hank Snow
* "It Is No Secret" w.m. Stuart Hamblen
* "It's A Lovely Day Today" w.m. Irving Berlin
* "I've Never Been In Love Before" w.m. Frank Loesser
* "Ivory Rag" Lou Busch, Jack Elliott
* "Little White Duck" w.m. Walt Barrows & Bernard Zaritsky
* "The Loveliest Night of the Year" w. Paul Francis Webster m. Juventino P. Rosas
* "Luck Be a Lady" w.m. Frank Loesser
* "Lucky Lucky Lucky Me" Berle, Arnold
* "Marry The Man Today" w.m. Frank Loesser
* "Marrying For Love" w.m. Irving Berlin
* "More I Cannot Wish You" w.m. Frank Loesser
* "My Heart Cries For You" w.m. Carl Sigman & Percy Faith
* "My Time Of Day" w.m. Frank Loesser
* "No Other Love" adaptation from Chopin's Étude No. 3 in E major, Op. 10. w.m. Bob Russell & Paul Weston
* "The Old Piano Roll Blues" w.m. Cy Coben
* "The Oldest Established" w.m. Frank Loesser
* "Orange Colored Sky" w.m. Milton De Lugg & William Stein
* "Patricia" w.m. Benny Davis
* "(Remember Me) I'm the One Who Loves You" w.m. Stuart Hamblen
* "The Roving Kind" adapt. w.m. Jessie Cavanaugh & Arnold Stanton
* "Sam's Song" w. Jack Elliott m. Lew Quadling
* "Shot Gun Boogie" w.m. Tennessee Ernie Ford
* "Silver Bells" w.m. Jay Livingston & Ray Evans. Introduced by Bob Hope in the 1951 Musical film The Lemon Drop Kid.
* "Sit Down, You're Rockin' The Boat" w.m. Frank Loesser. Introduced by Stubby Kaye in the musical Guys and Dolls.
* "Sixty Minute Man" w.m. Billy Ward & Rose Marks
* "Sleigh Ride" w. Mitchell Parish m. Leroy Anderson
* "Sue Me" w.m. Frank Loesser
* "The Syncopated Clock" w. Mitchell Parish m. Leroy Anderson
* "Take Back Your Mink" w.m. Frank Loesser. Introduced by Vivian Blaine in the musical Guys and Dolls.
* "The Thing" w.m. Charles R. Grean
* "Tzena, Tzena, Tzena" adapt. trad Hebrew w. (Eng) Mitchell Parish m. Issachar Miron & Julius Grossman
* "You Don't Have to Be a Baby to Cry" w.m. Bob Merrill & Terry Shand
* "You're Just In Love" w.m. Irving Berlin

