Timeline of musical events

Contents:
Ancient music – Early history – 1500s – 1510s – 1520s – 1530s – 1540s – 1550s – 1560s – 1570s – 1580s – 1590s – 1600s – 1610s – 1620s – 1630s – 1640s – 1650s – 1660s – 1670s – 1680s – 1690s – 1700s – 1710s – 1720s – 1730s – 1740s – 1750s – 1760s – 1770s – 1780s – 1790s – 1800s – 1810s – 1820s – 1830s – 1840s – 1850s – 1860s – 1870s – 1880s – 1890s – 1900s – 1910s – 1920s – 1930s – 1940s – 1950s – 1960s – 1970s – 1980s – 1990s – 2000s – 2010s – 2020s

This page indexes the individual year in music pages.

2020s[]

2021 in music, 2021 in British music, 2021 in American music
- Deaths of Gerry Marsden, Sophie, DMX
- Notable releases:
  - Black Country, New Road's For the First Time
  - Weezer's OK Human
  - Julien Baker's Little Oblivions
  - Lana Del Rey's Chemtrails over the Country Club
  - Taylor Swift's Fearless (Taylor's Version) and Red (Taylor's Version)
  - Olivia Rodrigo's SOUR
  - Doja Cat's Planet Her
  - Billie Eilish's Happier Than Ever
2020 in music, 2020 in British music, 2020 in American music
- Deaths of Neil Peart, Bob Shane, McCoy Tyner, Bill Withers, John Prine, Fred the Godson, Little Richard, Kenny Rogers, Florian Schneider, Joe Diffie, Charlie Daniels, Tim Smith, Eddie Van Halen, Mory Kanté, Krzysztof Penderecki, Ennio Morricone, MF Doom
- Notable releases:
  - Ariana Grande's Positions
  - Selena Gomez's Rare
  - Westside Gunn's Pray for Paris
  - Lady Gaga's Chromatica
  - Dua Lipa's Future Nostalgia
  - Yves Tumor's Heaven to a Tortured Mind
  - Fiona Apple's Fetch the Bolt Cutters
  - Phoebe Bridgers' Punisher
  - Kenshi Yonezu's Stray Sheep
  - Run the Jewels's RTJ4
  - Tame Impala's The Slow Rush
  - Halsey's Manic
  - Lil Uzi Vert's Eternal Atake
  - Testament's Titans of Creation
  - Taylor Swift's Folklore and Evermore
  - The Microphones's Microphones in 2020
  - Paul McCartney's McCartney III
  - BTS' Map of the Soul: 7 and Be
  - Blackpink's The Album
  - NCT's Neo Zone and NCT 2020 Resonance
  - Twice's Eyes Wide Open
  - Stray Kids' Go Live
  - Yukika Teramoto's Soul Lady
  - BoA's Better
  - Taemin's Never Gonna Dance Again
  - Tomorrow X Together's Minisode1: Blue Hour
- The COVID-19 pandemic results in the cancellation or postponement of numerous music-related events scheduled to take place this year, including major tours, festivals and television appearances.

2010s[]

2019 in music, 2019 in American music, 2019 in British music, 2019 in Canadian music
Deaths of Michel Legrand, André Previn, Doris Duke, Peggy Lipton, Doris Day, Dr. John, João Gilberto, Ric Ocasek, Ginger Baker, Juice WRLD, Keith Flint
- Notable releases:
  - Maggie Rogers’ Heard It In A Past Life
  - Ariana Grande's Thank U, Next
  - Madonna's Madame X
  - Bring Me The Horizon's Amo^[1]
  - Lewis Capaldi's Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent
  - Tool's Fear Inoculum^[2]
  - Tyler, The Creator's Igor
  - Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss' musical Six (originally performed in 2017) debuts in the West End
  - Charli XCX's Charli
  - Lana Del Rey's Norman F***ing Rockwell!
  - Taylor Swift's Lover
  - FKA Twigs's Magdalene
  - Freddie Gibbs & Madlib's Bandana
  - Weyes Blood's Titanic Rising
  - Carly Rae Jepsen's Dedicated
  - Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds' Ghosteen
  - DaBaby' Baby on Baby
  - BTS' Map of the Soul: Persona
  - Billie Eilish's When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?
2018 in music, 2018 in American music, 2018 in British music, 2018 in Canadian music, 2018 in Danish music, 2018 in Finnish music, 2018 in Icelandic music, 2018 in Japanese music, 2018 in Norwegian music, 2018 in Philippine music, 2018 in Scandinavian music, 2018 in South Korean music, 2018 in Swedish music
- Deaths of Hugh Masekela, Tom Rapp, Vic Damone, Fredo Santana, Craig Mack, Avicii, XXXTentacion, Jimmy Wopo, Joe Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Mac Miller, Dolores O'Riordan, Charles Aznavour, Pete Schelley
- Notable releases:
  - Ariana Grande's Sweetener
  - Christina Aguilera's Liberation
  - Earl Sweatshirt's Some Rap Songs
  - Car Seat Headrest's Twin Fantasy (Face to Face), a reworking of their 2011 album Twin Fantasy
  - Migos' Culture II
  - Nasty C's Strings and Bling
  - Camila Cabello's self-titled album
  - Panic! At the Disco's Pray for the Wicked
  - Kendrick Lamar's Black Panther: The Album for the 2018 Marvel Cinematic Universe film Black Panther
  - Cardi B's Invasion of Privacy
  - Kacey Musgraves's Golden Hour
  - Parquet Courts' Wide Awake!
  - A Perfect Circle's Eat the Elephant
  - Kanye West's Ye
  - Nas's NASIR
  - Mac Miller's Swimming
  - Eminem's Kamikaze
  - Paul McCartney's Egypt Station
  - Brockhampton's Iridescence
  - Kids See Ghosts's self-titled album
  - Daughters' You Won't Get What You Want
  - Noname's Room 25
2017 in music, 2017 in American music, 2017 in British music, 2017 in Canadian music, 2017 in Danish music, 2017 in Finnish music, 2017 in Icelandic music, 2017 in Japanese music, 2017 in Norwegian music, 2017 in Philippine music, 2017 in Scandinavian music, 2017 in South Korean music, 2017 in Swedish music
- Deaths of Tom Petty, Chester Bennington, Al Jarreau, Fats Domino, Allan Holdsworth, Chuck Berry, J. Geils, John Wetton, Larry Coryell, Svend Asmussen, Chris Cornell, Gregg Allman, Butch Trucks, Rosalie Sorrels, Prodigy, Glen Campbell, Walter Becker, Grant Hart, Walter "Junie" Morrison, Jaki Liebezeit, Holger Czukay, David Cassidy, Johnny Hallyday, Keely Smith, Malcolm Young, Pierre Henry and Lil Peep
- The One Love Manchester event takes place after the devastating Manchester Arena bomb attacks, following an Ariana Grande concert.
- Notable releases:
  - Katy Perry's Witness
  - Taylor Swift's Reputation
  - Imagine Dragons's Evolve
  - Jay Z's 4:44
  - Linkin Park's One More Light
  - Sepultura's Machine Messiah
  - The xx's I See You
  - Sam Smith's The Thrill of It All
  - Stormzy's Gang Signs & Prayer
  - Demi Lovato's Tell Me You Love Me
  - Dua Lipa's self-titled debut album
  - Sampha's Process
  - Ed Sheeran's ÷
  - Lorde's Melodrama
  - Pasek and Paul's soundtrack to the 20th Century Fox musical film The Greatest Showman
  - Kendrick Lamar's DAMN.
  - Rag'n'Bone Man's Human
  - SZA's Ctrl
  - Drake's More Life
  - Smino's blkswn
  - Tyler, The Creator's Flower Boy
  - BROCKHAMPTON's Saturation, Saturation II, and Saturation III
  - Rex Orange County's Apricot Princess
  - Father John Misty's Pure Comedy
- Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee, remixing with Justin Bieber release the record breaking hit single Despacito.
2016 in music, 2016 in American music, 2016 in Asian music, 2016 in Brazilian music,2016 in British music, 2016 in Canadian music, 2016 in Chinese music, 2016 in Danish music, 2016 in European music (Continental Europe), 2016 in Finnish music, 2016 in French music, 2016 in German music, 2016 in Icelandic music, 2016 in Indian music, 2016 in Irish music, 2016 in Japanese music, 2016 in Malaysian music, 2016 in Norwegian music, 2016 in Philippine music, 2016 in Scandinavian music, 2016 in South Korean music, 2016 in Swedish music, 2016 in Vietnamese music
- Deaths of Juan Gabriel, Paul Bley, Pierre Boulez, Elizabeth Swados, David Bowie, Paul Kantner, Glenn Frey, Leif Solberg, Harald Devold, George Martin, Naná Vasconcelos, Keith Emerson, Merle Haggard, Christina Grimmie, Glenn Yarbrough, Dan Hicks, Maurice White, Pete Burns, John Berry, Vanity, Prince, Oscar Brand, Mose Allison, Nick Menza, the members of Viola Beach, Fred Hellerman, Leonard Cohen, Leon Russell, Sharon Jones, Phife Dawg, Greg Lake and George Michael
- Notable releases:
  - David Bowie's Blackstar
  - Chance the Rapper's Coloring Book
  - Leonard Cohen's You Want It Darker
  - Gwen Stefani's This Is What the Truth Feels Like
  - Ariana Grande's Dangerous Woman
  - Britney Spears' Glory
  - A Tribe Called Quest's We Got It from Here... Thank You 4 Your Service
  - Nick Jonas's Last Year Was Complicated
  - Bruno Mars's 24K Magic
  - Post Malone's Stoney
  - Green Day's Revolution Radio
  - Blink-182's California
  - Lady Gaga's Joanne
  - Beyoncé's Lemonade
  - Drake's Views
  - Rihanna's Anti
  - Tove Lo's Lady Wood
  - The Weeknd's Starboy
  - Avenged Sevenfold's The Stage
  - Metal Church's XI
  - Metallica's Hardwired... to Self-Destruct
  - Megadeth's Dystopia
  - Anthrax's For All Kings
  - Testament's Brotherhood of the Snake
  - Bon Jovi's This House Is Not for Sale
  - Kanye West's The Life of Pablo
  - Solange's A Seat at the Table
  - Panic! at the Disco's Death of a Bachelor
  - Kendrick Lamar's Untitled Unmastered
  - Childish Gambino's "Awaken, My Love!"
  - Kings of Leon's Walls
  - Frank Ocean's Blonde
  - Justin Timberlake's record breaking single "Can't Stop the Feeling" (from the soundtrack to the DreamWorks Animation film Trolls).
2015 in music, 2015 in American music, 2015 in Australian music, 2015 in British music, 2015 in Canadian music, 2015 in Danish music, 2015 in European music (Continental Europe), 2015 in Finnish music, 2015 in Icelandic music, 2015 in Indian music, 2015 in Irish music, 2015 in Japanese music, 2015 in Philippine music, 2015 in South Korean music, 2015 in Norwegian music, 2015 in Swedish music
- Deaths of Lemmy, Clark Terry, Erik Amundsen, Rod McKuen, John Eaton, Lesley Gore, Percy Sledge, Ben E. King, B.B. King, Jean Ritchie, Ronnie Gilbert, Ornette Coleman, Theodore Bikel, Bob Johnston, Kurt Masur, Nora Brockstedt, Scott Weiland, Svein Christiansen, Gary Richrath, Dallas Taylor, Kim Fowley, and Natalie Cole.
- Notable releases:
  - Twenty One Pilots's Blurryface
  - Coldplay's A Head Full of Dreams
  - Blur's The Magic Whip
  - Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp A Butterfly
  - Breaking Benjamin's Dark Before Dawn
  - Disturbed's Immortalized
  - Jeff Lynne's ELO's Alone in the Universe
  - Sufjan Stevens's Carrie & Lowell
  - Travis Scott's Rodeo
  - Adele's 25
  - Iron Maiden's The Book of Souls
  - Tame Impala's Currents
  - Slayer's Repentless
  - Madonna's Rebel Heart
  - Marius Neset's Pinball
  - Dag Arnesen's Grieg, Tveitt & I
  - Olga Konkova Trio's The Goldilocks Zone
  - Death Grips's The Powers That B
  - Pentatonix's self-titled
  - Lin-Manuel Miranda's Hamilton
  - Faith No More's Sol Invictus
  - Demi Lovato's Confident
  - Selena Gomez's Revival
  - Björk's Vulnicura
- Silento releases his hit song Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae), that creates a viral dance trend.
- Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth releases See You Again for the film, Furious 7, as a tribute to Paul Walker, who died in a car crash.
- Jerry Lee Lewis embarks on a final tour of the UK.
2014 in music, 2014 in American music, 2014 in Australian music, 2014 in Brazilian music, 2014 in British music, 2014 in Canadian music, 2014 in European music (Continental Europe), 2014 in Irish music, 2014 in Japanese music, 2014 in Norwegian music, 2014 in Philippine music, 2014 in South Korean music, 2014 in Swedish music
- Death of Phil Everly, Pete Seeger, Casey Kasem, Bobby Womack, Tommy Ramone, Johnny Winter, Paco De Lucia, Jack Bruce, Bobby Keys, Joe Cocker
- Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney perform together on 50th anniversary celebration to the Beatles, with performances by various artists.
- Notable releases:
  - Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett's Cheek to Cheek
  - Ed Sheeran's x
  - Linkin Park's The Hunting Party
  - Slipknot's .5: The Gray Chapter
  - Coldplay's Ghost Stories
  - Jackie Evancho's Awakening
  - Taylor Swift's 1989
  - Jake Bugg's Shangri-La
  - Sia's 1000 Forms of Fear
  - Bob Dylan's The Bootleg Series Vol. 11: The Basement Tapes Complete
  - J. Cole's 2014 Forest Hills Drive
  - U2's Songs of Innocence
  - Beck's Morning Phase
  - Aphex Twin's Syro
  - Babymetal's self-titled debut album
  - Sam Smith's In the Lonely Hour
  - Nicki Minaj's Pinkprint
  - Pharrell Williams's Girl
  - Exodus' Blood In, Blood Out
  - Pink Floyd's The Endless River
- Mark Ronson teams up with Bruno Mars to record the number one hit single Uptown Funk
2013 in music, 2013 in American music, 2013 in Australian music, 2013 in British music, 2013 in Canadian music, 2013 in European music (Continental Europe), 2013 in Irish music, 2013 in Japanese music, 2013 in Norwegian music, 2013 in South Korean music, 2013 in Swedish music
- Death of Patti Page, Cecil Womack, Lil Snupe, Alvin Lee, Clive Burr, Jeff Hanneman, Lou Reed, and Ray Manzarek.
- Notable releases:
  - Robert and 's soundtrack to the 53rd Disney animated feature Frozen (the highest animated film at the time),
  - Lorde's Pure Heroine
  - Lady Gaga's Artpop
  - Katy Perry's Prism
  - Justin Timberlake's The 20/20 Experience
  - Chance The Rapper's Acid Rap
  - Tyler, The Creator's Wolf
  - Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories
  - Jay-Z's Magna Carta Holy Grail
- Comedy duo Ylvis, releases their viral song, What Does the Fox Say.
- Film star Anna Kendrick releases Cups (When I'm Gone) (featured on the soundtrack to the film Pitch Perfect)
2012 in music, 2012 in American music, 2012 in Asian music, 2012 in Australian music, 2012 in British music, 2012 in Canadian music, 2012 in European music (Continental Europe), 2012 in Norwegian music, 2012 in Irish music, 2012 in Japanese music, 2012 in Swedish music, 2012 in South Korean music
- Death of Ian Bargh, Whitney Houston, Etta James, Ravi Shankar, Davy Jones, Robert B. Sherman, Earl Scruggs, Levon Helm, Adam Yauch, Donna Summer, Robin Gibb, Doc Watson, Bob Welch, Kitty Wells, Jon Lord, Andy Williams, Jenni Rivera, Mitch Lucker, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Dave Brubeck and Richard Rodney Bennett.
- The Beach Boys embark on a 2012 world tour celebrating their 50th Anniversary.
- Swedish House Mafia announce their break up and embark on One Last Tour.
- English singer-songwriter Jake Bugg releases his debut album, Jake Bugg.
- Madonna's 12th studio album is released, entitled MDNA. It tops the charts across the globe including the United Kingdom where she becomes the solo artist with the most number one albums and the UK breaks the iTunes pre-order record.^[3] To support the album she embarks on The MDNA Tour which grosses over $305 million and becomes the second highest grossing female tour, behind her own Sticky and Sweet Tour.
- South Korean pop singer Psy releases his album Psy 6 (Six Rules), Part 1, which includes the viral dance song, Gangnam Style, that becomes the most viewed YouTube video for 5 years.
- Nicki Minaj releases her album Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded
- Kesha releases Warrior
- Taylor Swift releases Red
- Tame Impala releases Lonerism
- Kendrick Lamar releases good kid, m.A.A.d city
- Frank Ocean releases Channel Orange
2011 in music, 2011 in American music, 2011 in British music, 2011 in Canadian music, 2011 in European music (Continental Europe), 2011 in Irish music, 2011 in Japanese music, 2011 in Norwegian music, 2011 in Swedish music
- Death of Gerry Rafferty, Gary Moore, George Shearing, Mike Starr, Ferlin Husky, Gil Scott-Heron, Clarence Clemons, Amy Winehouse, Sylvia Robinson, Bert Jansch, and Dobie Gray.
- English singer Adele released the album 21, which had sold 26.4 million copies worldwide according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, became the best selling album in the past 15 years, and also won six Grammys.
- Lady Gaga releases her iconic album Born This Way
- Jessie J releases her debut studio album, Who You Are
- LMFAO release the album Sorry for Party Rocking
- Vektroid release the album Floral Shoppe
- Robert Lopez and South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone team up and create the musical The Book of Mormon.
- Gotye releases the album Making Mirrors, which features the number one hit single "Somebody That I Used to Know"
- Rebecca Black releases her debut single, Friday, to scathing reviews, and being the most disliked YouTube video until it was taken down 6 months later.
2010 in music, 2010 in American music, 2010 in Australian music, 2010 in British music, 2010 in European music (Continental Europe), 2010 in Irish music, 2010 in Japanese music, 2010 in Norwegian music, 2010 in Swedish music
- Tour of Jerry Lee Lewis.
- Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax perform together for the first time as part of the Big 4 shows.
- Death of Teddy Pendergrass, Ed Thigpen, Kate McGarrigle, Ronnie James Dio, Peter Steele, Paul Gray, Lena Horne, Jimmy Dean, Tuli Kupferberg, Eddie Fisher, Joan Sutherland and Bobby Farrell.
- Notable releases:
  - Gorillaz's Plastic Beach
  - Nicki Minaj's Pink Friday
  - Kanye West's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
  - Katy Perry's Teenage Dream
  - CeeLo Green's The Lady Killer
  - Kesha releases her first studio album, Kesha, as well as her first EP, Cannibal.
  - Yolanda Be Cool's "We No Speak Americano"
  - Bruno Mars's Doo-Wops and Hooligans
  - Australian musical project Tame Impala releases his debut album Innerspeaker