## Classical music
### Premieres

| Composer | Composition | Date | Location | Performers |
| Andriessen, Hendrik | Organ Concerto | 1950-11-01 | Amsterdam | Concertgebouw Orchestra – Monteux |
| Boulez, Pierre | Le Soleil des eaux (2nd version, subsequently withdrawn) | 1950-07-18 | Paris | Joachim, Mollet, Peyron / RTF National Orchestra – Désormière |
| Boulez, Pierre | Piano Sonata No. 2 (1948) | 1950-04-29 | Paris | Grimaud |
| Benjamin Britten | Five Flower Songs | 1950-07-23 | Darlington Hall, England | Imogen Holst conducting a student choir |
| Cage, John | String Quartet in Four Parts | 1950-08-12 | Black Mountain, North Carolina | Summer Session Quartet |
| Foss, Lukas | Song of Anguish | 1950-03-10 | Boston | Boston Symphony – Foss |
| Guridi, Jesús | String Quartet No. 2 | 1950-05-14 | Madrid | National Chamber Music Association |
| Hartmann, Karl Amadeus | Adagio (Symphony No. 2) | 1950-09-10 | Donaueschingen Festival, Germany | SWF Symphony – Rosbaud |
| Howells, Herbert | Hymnus Paradisi (1938) | 1950-09-07 | Gloucester, UK (Three Choirs Festival) | Baillie, William Herbert / London Symphony – Howells |
| Jolivet, André | Concerto for Flute and Strings | 1950-01-24 | Paris | Rampla / [unknown orchestra and conductor] |
| Khachaturian, Aram | Triumphal Poem | 1950-12-09 | Moscow | USSR Radio Symphony – Gauk |
| Martinu, Bohuslav | Intermezzo for Large Orchestra | 1950-12-29 | New York City | Louisville Orchestra – Whitney |
| Martinu, Bohuslav | Piano Trio No. 2 | 1950-05-19 | Cambridge, Massachusetts | Liepmann, Finckel, Tucker |
| Martinu, Bohuslav | Sinfonietta La Jolla | 1950-08-13 | San Diego, California | Orchestra of the Musical Arts Society of La Jolla – Sokoloff |
| Nono, Luigi | Variazioni canoniche sulla serie dell'op. 41 di Schoenberg | 1950-08-27 | Darmstädter Ferienkurse, Germany | Darmstadt Landestheater Orchestra – Scherchen |
| Prokofiev, Sergei | Cello Sonata (1949) | 1950-03-01 | Moscow | Rostropovich, Richter |
| Searle, Humphrey | Poem for 22 Strings | 1950-08-27 | Darmstädter Ferienkurse, Germany | Darmstadt Landestheater Orchestra – Scherchen |
| Strauss, Richard (d. 1949) | Four Last Songs (1948) | 1950-05-22 | Royal Albert Hall, London | Flagstad / Philharmonia Orchestra – Furtwängler |
| Villa-Lobos, Heitor | Montanhas de Brasil (Symphony No. 6) (1944) | 1950-04-29 | Rio de Janeiro | Rio de Janeiro Municipal Theatre Symphony – Villa-Lobos |
| Villa-Lobos, Heitor | Piano Concerto No. 2 (1948) | 1950-04-21 | Rio de Janeiro | João de Souza Lima [pt; de; ru] / Rio de Janeiro Municipal Theatre Symphony – Villa-Lobos |

### Compositions

* Hendrik Andriessen – Concerto for Organ and Orchestra
* Malcolm Arnold – English Dances for orchestra, Op. 27
* Alexander Arutiunian – Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra
* Arno Babajanian – Heroic Ballade
* Ernest Bloch – Suite hébraïque
* Karl-Birger Blomdahl – Symphony No. 3 Facetter
* Pierre Boulez –
** Polyphonie X
** Le soleil des eaux, for soprano, chorus and orchestra (second version)
* John Cage – String Quartet in Four Parts
* Carlos Chávez – Concerto for Violin and Orchestra
* Jani Christou – First Symphony
* Arnold Cooke – Trio for Violin, Viola and Cello
* George Crumb – A Cycle of Greek Lyrics for voice and piano
* Henri Dutilleux – Blackbird for piano
* Jesús Guridi – String Quartet in A minor
* Eivind Groven
** Hjalarljod Overture, Op. 38
** Piano Concerto, Op. 39a
* Karl Amadeus Hartmann – Symphony No. 5 Symphonie Concertante
* Hans Henkemans – Concerto for Violin and Orchestra
* Vagn Holmboe – Symphony No. 7
* Wojciech Kilar – Toccata for piano
* Ernst Krenek – Suite for String Trio Parvula Corona Musicalis
* Bohuslav Martinů –
** Concerto No. 2 for two violins and orchestra
** Duo No. 2, for Violin and Viola
** Intermezzo for Large Orchestra
** Sinfonietta La Jolla, in A major, for piano and chamber orchestra
** Trio No. 2, for violin, cello, and piano, in D minor
* Luigi Nono – Variazioni canoniche sulla serie dell’op.41 di A. Schönberg, for chamber orchestra
* Vincent Persichetti – Divertimento for Band
* Allan Pettersson – First Concerto for Strings
* Walter Piston – Symphony No.4
* Theodor Rogalski – Three Romanian Dances for orchestra
* Arnold Schoenberg –
** Psalm 130 "De profundis", Op. 50b
** Modern Psalm, Op. 50c (unfinished)
** Style and Idea (collection of essays and other works, translated by Dika Newlin)
* Humphrey Searle – Poem for 22 Strings
* John Serry Sr. –
** Eight Accordion Quartet Arrangements
** La Culebra, for flute & accordion
** African Bolero, for flute & accordion
* Karlheinz Stockhausen –
** Choral ("Wer uns trug mit Schmerzen in dies Leben"), for a cappella choir, Nr. 1/9 (1950)
** Chöre für Doris, for a cappella choir, Nr. $^1$/$_{11}$ (1950)
** Drei Lieder, for alto voice and chamber orchestra, Nr. 1/10 (1950)
* Heitor Villa-Lobos –
** String Quartet No. 12
** Symphony No. 8