2000s[]

Live 8 concerts took place in 9 countries worldwide during 2005.

2009 in music, 2009 in British music, 2009 in Canadian music, 2009 in Irish music, 2009 in Japanese music, 2009 in Norwegian music, 2009 in South Korean music
- Deaths of Michael Jackson, James Owen Sullivan, Leon Kirchner, Les Paul, Ali Akbar Khan, Merce Cunningham, Ron Asheton, Henri Pousseur, Mary Travers, Stephen Gately, and Alain Bashung.
- Lady Gaga releases The Fame Monster
- Britney Spears releases her comeback album Circus which receives critical acclaim.
- Flo Rida releases his studio album R.O.O.T.S.. His lead single "Right Round" introduces future pop star Kesha to a mainstream audience.
- Noel Gallagher departs from Oasis after 18 years.
- Phoenix release Lisztomania
- Animal Collective releases Merriweather Post Pavilion
- Owl City releases Ocean Eyes
- Michael Bublé release Crazy Love
- The Heavy release The House That Dirt Built
- The Black Eyed Peas release The E.N.D
Debut of:
- Susan Boyle's I Dreamed a Dream
2008 in music, 2008 in British music, 2008 in Canadian music, 2008 in Irish music, 2008 in Japanese music, 2008 in Norwegian music, 2008 in South Korean music
- Deaths of Mauricio Kagel, Artie Traum, Wilfrid Mellers, LeRoi Moore, Erik Darling, Isaac Hayes, Bo Diddley, Richard Wright, Nick Reynolds, Mitch Mitchell, Miriam Makeba, Odetta, Eartha Kitt, Freddie Hubbard, and Robert Hazard.
- Mariah Carey's "Touch My Body" becomes her 18th U.S. chart-topper, setting the record for most U.S. number ones singles by a solo artist – only behind The Beatles with 20 – and most weeks at number one on the Hot 100 chart with a total of 79.
- Lil Wayne released Tha Carter III and sold 1 million copies in the first week, becoming the best selling album of 2008.
- Madonna's Sticky and Sweet Tour becomes the highest grossing female tour of all-time (surpassing her own record) and then the highest grossing solo tour of all time. It promotes her 11th studio album Hard Candy which sells 4 million copies and includes the international hit song "4 Minutes".
- Kanye West's 808s & Heartbreak
- Lady Gaga's first studio album, The Fame
- Katy Perry releases her first studio album, One of the Boys
- Taylor Swift's second studio album, Fearless releases.
2007 in music, 2007 in British music, 2007 in Canadian music, 2007 in Irish music, 2007 in Japanese music, 2007 in Norwegian music, 2007 in South Korean music
- Deaths of Beverly Sills, Max Roach, Oscar Peterson, Izumi Sakai, Luciano Pavarotti, Karlheinz Stockhausen, and Don Arden.
- Live Earth and Led Zeppelin reunion.
- Radiohead splits from EMI and independently releases In Rainbows with an online download method of payment that allows the buyer to choose their price.
- The Mars Volta releases one of the first USB flash drive albums, as part of their The Bedlam in Goliath.
- Kanye West releases Graduation
2006 in music, 2006 in British music, 2006 in Irish music, 2006 in Norwegian music, 2006 in South Korean music, 2006 in Swiss music
- Jack Johnson's Sing-A-Longs and Lullabies for the Film Curious George to the Universal Studios' animated feature Curious George
- Taylor Swift releases her debut album, Taylor Swift
- Amy Winehouse releases Back to Black
- My Chemical Romance release The Black Parade
- Rihanna releases A Girl like Me
- Evanescence releases The Open Door
- Deaths of James Brown and Syd Barrett.
2005 in music, 2005 in British music, 2005 in Irish music, 2005 in Norwegian music, 2005 in South Korean music, 2005 in Swiss music
- After four years, Gorillaz release their second studio album, Demon Days.
- Mariah Carey releases her 10-million selling The Emancipation of Mimi, the best-selling album of the year worldwide, alongside the album's second single "We Belong Together", the year's most successful single, and the Song of the Decade 2000–2009.
- Death of Luther Vandross and John Herald.
- Pink Floyd reunion for Live 8.
- R. Kelly releases his opera series Trapped in the Closet.
- Madonna releases Confessions on a Dance Floor, her 10th studio album. It wins a Grammy award, Brit award, sells in excess of 12 million copies and has the worldwide hit "Hung Up" which tops the charts in a record-breaking 41 countries.^[4]
- Kanye West releases his album Late Registration
- Musicals first performed:
  - Monty Python member Eric Idle releases the Monty Python musical Spamalot
  - Elton John's musical adaptation of the British drama film Billy Elliot, which features the song "Electricity"
  - Bob Gaudio's biopic Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons musical Jersey Boys
- Debuts by:
  - Bullet for My Valentine's The Poison
2004 in music, 2004 in British music, 2004 in Irish music, 2004 in Norwegian music, 2004 in South Korean music
- Death of Ray Charles and Dimebag Darrell.
- Danger Mouse releases The Grey Album, sparking days of electronic disobedience by Internet file sharers against EMI.
- Green Day releases American Idiot to critical acclaim.
- Canadian singer Celine Dion became recipient of the Diamond award, and she was honored in 2004 by World Music Awards receiving the best selling female artist of all time.
- Debut by:
  - Kanye West The College Dropout
- Notable releases:
  - Moldovan pop band O-Zone release "Dragostea Din Tei", going on to become an Internet sensation.
2003 in music, 2003 in British music, 2003 in Irish music, 2003 in Norwegian music, 2003 in South Korean music
- Death of Nina Simone, Celia Cruz, June Carter Cash, Johnny Cash, Herbie Mann, and John Serry Sr..
- Debut by:
  - Beyoncé Dangerously in Love
- Notable releases:
  - Linkin Park's Meteora
  - Stephen Schwartz's musical Wicked
  - Outkast's Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
  - Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx's Avenue Q
  - Evanescence's Fallen
  - The Black Eyed Peas's Elephunk
2002 in music, 2002 in British music, 2002 in Norwegian music, 2002 in South Korean music
- Deaths of Waylon Jennings, Dave Van Ronk, Layne Staley, Lisa Left-Eye Lopes, Lonnie Donegan, John Entwistle and Joe Strummer.
- Beginning of American Idol (initially titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar) which brings the arrival of first winner Kelly Clarkson.
- Alan Jackson releases Drive.
- Eminem releases The Eminem Show and "Lose Yourself" from his film 8 Mile, the first rap song of its kind to win an Academy Award for Best Original Song.
- Justin Timberlake releases his debut album Justified.
- Marc Shaiman's musical adaptation of the film Hairspray first performed.
- Junior Senior release D-D-Don't Don't Stop the Beat.
2001 in music, 2001 in British music, 2001 in Norwegian music, 2001 in South Korean music
- Deaths of Mimi Fariña, Chet Atkins, Aaliyah, George Harrison, John Lee Hooker, John Phillips, Perry Como, Isaac Stern, and Chuck Schuldiner
- Duran Duran is reunited with the original five members and goes on tour for the first time since 1985.
- Michael Jackson's last studio album Invincible released.
- Gorillaz' self-titled debut album is released.
- Kylie Minogue releases Fever
- Comedy legend Mel Brooks' musical adaptation of the 1967 film The Producers first performed, starring Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick.
- Basement Jaxx release Rooty
- Napster's popularity peaks.
- Metallica and Dr. Dre sue Napster over illegal distribution of their music.
- Debuts by:
  - Avenged Sevenfold's Sounding the Seventh Trumpet
  - My Chemical Romance’s “I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love”
2000 in music, 2000 in British music, 2000 in Norwegian music, 2000 in South Korean music
- Mariah Carey becomes the Best-Selling Artist of the Millennium according to the World Music Awards.
- Britney Spears' Oops!... I Did It Again sells over 23 million copies and becomes the best-selling album by a female artist of the decade.
- Blink-182 enjoy mainstream success (mainly from their hit single "All the Small Things") and lead pop-punk into the 21st Century.
- Madonna releases her album Music, which goes on to sell 15 million copies, becomes universally acclaimed, and gets nominated for 5 Grammy awards. It follows her 1998 comeback Ray of Light.
- Debuts by:
  - Linkin Park's Hybrid Theory
  - Coldplay's Parachutes
  - Craig David's Born to Do It
- Notable releases
  - Eminem's The Marshall Mathers LP
  - Baha Men's Who Let the Dogs Out?
  - Outkast's Stankonia
  - Ayumi Hamasaki's Duty
  - The Beatles's 1

List of 10 best-selling albums of the 2000s[]

The Beatles – 1 – 31 million^[5] – 2000
Norah Jones – Come Away with Me – 26 million^[6] – 2002
Backstreet Boys – Black & Blue – 24 million^[7]^[8] – 2000
Linkin Park – Hybrid Theory – 24 million^[9] – 2000
Britney Spears – Oops!... I Did It Again – 20 million^[10] – 2000
Usher – Confessions – 20 million^[11] – 2004
Eminem – The Eminem Show – 19 million^[12] – 2002
Eminem – The Marshall Mathers LP – 19 million^[12]^[13] – 2000
Avril Lavigne – Let Go – 17 million^[14] – 2002
Evanescence – Fallen – 17 million^[15] – 2003

1990s[]

1999 in music, 1999 in British music, 1999 in Norwegian music, 1999 in South Korean music
- Arrival of Britney Spears, Coldplay, Jenni Rivera, Christina Aguilera, Jessica Simpson, Slipknot, Muse and Jennifer Lopez.
- Deaths of Barış Manço, Rick Danko, Scatman John and Curtis Mayfield.
- Notable releases:
  - Blink-182's Enema of the State
  - Fatboy Slim's You've Come a Long Way, Baby
  - Lynda Thomas' Mi Día de la Independencia
  - Jamiroquai's Synkronized
  - Backstreet Boys' Millennium
  - Lou Bega's "Mambo No. 5"
  - Ricky Martin's "Livin' la Vida Loca"
  - Utada Hikaru's "First Love"
- Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus's ABBA musical Mamma Mia! first performed.
1998 in music, 1998 in British music, 1998 in Norwegian music, 1998 in South Korean music
- Deaths of:
  - Frank Sinatra
  - Hide
  - Linda McCartney
- Lauryn Hill releases The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill.
- Neutral Milk Hotel releases In the Aeroplane Over the Sea.
- The Offspring releases Americana.
- "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" by Aerosmith, from the Michael Bay film Armageddon, becomes the first song by a rock band to debut at No. 1.
- Insane Clown Posse gets dropped from the Walt Disney Company's record label Hollywood Records after the release of The Great Milenko, in order for Disney to prevent a violent Southern Baptist Church protest due to Walt Disney World's Gay Days events.
- Madonna releases her seventh studio album Ray of Light which goes on to sell over 16 million copies, become universally acclaimed and win 4 Grammy Awards.
- Robbie Williams releases I've Been Expecting You
- Andrea Bocelli and Celine Dion release The Prayer from the animated Warner Bros. film Quest for Camelot
- Geri Halliwell leaves the Spice Girls
- Death releases their final album The Sound of Perseverance.
1997 in music, 1997 in British music, 1997 in Norwegian music
- Debuts of Backstreet Boys and Robbie Williams (after leaving Take That)
- Death of John Denver, Jeff Buckley, Townes Van Zandt, The Notorious B.I.G., Michael Hutchence, and Velvet.
- Notable releases:
  - Radiohead's OK Computer
  - Mariah Carey's #1's, selling 17 million copies.
  - Blur release the single "Song 2" to a chart-topping success.
  - Celine Dion's Let's Talk About Love, which sold over 31 million copies worldwide. Lead single "My Heart Will Go On", from the James Cameron film Titanic, became the best selling single of the year and the second best selling single by a female artist of all time.
  - Elton John and Tim Rice's musical version of the Disney Animation film The Lion King
  - The Verve's Urban Hymns
  - Shania Twain's Come On Over
  - Daft Punk's Homework
  - Björk's Homogenic
  - Janet Jackson's The Velvet Rope
1996 in music, 1996 in British music, 1996 in Norwegian music
- Death of Ella Fitzgerald, Tupac Shakur, Zeki Müren and Brad Nowell.
- Arrival of Lynda Thomas, Spice Girls.
- Guns N' Roses break up, later reuniting for 2008's Chinese Democracy.
- Pink Floyd disband.
- Celine Dion released the album Falling into You, selling over 32 million copies worldwide.
- Max Cavalera leaves Sepultura, later going on to form Soulfly.
- Notable releases:
  - Sepultura's Roots
  - Jonathan Larson's Rent
  - Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance
  - Jamiroquai's Travelling Without Moving
  - Spice Girls' Spice
  - Robert Miles' Dreamland
- Debut album:
  - Supergrass's I Should Coco
1995 in music, 1995 in British music, 1995 in Norwegian music
- A year after they debuted in the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest, the dance show Riverdance is first performed.
- Michael Jackson releases HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I, the best-selling multi-disc album of all time.^[16]^[17] This double album contains "You Are Not Alone" – the first single ever to enter the Billboard Hot 100 at number one.^[18]
- Death of Jerry Garcia, Dean Martin, Phyllis Hyman, Selena, Burl Ives, and Eazy-E.
- Mariah Carey becomes the first female artist in history to have a song debut at number one with Fantasy.
- Coolio and L.V. release the award-winning single "Gangsta's Paradise" from the film Dangerous Minds
- Mariah Carey and band Boyz II Men releases the multiple-record holding "One Sweet Day", the single with the most weeks at number and the Song of the Decade 1990–1999.
- Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli first performs and releases the acclaimed opera song "Con te partirò".
- Italian DJ Robert Miles releases his debut single "Children" to universal acclaim.
- Los del Río release "Macarena", the record breaking dance song of all time.
- Queen releases their final album Made in Heaven following the death of frontman Freddie Mercury.
- Notable releases:
  - Death's Symbolic
  - The Smashing Pumpkins' Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
  - Radiohead's The Bends
  - Scatman John's Scatman's World featuring the hit song "Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop)"
1994 in music, 1994 in British music, 1994 in Norwegian music
- Deaths of:
  - Dinah Shore
  - Kurt Cobain
- Debuts by:
  - Oasis (Definitely Maybe)
  - Weezer (The Blue Album)
  - Brandy (Brandy)
  - Nas (Illmatic)
  - The Notorious B.I.G. (Ready to Die)
- Other albums released:
  - Pink Floyd's The Division Bell, their last album until 2014's The Endless River.
  - Madonna's Bedtime Stories
  - Blur's Parklife
  - Green Day's major-label debut, Dookie, with the hits "Longview", "Welcome to Paradise", "Basket Case", "When I Come Around" and "She".
  - The Offspring's Smash
  - Common's Resurrection
  - Soundgarden's Superunknown
  - R.E.M.'s Monster
  - NOFX's Punk in Drublic
  - Nine Inch Nails' The Downward Spiral
  - Bad Religion's Stranger Than Fiction. With this album, the band earned their first (and only) US gold record in its 15-year career.
  - Mariah Carey's Merry Christmas, with its multi-platinum lead single "All I Want for Christmas Is You", which eventually becomes the nineteenth best-selling digital single of the 20th century.
  - Beck's major-label debut, Mellow Gold.
1993 in music, 1993 in British music, 1993 in Norwegian music
- Debuts by:
  - Cynic (Focus)
  - Rancid (Rancid)
  - Snoop Doggy Dogg (Doggystyle)
  - Tool (Undertow)
  - Wu-Tang Clan (Enter the Wu-Tang)
- Nirvana release their final album, titled In Utero.
- Birth of Ariana Grande
- Deaths of Frank Zappa, Marian Anderson, and Dizzy Gillespie.
- Mariah Carey releases her 32-million selling Music Box album.
- Bad Religion signs to Atlantic Records, where the band later achieves success.
- Other albums released:
  - Death's Individual Thought Patterns
  - Duran Duran's The Wedding Album
  - Morbid Angel's Covenant
  - Pestilence's Spheres
  - Sepultura's Chaos A.D.
  - Sting's Ten Summoner's Tales
1992 in music, 1992 in British music, 1992 in Norwegian music
- Debut albums by Body Count (Body Count), Dr. Dre (The Chronic), Pavement (Slanted and Enchanted), Rage Against the Machine (Rage Against the Machine), Stone Temple Pilots (Core), Sublime (40oz. to Freedom), Therapy? (Nurse), Ugly Kid Joe (America's Least Wanted) and Tori Amos (Little Earthquakes) are released.
- Death of John Cage and Yutaka Ozaki.
- U2 start the Zoo TV Tour
- Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert
- Birth of Selena Gomez
- Other releases:
  - R.E.M.'s Automatic for the People
  - Aphex Twin's Selected Ambient Works 85–92
  - Madonna's sexually-provocative book Sex, which was accompanied by the double-platinum album Erotica. It becomes one of the most controversial books and albums ever released, but enjoys commercial success. From it, Madonna made $500 million for her label.^[19]
  - The soundtrack to the film The Bodyguard, the best selling soundtrack album of all time, selling over 45 million copies worldwide to date. Its leading single "I Will Always Love You" became the best selling single by a female artist (Whitney Houston) of all time, selling over 15 million copies.
  - Faith No More's Angel Dust
  - Obituary's The End Complete
  - Japanese pop band Dreams Come True release their album The Swinging Star, whose track Sweet Sweet Sweet originated as the ending theme of the Sega Genesis video game Sonic The Hedgehog 2, for which Masato Nakamura composed the music.
1991 in music, 1991 in British music, 1991 in Norwegian music
- Debut albums by:
  - Blur (Leisure)
  - Cypress Hill (Cypress Hill)
  - EMF (Schubert Dip)
  - The Infectious Grooves (The Plague That Makes Your Booty Move...It's the Infectious Grooves)
  - Kyuss (Wretch)
  - Massive Attack (Blue Lines)
  - The Wiggles (self-titled)
  - Pearl Jam (Ten)
  - The Smashing Pumpkins (Gish)
  - Beck (Golden Feelings)
- Arrival of Blue Man Group
- Death of Miles Davis, Freddie Mercury, Eric Carr, Steve Clark.
- Notable releases:
  - Death's Human
  - Michael Jackson's Dangerous
  - Metallica's Metallica
  - Morbid Angel's Blessed Are the Sick
  - Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical adaptation of the 1950 film Sunset Boulevard
  - Enya's Shepherd Moons
  - Nirvana's Nevermind
  - Bryan Adams's "(Everything I Do) I Do It For You" from the film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves
  - Pestilence's Testimony of the Ancients
  - Sepultura's Arise
  - U2's Achtung Baby
  - Red Hot Chili Pepper's Blood Sugar Sex Magik
- Mariah Carey wins the Grammy Award for Best New Artist. Mariah Carey becomes the only artist in history to have their first 5 consecutive singles reach number one in the United States.
1990 in music, 1990 in British music, 1990 in Norwegian music
- Debut albums by Alice in Chains (Facelift), Cannibal Corpse (Eaten Back to Life), Mariah Carey (Mariah Carey), Deee-Lite (World Clique), Green Day (39/Smooth), Helmet (Strap It On), Ice Cube (AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted), Primus (Frizzle Fry), Ride (Nowhere) and A Tribe Called Quest (People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm) are released.
- Death of Sarah Vaughan, Leonard Bernstein, Luigi Nono, Johnnie Ray, and Sammy Davis, Jr..
- Milli Vanilli becomes exposed as a music fraud.
- The Three Tenors; Plácido Domingo, José Carreras and Luciano Pavarotti give their first concert, at the Baths of Caracalla in Rome, with recording of the concert turned into Carreras Domingo Pavarotti in Concert, becoming the fastest-selling classical album of all time.
- Notable releases:
  - Obituary's Cause of Death
  - Pantera's Cowboys from Hell
  - Megadeth's Rust in Peace