## Opera

* Luigi Dallapiccola – Job
* Norman Dello Joio – The Triumph of Saint Joan
* Lukas Foss – The Jumping Frog of Calaveras County (opera in two scenes, libretto by Jean Karsavina, premiered on May 18, 1950, at Indiana University)
* Vittorio Giannini – The Taming of the Shrew
* Gian Carlo Menotti – The Consul

## Film

* Georges Auric - Orpheus
* Aram Khachaturian – Secret Mission (1950 film)
* Leith Stevens - Destination Moon
* Franz Waxman – Sunset Boulevard (film)

## Musical theatre

* Alive and Kicking – Broadway revue opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on January 17 and ran for 46 performances
* Call Me Madam (Music and Lyrics: Irving Berlin Book: Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse.) Broadway production opened at the Imperial Theatre on October 12 and ran for 644 performances.
* Carousel (Music: Richard Rodgers Lyrics and Book: Oscar Hammerstein II.) London production opened at the Drury Lane Theatre on June 7 and ran for 566 performances.
* Dear Miss Phoebe London production opened at the Phoenix Theatre on October 13 and ran for 283 performances
* Guys and Dolls (Music and Lyrics: Frank Loesser Book: Abe Burrows & Jo Swerling). Broadway production opened at the 46th Street Theatre on November 24 and ran for 1200 performances.
* The Highwayman Music, Lyrics & Book: Edmond Samuels. Australian production opened at the Kings Theatre, Melbourne on November 18
* Michael Todd's Peep Show Broadway revue opened at Winter Garden Theatre on June 28 and ran for 278 performances.
* Out Of This World (Music and Lyrics: Cole Porter Book: Dwight Taylor and Reginald Lawrence) Broadway production opened at the New Century Theatre on December 21 and ran for 157 performances.
* Peter Pan Lyrics and Music: Leonard Bernstein. Broadway production opened at the Imperial Theatre on April 24 and ran for 321 performances
* Tickets, Please! Broadway revue opened at the Coronet Theatre on April 27 and ran for 245 performances.