List of 10 best-selling albums of the 1990s[]

Whitney Houston / Various artists – The Bodyguard – 45 million^[20]^[21] – 1992
Shania Twain – Come on Over – 40 million^[22] – 1997
Alanis Morissette – Jagged Little Pill – 33 million^[23] – 1995
Mariah Carey – Music Box – 32 million^[24] – 1993
Celine Dion – Falling into You – 32 million^[25] – 1996
Michael Jackson – Dangerous – 32 million^[26]^[27] – 1991
Celine Dion – Let's Talk About Love – 31 million^[28] – 1997
Madonna – The Immaculate Collection – 30 million^[29]^[30] – 1990
Britney Spears – ...Baby One More Time – 30 million^[31]^[32] – 1999
Backstreet Boys – Millennium – 30 million^[33]^[34] – 1999

1980s[]

1989 in music, 1989 in British music, 1989 in Norwegian music
- Debut albums are released by:
  - 3rd Bass (The Cactus Album)
  - De La Soul (3 Feet High and Rising)
  - The D.O.C. (No One Can Do It Better)
  - Morbid Angel (Altars of Madness)
  - Nine Inch Nails (Pretty Hate Machine)
  - Nirvana (Bleach)
  - Obituary (Slowly We Rot)
  - The Offspring (The Offspring)
  - The Stone Roses (The Stone Roses)
- Other notable releases:
  - Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814
  - Madonna's Like A Prayer
  - Mötley Crüe's Dr. Feelgood, one of the notable hard rock/heavy metal albums to top the Billboard 200
  - Fine Young Cannibals' The Raw & the Cooked
  - Pestilence's Consuming Impulse
  - Sepultura's Beneath the Remains
  - Phil Collins' ...But Seriously
  - Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg's musical Miss Saigon first performed
  - Kate Bush's The Sensual World
  - "Weird Al" Yankovic's soundtrack to the film UHF
- Ice Cube departs from N.W.A after financial problems and several conflicts with their manager Jerry Heller and the group's founder Eazy-E, and begins a solo career.
1988 in music, 1988 in British music, 1988 in Norwegian music
- Debut albums are released by:
  - Biz Markie (Goin' Off)
  - Tracy Chapman (Tracy Chapman)
  - Danzig (Danzig)
  - Eazy-E (Eazy-Duz-It)
  - EPMD (Strictly Business)
  - Jane's Addiction (Nothing's Shocking)
  - Living Colour (Vivid)
  - Morrissey (Viva Hate)
  - N.W.A (Straight Outta Compton)
  - NOFX (Liberal Animation)
  - Pestilence (Malleus Maleficarum)
  - The Pixies (Surfer Rosa)
  - Soundgarden (Ultramega OK)
- Other albums released:
  - Bon Jovi's New Jersey, which charts five consecutive Top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, the most ever for a hard rock album
  - Bad Religion's Suffer
  - Enya's Watermark
  - Bathory's Blood Fire Death, marking the arrival of the Viking metal genre
- Whitney Houston with "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" all peaked at number one on the US Hot 100 chart, which gave her a total of seven consecutive number one hits, breaking the record of six previously shared by The Beatles and the Bee Gees.
- Formation of the Traveling Wilburys
- Death of Roy Orbison
- Births of:
  - Adele
  - Big Sean
  - Rihanna
1987 in music, 1987 in British music, 1987 in Norwegian music
Notable releases:
- Anthrax's Among the Living
- Michael Jackson's Bad, which is the first album to have 5 consecutive No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100.^[35]
- Whitney Houston's Whitney
- Sepultura's Schizophrenia
- Def Leppard's Hysteria
- U2's The Joshua Tree, with the No. 1 hits "With or Without You", "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" and "Where the Streets Have No Name"
The Beastie Boys' debut Licensed to Ill, released the year before, becomes the first hip hop record to reach number one on the Billboard 200.
Death of legendary record producer John H. Hammond.
Debuts by:
- Death (Scream Bloody Gore)
- Guns N' Roses (Appetite for Destruction)
- Testament (The Legacy)
- Rick Astley (Whenever You Need Somebody) which features the lead single "Never Gonna Give You Up"
1986 in music, 1986 in British music, 1986 in Norwegian music
- Aerosmith re-records "Walk This Way" with rap group Run-D.M.C. which blends rock and rap music, introduces rap music to a mainstream audience for the first time, and marks the beginning of the resurrection of Aerosmith's career, one of rock's most remarkable comebacks.
- Following their extraordinary performance at Live Aid, Queen put on a special concert at Wembley Stadium.
- Debuts by:
  - Sepultura (Morbid Visions)
- Notable releases:
  - Bon Jovi's Slippery When Wet which stays at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for 4 weeks
  - Metallica's Master of Puppets
  - Megadeth's Peace Sells... But Who's Buying
  - Slayer's Reign in Blood
  - Peter Gabriel's So
  - Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical The Phantom of the Opera first performed
  - First performance of Stephen Sondheim's fairy tale musical Into the Woods
  - Janet Jackson's Control
  - John Farnham's Whispering Jack
  - Madonna's True Blue, which goes on to sell over 25 million copies and becomes the best-selling female album of the decade.
- Deaths of:
  - Benny Goodman
  - Richard Manuel
  - Cliff Burton
1985 in music, 1985 in British music, 1985 in Norwegian music
- Death of Ricky Nelson
- Live Aid and Farm Aid benefit concerts take place.
- Duran Duran records "A View to a Kill" to the James Bond movie of the same name. This single remains the only Bond theme to go to Number 1 on the US charts, and the highest-placed Bond theme on the UK chart where it reached Number 2.
- The famous hard rock band Guns N' Roses was formed in Los Angeles.
- Debuts by:
  - Exodus (Bonded by Blood)
  - Whitney Houston (self-titled)
  - Megadeth (Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good!)
  - Overkill (Feel the Fire)
  - A-ha's (Hunting High and Low)
- Notable releases:
  - Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg's musical Les Misérables first performed in London
  - Phil Collins' No Jacket Required
  - Dead or Alive's Youthquake which features the hit single "You Spin Me Right Round"
  - Falco's "Rock Me Amadeus"
  - Slayer's Hell Awaits
  - Tears for Fears' Songs from the Big Chair
1984 in music, 1984 in British music, 1984 in Norwegian music
- Deaths of:
  - Marvin Gaye
  - Jackie Wilson
- Akhnaten by Philip Glass premieres in Stuttgart
- Notable releases:
  - The Bob Marley & The Wailers compilation album Legend, the best-selling reggae album of all time
  - Madonna's Like A Virgin
  - Mercyful Fate's Don't Break the Oath
  - Metallica's Ride the Lightning
  - Prince's soundtrack to the film Purple Rain
  - Tina Turner's Private Dancer
  - Van Halen's 1984, which contains the No. 1 single "Jump" and becomes their last studio album to feature David Lee Roth on vocals until 2012's A Different Kind of Truth
  - Mariya Takeuchi's Variety
- Debuts by:
  - Anthrax (Fistful of Metal)
  - Bathory (self-titled)
  - Bon Jovi (self-titled)
  - Celtic Frost (Morbid Tales)
  - Yngwie Malmsteen (Rising Force)
  - Metal Church (self-titled)
  - Ratt (Out of the Cellar)
  - Voivod (War and Pain)
  - W.A.S.P. (self-titled)
- Musicals first performed:
  - Stephen Sondheim's Sunday in the Park with George
  - Andrew Lloyd Webber's Starlight Express
- Duran Duran was the first group ever to utilize a monitor in concert to project their performance.
- R. Murray Schafer's Concerto for flute and orchestra performed featuring Robert Aitken on flute.
- Band Aid, a group of familiar music names, is formed to perform "Do They Know It's Christmas?"
- Michael Jackson's album Thriller wins a record-breaking 8 Grammy Awards at the 1984 Grammys.
1983 in music, 1983 in British music, 1983 in Norwegian music
- Death of Muddy Waters
- Notable releases:
  - Accept's Balls to the Wall
  - Def Leppard's Pyromania
  - Iron Maiden's Piece of Mind
  - David Bowie's Let's Dance
  - Mötley Crüe's Shout at the Devil
  - New Order's Power, Corruption & Lies and "Blue Monday", the biggest-selling 12-inch record of all time.
  - Ozzy Osbourne's Bark at the Moon
  - Willy Russell's musical Blood Brothers
  - The Police's Synchronicity
  - Quiet Riot's Metal Health, which is the first heavy metal album to reach number one on the Billboard 200.
- Debuts by:
  - D.R.I. (Dirty Rotten EP/LP)
  - Dio (Holy Diver)
  - Dokken (Breaking the Chains)
  - Cyndi Lauper (She's So Unusual)
  - Madonna (self-titled)
  - Mercyful Fate (Melissa)
  - Metallica (Kill 'Em All)
  - Pantera (Metal Magic)
  - Queensrÿche (self-titled EP)
  - R.E.M. (Murmur)
  - Slayer (Show No Mercy)
  - Sonic Youth (Confusion Is Sex)
  - Suicidal Tendencies (self-titled)
  - Tears for Fears (The Hurting)
  - Wham! (Fantastic)
  - Stevie Ray Vaughan (Texas Flood)
  - "Weird Al" Yankovic (self-titled)
- Irene Cara releases her top hit "Flashdance... What a Feeling".
- Notable releases
  - Now That's What I Call Music
1982 in music, 1982 in British music, 1982 in Norwegian music
- The compact disc is introduced.
- Blondie disband.
- Ronnie James Dio leaves Black Sabbath and forms Dio.
- Metallica makes its debut on record, appearing on the first Metal Massacre compilation album. "Hit the Lights", the track recorded for this compilation album, would be re-recorded a year later for their debut album Kill 'Em All.
- Deaths of:
  - Thelonious Monk
  - Lightnin' Hopkins
  - Glenn Gould
  - Randy Rhoads
- Debuts by:
  - Asia (Asia)
- Notable releases:
  - Accept's Restless and Wild
  - Phil Collins' Hello, I Must Be Going!
  - Duran Duran's Rio
  - INXS' Shabooh Shoobah
  - Iron Maiden's The Number of the Beast
  - Alan Menkin's musical Little Shop of Horrors first performed
  - Judas Priest's Screaming for Vengeance
  - Michael Jackson's Thriller, the best-selling album of all time.
  - Roxy Music's Avalon
  - Rush's Signals
  - Venom's Black Metal, coining the term which would later be associated with the black metal genre.
- Survivor release their top hit "Eye of the Tiger" from the soundtrack to the film Rocky III
1981 in music, 1981 in British music, 1981 in Norwegian music
- MTV first airs
- Death of Bob Marley
- Bands formed:
  - Anthrax
  - Asia
  - Metallica
  - Mötley Crüe
  - Slayer
  - Tears for Fears
- Musicals first performed:
  - Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats (which becomes the first megamusical)
  - Henry Krieger's Dreamgirls
- Debuts by:
  - Phil Collins (Face Value)
  - Duran Duran (self-titled)
  - Mötley Crüe (Too Fast for Love)
  - Venom (Welcome to Hell)
- Notable releases:
  - Genesis' Abacab
  - Queen's Greatest Hits
  - Rush's Moving Pictures
  - The Human League's Dare
  - Kraftwerk's Computer World
  - Yellow Magic Orchestra's BGM and Technodelic
  - Eiichi Ohtaki's A Long Vacation
1980 in music, 1980 in British music, 1980 in Norwegian music
- Deaths of:
  - Ian Curtis
  - Bon Scott
  - John Lennon
  - John Bonham
  - Tim Hardin
  - Vinicius de Moraes
- Debuts by:
  - U2 (Boy)
  - Bryan Adams (self-titled)
  - Iron Maiden (self-titled)
  - Sheena Easton (Take My Time)
- Notable releases:
  - AC/DC's Back in Black
  - David Bowie's Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)
  - Michael Stewart, Mark Bramble, Al Dubin, Johnny Mercer and Harry Warren's 42nd Street
  - Rush's Permanent Waves
  - Talking Heads' Remain in Light
  - Tatsuro Yamashita' Ride on Time