## Musical films

* Annie Get Your Gun (music and lyrics by Irving Berlin), starring Betty Hutton, Howard Keel, Louis Calhern and Keenan Wynn.
* Bhai Bahen, starring Geeta Bali and Bharat Bhushan.
* Canzoni per le strade, starring Luciano Taioli and Antonella Lualdi
* Cinderella, animated film featuring the voice of Ilene Woods and Verna Felton.
* Come Dance with Me featuring Anne Shelton and Anton Karas
* Cossacks of the Kuban (Kubanskie kazaki), starring Vladlen Davydov and Marina Ladynina
* Fancy Pants starring Bob Hope and Lucille Ball
* Hamara Ghar, starring Meena Kumari and Durga Khote
* I'll Get By starring June Haver, Gloria DeHaven and Dennis Day, and featuring Harry James.
* Mr. Music starring Bing Crosby and featuring Peggy Lee, Groucho Marx and Dorothy Kirsten.
* Mussorgsky, starring Aleksandr Borisov
* My Blue Heaven, starring Betty Grable and Dan Dailey
* Pagan Love Song starring Esther Williams and Howard Keel
* Samsaram, starring N. T. Rama Rao, Akkineni Nageswara Rao and Lakshmirajyam
* Singing Guns released February 28 starring Vaughn Monroe, Ella Raines, Walter Brennan and Ward Bond
* Tea For Two starring Doris Day and Gordon MacRae
* There's a Girl in My Heart starring Lee Bowman, Elyse Knox, Gloria Jean and Peggy Ryan
* Three Little Words starring Fred Astaire, Red Skelton and Vera Ellen, and featuring Helen Kane dubbing for Debbie Reynolds.
* The Chocolate Girl (La petite chocolatière), starring Giselle Pascal, Claude Dauphin and Henri Genès
* The Daughter of Rosie O'Grady, starring June Haver and Gordon MacRae
* The Toast of New Orleans starring Kathryn Grayson and Mario Lanza
* Two Weeks With Love starring Jane Powell, Ricardo Montalbán, Louis Calhern, Debbie Reynolds and Carleton Carpenter.
* The West Point Story starring James Cagney, Virginia Mayo, Doris Day and Gordon MacRae

## Births
### January – February

* January 1
** Morgan Fisher (Mott the Hoople)
** Steve Ripley (The Tractors)
* January 3 – Beth Anderson, American composer
* January 5 – Chris Stein, guitarist and co-founder of Blondie
* January 7 – Juan Gabriel, singer (died 2016)
* January 9 – David Johansen, proto-punk singer (New York Dolls)
* January 21 – Billy Ocean, singer
* January 23
** Bill Cunningham, American bass and keyboard player
** Luis Alberto Spinetta, "father of Argentine rock" (died 2012)
** Danny Federici (E Street Band)
* January 26 – Paul Pena, singer, songwriter and guitarist (died 2005)
* January 28 – Bob Hay, American singer-songwriter
* January 29 – Max Carl, American singer-songwriter, guitarist and keyboard player (Grand Funk Railroad)
* February 1 – Mike Campbell, American guitarist, songwriter and producer (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and Mudcrutch)
* February 2 – Ross Valory, American rock bass player (Journey and The Storm)
* February 3 – John Schlitt, American Christian rock singer (Petra and Head East)
* February 6 – Natalie Cole, African American singer, daughter of Nat King Cole (died 2015)
* February 12 – Steve Hackett, guitarist and composer (Genesis)
* February 13 – Peter Gabriel, singer and composer (Genesis)
* February 14 – Roger Fisher, American guitarist (Heart and Alias)
* February 15 – David Brown, bass guitarist (Santana) (died 2000)
* February 16 – Roman Tam, Chinese Cantopop singer (died 2002)
* February 19 – Andy Powell, rock guitarist (Wishbone Ash)
* February 20 – Walter Becker, jazz rock bass guitarist, songwriter and record producer (Steely Dan) (died 2017)
* February 24 – Pappo, Argentinian rock musician (died 2005)
* February 26
** Jonathan Cain, rock musician (Journey)
** Billy Steinberg, American songwriter (Madonna, The Veronicas, Cyndi Lauper)

### March – April

* March 2 – Karen Carpenter, singer (died 1983)
* March 11 – Katia Labèque, pianist
* March 20 – Carl Palmer, drummer (Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Asia)
* March 21 – Roger Hodgson (Supertramp)
* March 22 – David Golub, pianist and conductor (died 2000)
* March 26 – Teddy Pendergrass, singer (died 2010)
* March 27
** Tony Banks, rock keyboardist (Genesis)
** Maria Ewing, operatic soprano (died 2022)
* March 28 – Claudio Lolli, Italian novelist, singer and songwriter (died 2018)
* April 5 – Agnetha Fältskog, singer (ABBA)
* April 12
** David Cassidy, singer (died 2017)
** Ivar Frounberg, Danish composer and organist
* April 22 – Peter Frampton, singer
* April 24 – Rob Hyman (The Hooters)
* April 25 – Steve Ferrone (Average White Band)
* April 28 – Wilie Colón, Puerto Rican salsa musician