1970s[]

1979 in music, 1979 in British music, 1979 in Norwegian music
- Deaths of:
  - Richard Rodgers
  - Charles Mingus
  - Sid Vicious
- Birth of Norah Jones
- The Sony Walkman goes on sale
- Notable releases:
  - The Clash's London Calling
  - Pink Floyd's The Wall
  - Sister Sledge's We Are Family
  - Michael Jackson's Off the Wall
  - Donna Summer's Bad Girls
  - Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street first performed
  - Anita Ward's Ring My Bell
  - Public Image Ltd.'s Metal Box
  - Elvis Costello's Armed Forces
  - Van Halen's Van Halen II
  - Joy Division's Unknown Pleasures
  - Yellow Magic Orchestra's Solid State Survivor
  - Sugarhill Gang's "Rapper's Delight", noted as the official birth of rap music
1978 in music, 1978 in British music, 1978 in Norwegian music
- Notable releases:
  - The Who's Who Are You
  - Gloria Gaynor's I Will Survive
  - Blondie's Parallel Lines
  - Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds
  - Brian Eno's Ambient 1: Music for Airports'
  - Kraftwerk's The Man-Machine
  - Haruomi Hosono and Yellow Magic Orchestra's Paraiso
- Death of Keith Moon
- Debuts by:
  - Prince (For You)
  - Van Halen (Van Halen)
  - Dire Straits (Dire Straits)
  - Public Image Ltd. (Public Image: First Issue)
  - Yellow Magic Orchestra (Yellow Magic Orchestra)
- The Blues Brothers release Briefcase Full of Blues
1977 in music, 1977 in British music, 1977 in Norwegian music
Sex Pistols release Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols
Deaths of:
- Elvis Presley
- Bing Crosby
- Marc Bolan
Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin's musical Annie first performed
Fleetwood Mac releases Rumours
Queen – News of the World
Bee Gees – Saturday Night Fever
Kraftwerk's Trans-Europe Express
Taeko Onuki – Sunshower
David Bowie – Heroes
Lynyrd Skynyrd Convair 240 plane crash
Steve Hackett leaves Genesis
Birth of Gerard Way from My Chemical Romance
Birth of Mike Shinoda of Linkin Park and Fort Minor
1976 in music, 1976 in British music, 1976 in Norwegian music
- Births of:
  - Chester Bennington
  - Emma Bunton
  - Deaths of:
    - Paul Robeson
    - Phil Ochs
    - Howlin' Wolf
  - Notable releases:
    - The Eagles – Hotel California
    - Andrew Lloyd Webber's Evita concept album
    - Ryo Fukui – "Scenery"
    - ABBA – "Dancing Queen"
  - Debuts by:
    - Boston (self-titled)
    - The Ramones (self-titled)
  - The Band performs their final concert, The Last Waltz
  - Russian-soviet baritone Eduard Khil releases the song "I'm So Glad, as I'm Finally Returning Home", which in three decades time, would become an internet sensation on YouTube
1975 in music, 1975 in British music, 1975 in Norwegian music
- Deaths of
  - Dmitri Shostakovich
  - Tim Buckley
  - Umm Kulthum
- Bob Dylan begins Rolling Thunder Revue
- Bruce Springsteen – Born to Run
- Bob Dylan – Blood on the Tracks
- Led Zeppelin – Physical Graffiti
- Aerosmith – Toys in the Attic
- Marvin Hamlisch's A Chorus Line
- Patti Smith – Horses
- Release of Donna Summer's Love to Love You Baby
- Peter Gabriel leaves Genesis
- Queen releases A Night at the Opera
- Birth of Melanie Brown
1974 in music
- Deaths of:
  - Duke Ellington
  - Nick Drake
- Births of:
  - Melanie Chisholm
  - Victoria Beckham
- Notable releases:
  - Genesis's The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway
  - David Bowie – Diamond Dogs
  - Kraftwerk's Autobahn
- Debut of Kiss
- ABBA win the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest with Waterloo, Olivia Newton-John places fourth with Long Live Love.
1973 in music
Deaths of:
- Bobby Darin
- Gram Parsons
Births of:
- Ferry Corsten
Pink Floyd releases The Dark Side of the Moon
The Who's Quadrophenia Released
Buffalo releases Volcanic Rock
Diana Ross released Touch Me in the Morning
David Bowie releases Aladdin Sane
Richard O'Brien's musical The Rocky Horror Show first performed
Elton John releases Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player and Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Mike Oldfield releases Tubular Bells
Maureen McGovern releases The Morning After
Roberta Flack releases Killing Me Softly With His Song
Marie Osmond releases Paper Roses
1972 in music, 1972 in British music, 1972 in Norwegian music –
- Births of:
  - The Notorious B.I.G.,
  - Rob Thomas from Matchbox Twenty;
  - Eminem
  - Geri Halliwell
  - Billie Joe Armstrong
  - Mike Dirnt
  - Tré Cool
  - Mark Hoppus
- The Rolling Stones – Exile on Main St.
- Elton John – Honky Château
- David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
- Debuts by:
  - Bette Midler (The Divine Miss M)
  - Big Star (#1 Record)
  - Steely Dan (Can't Buy a Thrill)
1971 in music, 1971 in British music, 1971 in Norwegian music
- Births of:
  - Tupac Shakur
  - Snoop Dogg
- Deaths of:
  - Igor Stravinsky
  - Duane Allman
  - Louis Armstrong
  - Jim Morrison
  - Carl Ruggles
- Notable releases:
  - Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin IV
  - David Bowie – Hunky Dory
  - Marvin Gaye – What's Going On
  - The Who – Who's Next
  - Elton John – Madman Across the Water
  - Joni Mitchell – Blue
- Birth of the band Queen
1970 in music, 1970 in British music, 1970 in Norwegian music
- Birth of Mariah Carey
- The Beatles disband
- Deaths of:
  - Jimi Hendrix
  - Janis Joplin
- John Lennon releases John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band
- Diana Ross departs from The Supremes and releases Ain't No Mountain High Enough
- Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice release a concept album of their debut musical Jesus Christ Superstar (which gives birth to the musical name "rock opera")
- Elton John releases his self-titled album
- Black Sabbath releases Paranoid
- George Harrison releases All Things Must Pass

1960s[]

1969 in music, 1969 in British music, 1969 in Norwegian music – Death of Brian Jones and Judy Garland; Woodstock music festival held in Bethel, New York; Birth of Dave Grohl, Marilyn Manson, Jennifer Lopez, Jenni Rivera and Tiësto; The Beatles – Abbey Road, Bob Dylan – Nashville Skyline, David Bowie – Space Oddity The Archies – "Sugar Sugar", The Who's Tommy released, Jackson 5 appearance on Ed Sullivan, King Crimson – In the Court of the Crimson King
1968 in music, 1968 in British music, 1968 in Norwegian music – Birth of Toni Braxton; – Van Morrison – Astral Weeks, Sammy Davis Jr. – I've Gotta Be Me, The Rolling Stones – Beggars Banquet, The Jimi Hendrix Experience – Electric Ladyland, Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin, The Beatles – The Beatles (AKA The White Album), Johnny Cash – At Folsom Prison, The Band – Music from Big Pink; Birth of John Ondrasik (Five for Fighting) and Thom Yorke Anne Murray releases What About Me
1967 in music, 1967 in British music, 1967 in Norwegian music – Birth of Kurt Cobain, Chuck Schuldiner; Death of Woody Guthrie, John Coltrane, Otis Redding; The Beatles – Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and Magical Mystery Tour, The Velvet Underground – The Velvet Underground & Nico, The Jimi Hendrix Experience – Are You Experienced and Axis: Bold as Love, Pink Floyd – The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, David Bowie the debut album from the British artist of the same name, Aretha Franklin – "Respect", The Doors – The Doors (with the hit single, "Light My Fire"), Louis Armstrong – "What a Wonderful World", Bob Dylan – John Wesley Harding, The 13th Floor Elevators – Easter Everywhere; Monterey Pop Festival
1966 in music, 1966 in British music, 1966 in Norwegian music – The Beach Boys – Pet Sounds, Cream – Fresh Cream, The Beatles – Revolver, Bob Dylan – Blonde on Blonde, The 13th Floor Elevators – The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators; Birth of Rick Astley
1965 in music, 1965 in British music, 1965 in Norwegian music – The Beatles – Help! and Rubber Soul, Bob Dylan – Bringing It All Back Home and Highway 61 Revisited (with the single "Like a Rolling Stone"), Dale Wasserman – Man of La Mancha first performed, The Rolling Stones – Out of Our Heads (with the single "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction"), Tom Jones – "What's New Pussycat?" (from the film of the same name), James Brown – "I Got You (I Feel Good)", Herman's Hermits debut; Death of Edgard Varèse, Nat King Cole.
1964 in music, 1964 in British music, 1964 in Norwegian music – Birth of Robert Trujillo – Death of Sam Cooke, Milton Babbitt, Ensembles For Synthesizer; The Beatles appear on The Ed Sullivan Show; The Beatles – A Hard Day's Night, Bill Lear invents 8-track tape cartridge; Stan Getz and João Gilberto – Getz/Gilberto, Bob Dylan – The Times They Are a-Changin', British Invasion begins, Beatlemania invades America and becomes international, The Righteous Brothers become the first white act signed to Phil Spector's Philles label. The Beach Boys – I Get Around released and hits No. 1.
1963 in music, 1963 in British music, 1963 in Norwegian music – First cassette tapes made by Philips, The Beatles – Please Please Me, Birth of Paul Oakenfold, Birth of Whitney Houston, George Michael, Birth of Eazy-E, Birth of James Hetfield; Death of Patsy Cline, Édith Piaf; Bob Dylan – The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, The Righteous Brothers "Little Latin Lupe Lu" is released on the Moonglow label; Stevie Wonder releases his first big hit 'finger-tips – part 2' aged only 13, arguably making Motown music commercially popular for the first time even though its birth was in 1959; Elvis Presley records Today, Tomorrow and Forever with Ann-Margret, which uses the melody of Franz Liszt's Liebesträume.
1962 in music, 1962 in British music, 1962 in Norwegian music – Arrival of The Beatles; Bob Dylan is the debut album from the highly influential American artist of the same name. It was released on March 19, 1962 on Columbia Records, when Dylan was 20 years old. Birth of Anthony Kiedis, Flea, Jon Bon Jovi, Axl Rose; Death of Marilyn Monroe
1961 in music, 1961 in British music, 1961 in Norwegian music – Birth of Dave Mustaine, Tom Araya, Roland Orzabal, Curt Smith; Death of Cisco Houston, Moss Hart
1960 in music, 1960 in British music, 1960 in Norwegian music – Lionel Bart's Oliver!; Birth of Bono; Death of Oscar Hammerstein II

1950s[]

1959 in music, 1959 in British music, 1959 in Norwegian music

Births of Sheena Easton, Irene Cara, "Weird Al" Yankovic, Pete Burns (from Dead or Alive), and Marie Osmond.
Deaths of Billie Holiday, Ritchie Valens, Buddy Holly, the Big Bopper, and Heitor Villa-Lobos.
Motown Records is founded, with their first hit being Barrett Strong's "Money (That's What I Want)".
Jule Styne and Stephen Sondheim's musical Gypsy first performed
Notable releases:
- Miles Davis – Kind of Blue.
- Charles Mingus – Mingus Ah Um
- Odetta – My Eyes Have Seen
- Bobby Darin's "Mack the Knife", a No. 1 hit for nine weeks
- Rodgers and Hammerstein – The Sound of Music.
1st Grammy Awards are awarded

1958 in music, 1958 in British music, 1958 in Norwegian music – Death of Ralph Vaughan Williams; Cannonball Adderley records Somethin' Else; Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, Moanin'; Alvin and the Chipmunks release "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don't Be Late)", Bruce Dickinson, Nikki Sixx, Prince, Madonna and Michael Jackson are born. Born Bossa Nova a Brazilian kind of music. Carl Ruggles, Exaltation in honour of his late wife, Charlotte. Cliff Richard and The Drifters release Move It, considered Britain's first rock and roll hit single. Little Richard enters seminary, Birth of Fernando de la Mora (tenor)
1957 in music, 1957 in British music, 1957 in Norwegian music – Death of Jean Sibelius; Birth of Anita Ward; "That'll Be the Day" by Buddy Holly and The Crickets becomes a US No. 1 hit; Arthur Laurents's (book), Leonard Bernstein's (music), and Stephen Sondheim's (lyrics) musical West Side Story first performed; Harry Belafonte has a big hit that reached number five on the Billboard charts with the calypso song "Day-O"; At the Gate of Horn is the second solo album by American folk singer Odetta who was a seminal influence on the folksingers of the 1960s. John Lennon and Paul McCartney meet in Liverpool.
1956 in music, 1956 in British music, 1956 in Norwegian music – The first Eurovision Song Contest is held on 24 May, Elvis Presley appears on The Ed Sullivan Show; Leonard Bernstein's opretta Candide first performed; Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues is the influential debut solo album by American folk singer Odetta.
1955 in music, 1955 in British music, 1955 in Norwegian music – Cole Porter's Silk Stockings; Deaths of George Enescu and Charlie Parker; "Rock Around the Clock" becomes first worldwide No. 1 rock and roll record; Little Richard records "Tutti-Frutti", one of the first rock and roll songs; Birth of Yo-Yo Ma, Harry James signs with Capitol releasing , Lonnie Donegan released "Rock Island Line".
1954 in music, 1954 in British music, 1954 in Norwegian music –
Death of Billy Murray, Birth of Jaramar
Elvis Presley's debut single, "That's All Right", is released on Sun Records
First Fender Stratocaster produced
The British musical Salad Days by Julian Slade and Dorothy Reynolds first performed
1953 in music, 1953 in British music, 1953 in Norwegian music – Cole Porter's Can-Can; Death of Hank Williams, Death of Sergei Prokofiev, Soviet composer and pianist
1952 in music, 1952 in British music, 1952 in Norwegian music – Birth of Joe Strummer, Johnny Thunders, The official UK singles chart is launched; Recording Industry Association of America (or RIAA) established
1951 in music, 1951 in British music, 1951 in Norwegian music – "Rocket 88" is recorded by Ike Turner and hailed as the first rock 'n' roll song; The Rake's Progress by Igor Stravinsky premieres in Venice. Birth of Joey Ramone; The King and I by Rodgers and Hammerstein; death of Arnold Schoenberg
1950 in music, 1950 in British music, 1950 in Norwegian music – Births of Stevie Wonder, Tom Petty, Agnetha Fältskog; Cartoon voice actor Mel Blanc releases the song "I Tawt I Taw a Puddy Tat" as Looney Tunes characters Tweety and Sylvester; Deaths of Kurt Weill, Al Jolson, Vaslav Nijinsky

1940s[]

1949 in music, 1949 in British music, 1949 in Norwegian music – Birth of Bruce Springsteen, Maureen McGovern, Valery Leontiev, Paul Rodgers, Billy Joel, Steve Perry, Rick Springfield, Gene Simmons, Lionel Richie, Roger Taylor and Mark Knopfler; RCA Victor introduces 45 RPM records; South Pacific by Rodgers and Hammerstein Death of Richard Strauss German composer
1948 in music, 1948 in British music, 1948 in Norwegian music – Birth of Robert Plant, John Bonham, Steven Tyler, Donna Summer, Johnny Ramone, Ted Nugent, Andrew Lloyd Webber, James Taylor, Alice Cooper, Jackson Browne, Kenny Loggins, Ian Paice, Olivia Newton-John, Stevie Nicks, and Ozzy Osbourne; Kiss Me, Kate – Cole Porter; Four Last Songs – Richard Strauss; Columbia Records introduces 331/3 RPM (LP) records.
1947 in music, 1947 in British music, 1947 in Norwegian music – Birth of Elton John, David Bowie, Bob Weir, Brian Johnson, Emmylou Harris, Arlo Guthrie, Tracy Nelson, Paul Brady, Tim Buckley, Jim Messina, Mick Fleetwood, Organum, Jeff Lynne and Carlos Santana
1946 in music, 1946 in British music, 1946 in Norwegian music – Birth of Freddie Mercury, Toquinho, Keith Moon, Benny Andersson, Bon Scott, Donovan, Linda Ronstadt, Marianne Faithfull, Gram Parsons, Cher, Patti Smith, David Gilmour, John Paul Jones and Dolly Parton
1945 in music, 1945 in British music, 1945 in Norwegian music – Birth of Bob Marley, Pete Townshend, Neil Young, Van Morrison, Bob Seger, Bette Midler, Deborah Harry, Anne Murray, Carly Simon, John Fogerty, Rod Stewart, Kim Carnes, Davy Jones, Micky Dolenz, Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Björn Ulvaeus, John McVie, Ian Gillan, Roger Glover, Ritchie Blackmore, Itzhak Perlman, Debbie Harry and Eric Clapton; Death of Jerome Kern; Peter Grimes by Benjamin Britten premieres in London; Carousel – Rodgers and Hammerstein; Metamorphosen by Richard Strauss;
1944 in music, 1944 in British music, 1944 in Norwegian music – Birth of Keith Emerson, Barry White, Diana Ross, Jeff Beck, Chico Buarque, Marvin Hamlisch, Roger Daltrey, John Entwistle, Booker T. Jones, Joe Cocker, Patti LaBelle, Gladys Knight, Gary Glitter, Brenda Lee, Townes Van Zandt, Mary Wilson (singer) and Jimmy Page; Disappearance of Glenn Miller,
1943 in music, 1943 in British music, 1943 in Norwegian music – Birth of Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Jim Morrison, George Harrison, Janis Joplin, Joni Mitchell, Robbie Robertson, Richard Manuel, John Denver, Jack Bruce, Barry Manilow, Christine McVie, Jim Croce, Carlos, Gavin Bryars, Bobby Sherman, Roger Waters and Richard Wright; Death of Lorenz Hart, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Formation of Rodgers and Hammerstein, Carl Ruggles, Evocations; The original Broadway production of Oklahoma! opened on March 31, 1943 at the St. James Theatre in New York City.
1942 in music, 1942 in British music, 1942 in Norwegian music – Birth of Paul McCartney, Jimi Hendrix, Brian Jones, John P. Hammond, Ronnie James Dio, Brian Wilson, Jerry Garcia, Peter Tork, Michael Nesmith, Aretha Franklin, Barbra Streisand, Carole King, Rick Danko, Lou Reed, Paul Butterfield, Jerry Jeff Walker and Tammy Wynette; Death of George M. Cohan
1941 in music, 1941 in British music, 1941 in Norwegian music – Birth of Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Paul Simon, Art Garfunkel, Hank Marvin, Otis Redding, Jon Lord, Chubby Checker, Aaron Neville, Charlie Watts, Neil Diamond, Richie Havens, Cass Elliot, Wilson Pickett, Linda McCartney and Ritchie Valens; Les Paul builds one of the first solid-body electric guitars;
1940 in music, 1940 in British music, 1940 in Norwegian music – Birth of John Lennon, Ringo Starr, Frank Zappa, Tom Jones, Vicente Fernández, Dionne Warwick, Cliff Richard, Phil Ochs, Levon Helm, Nancy Sinatra, Denny Doherty, Smokey Robinson, Ricky Nelson, Tim Hardin, Dionne Warwick, Bobby Hatfield, Bill Medley and (both of the Righteous Brothers)