### May – June

* May 2 – Lou Gramm (Foreigner)
* May 3 – Mary Hopkin, singer
* May 4 – Darryl Hunt (The Pogues) (died 2022)
* May 7 – Prairie Prince, American rock drummer and graphic artist
* May 9 – Tom Petersson (Cheap Trick)
* May 12 – Billy Squier, singer-songwriter and guitarist
* May 13
** Stevie Wonder, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist
** Danny Kirwan, guitarist (Fleetwood Mac) (died 2018)
* May 16 – Ray Condo, singer, saxophonist, and guitarist (died 2004)
* May 18 – Mark Mothersbaugh (Devo)
* May 20 – Victor Lewis, American jazz drummer, composer, and educator
* May 22 – Bernie Taupin, lyricist
* May 29 – Rebbie Jackson, singer
* May 24 – Terry Scott Taylor, record producer
* June 1 – Graham Russell (Air Supply)
* June 3 – Suzi Quatro, rock singer
* June 5
** Ronnie Dyson, singer and actor (died 1990)
** Michael Monarch (Steppenwolf)
* June 19 – Ann Wilson (Heart)
* June 21 – Joey Kramer (Aerosmith)

### July – August

* July 4 – Tonio K, American singer-songwriter
* July 5
** Huey Lewis, singer and songwriter
** Michael Monarch, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer (Steppenwolf, Detective, and World Classic Rockers)
* July 10 – Greg Kihn, rock musician, radio personality and novelist.
* July 12 – Eric Carr (Kiss) (died 1991)
* July 14 – Gwen Guthrie, singer-songwriter (died 1999)
* July 18 – Glenn Hughes (Village People) (died 2001)
* July 19 – Freddy Moore, singer-songwriter
* July 23 – Blair Thornton (Bachman–Turner Overdrive)
* August 12 – Kid Creole, American singer
* August 13 – Pluto Shervington, Jamaican reggae singer (died 2024)
* August 18 – Dennis Elliott, British rock drummer (Foreigner)
* August 25 – Willy DeVille, American singer and songwriter (died 2009)

### September – October

* September 10 – Joe Perry, guitarist (Aerosmith)
* September 14 – Paul Kossoff, guitarist (Free) (died 1976)
* September 17 – Fee Waybill rock singer-songwriter (The Tubes)
* September 27 – Linda Lewis, singer (died 2023)
* October 1 – Elpida, singer
* October 2 – Mike Rutherford, musician and songwriter (Genesis)
* October 8 – Robert Kool Bell, singer (Kool and The Gang)
* October 12 – Lowell Lo, Hong Kong singer-songwriter, actor and film composer
* October 20 – Tom Petty, rock singer-songwriter and guitarist (died 2017)
* October 24 - May Pang, American former music executive. She worked for John Lennon and Yoko Ono as a personal assistant and production coordinator.

### November – December

* November 1 – Dan Peek (America) (died 2011)
* November 11 – Jim Peterik (Ides of March, Survivor)
* November 12 – Barbara Fairchild, American singer-songwriter
* November 18
** Graham Parker, British singer-songwriter
** Rudy Sarzo, Cuban-American bass player (Quiet Riot, Whitesnake, Dio, Blue Öyster Cult, Manic Eden, and Queensrÿche)
* November 20 – Gary Green (Gentle Giant)
* November 21
** Marie Bergman, Eurovision singer
** Livingston Taylor, singer-songwriter
* November 22
** Tina Weymouth, American musician, singer-songwriter, bassist (Talking Heads, Tom Tom Club)
** Steven Van Zandt (aka "Little Steven", "Miami Steve") (E Street Band)
* December 1 – Richard Keith [birth name Keith Thibodeaux], American drummer and actor
* December 5 – Camarón de la Isla, flamenco singer
* December 6 – Joe Hisaishi, Japanese composer and director
* December 8 – Dan Hartman, singer-songwriter (died 1994)
* December 9 – Joan Armatrading, singer-songwriter
* December 20 – Arturo Márquez, composer
* December 25 – Rockdrigo González, folk & rock singer-songwriter (died in earthquake 1985)
* December 28 – Alex Chilton (Box Tops, Big Star) (died 2010)