1930s[]

1939 in music, 1939 in British music, 1939 in Norwegian music – Birth of Judy Collins, Marvin Gaye, Ray Manzarek, Ginger Baker, Tina Turner and Grace Slick; Cole Porter's DuBarry Was a Lady; Judy Garland records "Over the Rainbow"
1938 in music, 1938 in British music, 1938 in Norwegian music – Birth of Peter Yarrow, Gordon Lightfoot, Ben E. King, Death of Robert Johnson, Benny Goodman presents a jazz concert in Carnegie Hall; Death of Dan W. Quinn
1937 in music, 1937 in British music, 1937 in Norwegian music – Death of George Gershwin, Birth of Roberta Flack, Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard, Garth Hudson, Tom Paxton, Philip Glass, Dame Shirley Bassey, Carl Orff's Carmina Burana premieres
1936 in music, 1936 in British music, 1936 in Norwegian music – Birth of Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison, Kris Kristofferson, Bill Wyman, Dave Van Ronk, Steve Reich, Bobby Darin, Billboard publishes first U.S. music chart
1935 in music, 1935 in British music, 1935 in Norwegian music – Birth of Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Gene Vincent, Luciano Pavarotti, Ronnie Hawkins, Johnnie Mathis, John Phillips, Lou Rawls, La Monte Young, Terry Riley; Audiovox produce first electric bass guitar; Porgy and Bess by George Gershwin premieres in New York
1934 in music, 1934 in British music, 1934 in Norwegian music – Cole Porter's Anything Goes; Birth of Leonard Cohen, Jackie Wilson; Tammy Grimes, Bob Shane, King Curtis, Florence Henderson, Renata Scotto, Shirley Jones, Otis Rush, Frankie Valli, Pat Boone, André Prévost, Freddie King, Brian Epstein, Dave Guard, Del Shannon; Deaths of Edward Elgar and Gustav Holst
1933 in music, 1933 in British music, 1933 in Norwegian music – Birth of James Brown, Quincy Jones, Willie Nelson, Nina Simone, Yoko Ono, Nick Reynolds
1932 in music, 1932 in British music, 1932 in Norwegian music – Night and Day by Cole Porter; Birth of Johnny Cash, Petula Clark, Patsy Cline, Glenn Gould, Loretta Lynn, Miriam Makeba Carl Perkins, Little Richard, and John Williams; Death of John Philip Sousa; Adolph Rickenbacker produces first electric guitar; Bell Labs creates first stereophonic sound recordings
1931 in music, 1931 in British music, 1931 in Norwegian music – Birth of Teresa Brewer, Sam Cooke, João Gilberto, George Jones and Phyllis McGuire; Death of Anna Pavlova
1930 in music, 1930 in British music, 1930 in Norwegian music – Birth of Ray Charles, Herbie Mann, Odetta, Sonny Rollins, Stephen Sondheim, and The Big Bopper

1920s[]

1929 in music, 1929 in British music, 1929 in Norwegian music – Cole Porter's Fifty Million Frenchmen; Birth of Beverly Sills, Bill Evans, Dick Clark, Berry Gordy, Henri Pousseur
1928 in music, 1928 in British music, 1928 in Norwegian music – Birth of Bo Diddley and Karlheinz Stockhausen; Fats Domino The Threepenny Opera by Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht (libretto) premieres in Berlin
1927 in music, 1927 in British music, 1927 in Norwegian music – Jerome Kern's Show Boat; Igor Stravinsky's Apollo; Birth of Harry Belafonte, Antônio Carlos Jobim, Patti Page, Ralph Stanley
1926 in music, 1926 in British music, 1926 in Norwegian music – Tapiola by Jean Sibelius; Birth of Marilyn Monroe, Joan Sutherland, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Chuck Berry, Tony Bennett, Big Mama Thornton; Turandot by Giacomo Puccini premieres in Milan
1925 in music, 1925 in British music, 1925 in Norwegian music – Birth of Celia Cruz, B.B. King and Pierre Boulez; Big record labels begin using electric microphones for recording; 78 RPM adopted as standard for records; BBC makes first radio broadcast in stereo; Wozzeck by Alban Berg premieres in Berlin, Carl Ruggles, Portals. Debut of the Grand Ole Opry.
1924 in music, 1924 in British music, 1924 in Norwegian music – Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue premieres in New York; the Symphony No. 7 by Jean Sibelius; Death of Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini, Italian opera composer, Carl Ruggles. . Debut of the National Barn Dance, the first radio program devoted to country music.
1923 in music, 1923 in British music, 1923 in Norwegian music – Birth of Hank Williams, First recordings by Louis Armstrong, Bessie Smith, and many other African-American artists, Carl Ruggles,
1922 in music, 1922 in British music, 1922 in Norwegian music – Birth of Judy Garland.
1921 in music, 1921 in British music, 1921 in Norwegian music – Death of Enrico Caruso, Carl Ruggles Angels
1920 in music, 1920 in British music, 1920 in Norwegian music – Birth of Charlie Parker, Ravi Shankar, Isaac Stern; Death of Alberto Nepomuceno, Brazilian composer, pianist, organist and conductor.

1910s[]

1919 in music, 1919 in British music, 1919 in Norwegian music – Birth of Pete Seeger, Merce Cunningham, Carl Ruggles, Toys
1918 in music, 1918 in British music, 1918 in Norwegian music – Phonograph cylinders become obsolete; the Society for Private Musical Performances is founded in Vienna by Arnold Schoenberg; Death of Claude Debussy
1917 in music, 1917 in British music, 1917 in Norwegian music – Birth of Lou Harrison, Ella Fitzgerald, John Lee Hooker, Dinu Lipatti, Isang Yun; First hit jazz recordings by Original Dixieland Jass Band, Death of Scott Joplin
1916 in music, 1916 in British music, 1916 in Norwegian music – Birth of Milton Babbitt, Henri Dutilleux, Alberto Ginastera, Betty Grable, Harry James, Dinah Shore,
1915 in music, 1915 in British music, 1915 in Norwegian music – An Alpine Symphony by Richard Strauss; Birth of Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra, John Serry, Sr.; Tom Brown starts billing his group as a "Jass Band"
1914 in music, 1914 in British music, 1914 in Norwegian music – "St. Louis Blues" published; first calypso music recordings
1913 in music, 1913 in British music, 1913 in Norwegian music – Birth of Muddy Waters, Vinicius de Moraes; Igor Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring is premiered in Paris.
1912 in music, 1912 in Norwegian music – Birth of Woody Guthrie, Lightnin' Hopkins, John Cage
1911 in music, 1911 in Norwegian music – Birth of Robert Johnson, Der Rosenkavalier by Richard Strauss premieres in Dresden, Death of Gustav Mahler, Austrian composer and conductor
1910 in music, 1910 in Norwegian music – Birth of Howlin' Wolf, Artie Shaw, John H. Hammond, Django Reinhardt; "Let Me Call You Sweetheart"

1900s[]

1909 in music, 1909 in Norwegian music – Death of Francisco Tárrega; Elektra by Richard Strauss premieres in Dresden; Birth of Benny Goodman
1908 in music, 1908 in Norwegian music – The two first atonal pieces are composed, first by Béla Bartók and then by Arnold Schoenberg Death of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov.
1907 in music, 1907 in Norwegian music – Death of Edvard Grieg, Norwegian composer (b. 1843); Birth of Gene Autry, Cab Calloway, Benny Carter, Kate Smith
1906 in music, 1906 in Norwegian music – Birth of Dmitri Shostakowich, soviet composer and pianist, Victor begins selling the Victrola phonograph player for $15.00; Len Spencer, --- earliest recorded advert played in Phonograph shops to sell the devices; the Symphony No. 8 by Gustav Mahler: Birth of Pedro Vargas known as the "Nightingale of the Americas".
1905 in music, 1905 in Norwegian music – The Merry Widow by Franz Lehár premieres in Vienna; Salome by Richard Strauss premieres in Dresden
1904 in music, 1904 in Norwegian music – The Violin Concerto (Sibelius) by Jean Sibelius; Death of Antonín Dvořák, Czech composer, Madama Butterfly by Giacomo Puccini premieres in Milan
1903 in music, 1903 in Norwegian music – Valse triste by Jean Sibelius; Birth of Bing Crosby and Vladimir Horowitz
1902 in music, 1902 in Norwegian music – Birth of Richard Rodgers, Pelléas et Mélisande by Claude Debussy premieres in Paris
1901 in music, 1901 in Norwegian music – Birth of Louis Armstrong, Death of Giuseppe Verdi, Italian composer, Birth of Silvestre Vargas
1900 in music, 1900 in Norwegian music – Tosca by Giacomo Puccini premieres in Rome

1890s[]

1899 in music, 1899 in Norwegian music – Rusalka by Antonín Dvořák; Ein Heldenleben by Richard Strauss; Symphony No. 1 and publication of Finlandia by Jean Sibelius; Shéhérazade by Maurice Ravel; Enigma Variations by Edward Elgar; "Maple Leaf Rag" by Scott Joplin; Death of Johann Strauss II; Birth of Duke Ellington; Birth of Silvestre Revueltas
1898 in music, 1898 in Norwegian music – Birth of George Gershwin, Paul Robeson
1897 in music, 1897 in Norwegian music – Ragtime music becomes popular in the United States; Death of Brahms, Birth of Marian Anderson
1896 in music, 1896 in Norwegian music – Also sprach Zarathustra by Richard Strauss; Jungfrun i tornet by Jean Sibelius; Death of Carlos Gomes, Brazilian composer and opera composer and Anton Bruckner, Austrian composer and organist
1895 in music, 1895 in Norwegian music – The Swan of Tuonela by Jean Sibelius; Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks by Richard Strauss; Birth of Carl Orff, Oscar Hammerstein II, William Grant Still, the "Dean of African-American music"
1894 in music, 1894 in Norwegian music – Cello Concerto and Humoresques by Antonín Dvořák
1893 in music, 1893 in Norwegian music – Symphony No. 9 and String Quartet No. 12 by Antonín Dvořák; Symphony No. 3 by Gustav Mahler; Karelia Suite by Jean Sibelius; Death of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Russian composer
1892 in music, 1892 in Norwegian music – Dan W. Quinn makes first recordings in New York City; Kullervo by Jean Sibelius; Pagliacci by Ruggero Leoncavallo; The Nutcracker by Marius Petipa
1891 in music, 1891 in Norwegian music – Piano Trio No. 4 by Antonín Dvořák; Birth of Sergei Prokofiev, Soviet composer and pianist; George W. Johnson becomes first African American recording artist with "The Laughing Song"
1890 in music, 1890 in Norwegian music – John Philip Sousa makes first recordings with Columbia Phonograph Company; Birth of Bronislava Nijinska, choreographer

1880s[]