## Deaths

* January 1 – Kate Carney, English singer and comedian (born 1869)
* January 2 – Theophrastos Sakellaridis, Greek composer and conductor (born 1883)
* January 13 – Dimitrios Semsis, Greek violinist (born 1883)
* January 28 – Kansas Joe McCoy, American blues musician and songwriter (born 1905)
* February 10 – Armen Tigranian, Armenian composer (born 1879)
* February 26 – Sir Harry Lauder, Scottish singer, comedian and songwriter (born 1870)
* February 28 – Ernst Abert Couturier, cornet virtuoso, composer, inventor and instrument manufacturer (born 1869)
* March 2 – Milton Schwarzwald, film director and composer (born 1891)
* March 8 – Jaroslav Kocián, violinist, composer and teacher (born 1883)
* April 2 – Adolf Wiklund, Swedish composer (born 1879)
* April 3 – Kurt Weill, composer in many styles (born 1900)
* April 8 – Vaslav Nijinsky, ballet dancer (born 1889/90)
* April 23 – Gemma Bellincioni, operatic soprano (born 1864)
* April 27 — Karl Straube, German organist (born 1873)
* May 7 – Bertha "Chippie" Hill, blues singer and vaudeville performer (born 1905)
* May 13 – Pauline de Ahna, operatic soprano (born 1863)
* May 27 – Auguste Aramini, French singer (born 1875)
* June 9 – Joe Burke, pianist and composer (born 1884)
* June 26 – Antonina Nezhdanova, coloratura soprano (born 1873)
* July 1 – Émile Jaques-Dalcroze, developer of eurhythmics (born 1865)
* July 7 – Fats Navarro, jazz musician (born 1923)
* July 11 – Buddy DeSylva, songwriter (born 1895)
* July 26 – Papa Charlie McCoy, blues musician (born 1909)
* July 30 – Guilhermina Suggia, cellist (born 1885)
* August 3 – Georg Høeberg, composer and conductor (born 1872)
* August 8 – Nikolai Myaskovsky, Soviet composer and teacher of Polish birth (born 1881)
* August 26 – Giuseppe De Luca, operatic baritone (born 1876)
* September 5 – Al Killian, trumpeter and bandleader (born 1916)
* September 20 – Georges Mager, trumpet player (born 1885)
* October 11 – Emil Votoček, chemist, composer and music theorist (born 1862)
* October 15 – Clément Doucet, pianist (born 1895)
* October 23 – Al Jolson, singer and actor (born 1886)
* October 26 – Evelyn Suart, English pianist (born 1881)
* November 20 – Francesco Cilea, opera composer (born 1866)
* November 23 – Percival Mackey, English pianist, composer and bandleader (born 1894)
* December 2 – Dinu Lipatti, Romanian pianist and composer (born 1917; Hodgkin's disease)
* December 9 – Georg Hann, operatic bass-baritone (born 1897)
* December 22 – Julius Weismann, German composer and conductor (born 1879)
* December 26 – Ben Black, songwriter and impresario (born 1889)
* December 28 – Charles L. Johnson, composer of ragtime and popular music (born 1876)
* December 31 – Charles Koechlin, composer and teacher (born 1867)
* date unknown
** Jaime de Angulo, ethnomusicologist (born 1887)
** Edouard Espinosa, dancer, choreographer and teacher (born 1871)
** Cenobio Hernandez, composer (born 1863)
** Ray Perry, jazz musician (born 1915)