1889 in music, 1889 in Norwegian music – records at Menlo Park; Edison starts commercial recordings on May 24; First phonograph parlor opens in San Francisco; Kaiser-Walzer by Johann Strauss II; Death and Transfiguration by Richard Strauss.
1888 in music, 1888 in Norwegian music – Symphony No. 2 by Gustav Mahler; Birth of Lead Belly; Death of Charles-Valentin Alkan, French composer and pianist; Wax phonograph cylinders commercially marketed; Emile Berliner invents lateral-cut disc records.
1887 in music, 1887 in Norwegian music – The Havanaise (Saint-Saëns) by Camille Saint-Saëns; Birth of Heitor Villa-Lobos, Brazilian composer, cellist, and guitarist
1886 in music, 1886 in Norwegian music – The Carnival of the Animals and the Symphony No. 3 by Camille Saint-Saëns; birth of Marcel Dupré, Al Jolson, Paul Paray, Othmar Schoeck; Franz Liszt publishes his final Hungarian Rhapsody; death of Franz Liszt.
1885 in music, 1885 in Norwegian music – The Mikado – Arthur Sullivan; The Gypsy Baron by Johann Strauss II; Birth of Jerome Kern
1884 in music, 1884 in Norwegian music – Birth of Sophie Tucker
1883 in music, 1883 in Norwegian music – Birth of Edgard Varèse, Death of Richard Wagner, German composer
1882 in music, 1882 in Norwegian music – Birth of Igor Stravinsky, Russian composer, Parsifal by Richard Wagner premieres in Bayreuth; Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky – 1812 Overture premiere
1881 in music, 1881 in Norwegian music – Births of Béla Bartók and George Enescu
1880 in music, 1880 in Norwegian music – Stabat Mater and "Songs My Mother Taught Me" by Antonín Dvorák; The Violin Concerto No. 3 (Saint-Saëns) by Camille Saint-Saëns; Death of Jacques Offenbach, composer (b. 1819)

1870s[]

1879 in music – Birth of Jean Cras
1878 in music – Birth of George M. Cohan; William S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan, H.M.S. Pinafore; reshapes British and American musical theater;
1877 in music – Phonograph and phonograph cylinder invented by Thomas Alva Edison; Samson and Delilah by Camille Saint-Saëns Birth of Billy Murray (singer)
1876 in music – Siegfried and Götterdämmerung by Richard Wagner premiere in Bayreuth; Birth of Carl Ruggles
1875 in music – Birth of Joseph-Maurice Ravel, French composer and pianist; Carmen by Georges Bizet premieres in Paris; Swan Lake by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky premiers
1874 in music – Boris Gudonov by Modest Mussorgsky premieres in Saint Petersburg; Die Fledermaus by Johann Strauss II premieres in Vienna; Richard Wagner concludes Götterdämmerung, finishing The Ring Cycle; Requiem (Verdi) by Giuseppe Verdi; Danse macabre by Camille Saint-Saëns; Birth of Arnold Schoenberg
1873 in music – Birth of Enrico Caruso, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Russian composer, ultra virtuoso pianist and conductor
1872 in music – The Cello Concerto No. 1 (Saint-Saëns) by Camille Saint-Saëns; Birth of Ralph Vaughan Williams, English composer; birth of Sergei Diaghilev, choreographer (d. 1929)
1871 in music – Richard Wagner concludes Siegfried; Aida by Giuseppe Verdi premieres in Cairo
1870 in music – Die Walküre (the Valkyrie) by Richard Wagner premieres in Munich

1860s[]

1869 in music – Death of Hector Berlioz, French composer, Das Rheingold by Richard Wagner premieres in Munich
1868 in music – Death of Gioachino Rossini, Italian composer, Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg by Richard Wagner premières in Munich; Ein deutsches Requiem by Johannes Brahms premières in Bremen; Wiegenlied by Brahms (Brahms' Lullaby); Tales from the Vienna Woods by Johann Strauss II; the Piano Concerto No. 2 (Saint-Saëns) by Camille Saint-Saëns
1867 in music Birth of Scott Joplin, famous ragtime composer; The Blue Danube by Johann Strauss II; Roméo et Juliette (opera) by Charles Gounod; Peer Gynt by Edvard Grieg
1866 in music – Franz Liszt completes his oratorio Christus; Birth of French composer Erik Satie.
1865 in music – Birth of Finnish composer Jean Sibelius; Tristan und Isolde by Richard Wagner premieres in Munich, marking the beginning of the end for traditional tonality; The Symphony No. 1 by Antonín Dvorak; Franz Liszt publishes his solo piano transcriptions of the full Beethoven Symphonies 1 – 9.
1864 in music Birth of Richard Strauss, German composer, Alberto Nepomuceno, Brazilian composer, pianist, organist and conductor
1863 in music– The Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso by Camille Saint-Saëns; Birth of Ernesto Nazareth
1862 in music – Birth of French composer Claude Debussy
1861 in music – Birth of Anton Arensky; Franz Liszt completes his first Mephisto Waltz The Dance in the Village Inn.
1860 in music – Birth of Gustav Mahler, Austrian composer and conductor

1850s[]

1859 in music – Faust by Charles Gounod premieres in Paris; Richard Wagner concludes Tristan und Isolde; In 1859, John Freeman Young published the English translation of Silent Night that is most frequently sung today.
1858 in music – Births of Medardo Rosso and Giacomo Puccini, Italian opera composer, Orphée aux enfers by Jacques Offenbach, the first operetta, premieres in Paris; Hector Berlioz writes Les Troyens; Johann Strauss II writes Tritsch-Tratsch-Polka
1857 in music – Birth of Edward Elgar, British composer; First public performance of Franz Liszt's Piano Sonata in B Minor
1856 in music – Death of Robert Schumann, German composer and pianist; Richard Wagner, German composer, concludes Die Walküre
1855 in music – Birth of Ernest Chausson
1854 in music – Richard Wagner, German composer, concludes Das Rheingold
1853 in music – Il trovatore by Giuseppe Verdi premieres in Rome; La traviata by Verdi premieres in Venice
1852 in music – Births of Charles Villiers Stanford, Irish composer, teacher and conductor and Francisco Tárrega, Spanish composer and guitarist
1851 in music – Rigoletto by Giuseppe Verdi premieres in Venice
1850 in music – Lohengrin by Richard Wagner premieres in Weimar; Foster's Plantation Melodies by Stephen Foster, including "Camptown Races"

1840s[]

1849 in music – Death of Frédéric Chopin, Polish composer and pianist; Franz Liszt publishes his Three Concert Études, alongside completing Funérailles.
1848 in music – Album for the Young by Robert Schumann; Death of Gaetano Donizetti, Italian opera composer
1847 in music – "Oh! Susanna" by Stephen Foster published Death of Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, German composer
1846 in music – Adolphe Sax invents the saxophone
1845 in music – Tannhäuser by Richard Wagner premières in Dresden; The Violin Concerto by Felix Mendelssohn; Birth of Ángela Peralta
1844 in music – Birth of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Charles-Marie Widor
1843 in music – Birth of Edvard Grieg, Norwegian composer (d. 1907); Minstrel show premieres in United States; Der fliegende Holländer by Richard Wagner premieres in Dresden
1842 in music – "Lisztomania" sweeps Europe
1841 in music – Birth of Antonín Dvořák, Czech composer; Nabucco by Giuseppe Verdi
1840 in music – Birth of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Russian composer; Death of Niccolò Paganini, Italian composer and ultra virtuoso violinist

1830s[]

1839 in music – by Robert Schumann
1838 in music – Kinderszenen by Robert Schumann
1837 in music – Requiem (Berlioz) by Hector Berlioz
1836 in music – Birth of Carlos Gomes, Brazilian composer and opera composer, Les Huguenots by Giacomo Meyerbeer premieres in Paris
1835 in music – Death of Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini, Italian opera composer, Lucia di Lammermoor by Gaetano Donizetti premieres in Naples; is in vogue in salons of Bologna, Italy featuring his terzettis and fantasies; I puritani by Vincenzo Bellini premieres
1834 in music – Die Neue Zeitschrift für Musik first published by Robert Schumann
1833 in music – Johannes Brahms born
1832 in music – Death of Muzio Clementi, Italian composer and pianist
1831 in music – La sonnambula and Norma by Vincenzo Bellini
1830 in music – Symphonie Fantastique by Hector Berlioz is written; The Hebrides (overture) by Felix Mendelssohn; Anna Bolena by Gaetano Donizetti; and I Capuleti e i Montecchi by Vincenzo Bellini

1820s[]

1829 in music – The Italian Symphony, the Scottish Symphony, and the Songs Without Words by Felix Mendelssohn; Birth of Anton Rubinstein, Russian composer and ultra virtuoso pianist
1828 in music – Franz Schubert dies
1827 in music – Ludwig van Beethoven dies; Winterreise by Franz Schubert; Il pirata by Vincenzo Bellini
1826 in music – June 5, Death of Carl Maria Friedrich Ernst von Weber, German opera composer. String Quartet No. 14 in C Sharp minor by Ludwig van Beethoven was completed. October 31, Muzio Clementi's complete Gradus ad Parnassum (100 pieces) appears for the first time, simultaneously in Paris, Leipzig and London.
1825 in music – Birth of Johann Strauss II, Austrian composer; Songs from Sir Walter Scott by Franz Schubert, including "Ellens dritter Gesang" (Schubert's Ave Maria); The Octet by Felix Mendelssohn Antonio Salieri dies
1824 in music – Birth of Anton Bruckner, Austrian composer and organist; Beethoven's 9th Symphony
1823 in music – Die schöne Müllerin by Franz Schubert
1822 in music
1821 in music – Der Freischütz by Carl Maria von Weber, premieres in Berlin
1820 in music

1810s[]

1819 in music – April 16, The publication of Muzio Clementi's Gradus ad Parnassum Volume II is entered at Stationer's Hall, London. September 13, Birth of Clara Schumann, German pianist and composer.
1818 in music – Hammerklavier sonate by Ludwig van Beethoven; "Silent Night" written by Josef Mohr and composed by Franz Xaver Gruber, – The first performance of Silent Night on December 25, (Church of St. Nikolaus in Oberndorf, Austria).
1817 in music – March 1, Muzio Clementi's Gradus ad Parnassum Volume I is published simultaneously in London, Paris and Leipzig.
1816 in music – Il barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville) by Gioachino Rossini, premieres in Rome
1815 in music
1814 in music – Symphony No. 8 by Ludwig van Beethoven
1813 in music – Birth of French-Jewish composer and ultra virtuoso pianist Charles-Valentin Alkan; Birth of German composer Richard Wagner; Birth of Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi, Symphony No. 7 by Ludwig van Beethoven
1812 in music – Birth of German composer Friedrich von Flotow; Birth of Swiss composer and virtuoso pianist Sigismund Thalberg.
1811 in music – Birth of Hungarian composer and virtuoso pianist Franz Liszt.
1810 in music – Birth of Polish composer and virtuoso pianist Frédéric Chopin; Birth of German composer and virtuoso pianist Robert Schumann; Ludwig van Beethoven completes his Fifth Piano Concerto Emperor.

1800s[]

1809 in music – Birth of Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, German composer, pianist, organist and conductor; Death of Joseph Haydn, Austrian composer
1808 in music – Beethoven completes his 6th Symphony "Pastoral", Beethoven's 5th Symphony
1807 in music – La Vestale by Gaspare Spontini, Symphony No. 4 by Ludwig van Beethoven
1806 in music – Fourth Piano Concerto, Violin Concerto by Ludwig van Beethoven
1805 in music – Fidelio by Ludwig van Beethoven
1804 in music – Symphony No. 3 'Eroica' by Ludwig van Beethoven
1803 in music – Birth of Hector Berlioz, French composer Symphony No. 2 by Ludwig van Beethoven
1802 in music – Bach's Sonatas and partitas for solo violin are published by
1801 in music – Birth of Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini, Italian opera composer, Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata
1800 in music – Symphony No. 1 by Ludwig van Beethoven

1790s[]

1799 in music –
1798 in music – Joseph Haydn's The Creation
1797 in music – Joseph Haydn's Gott erhalte Franz den Kaiser; Birth of Franz Schubert, Austrian composer and pianist and Domenico Gaetano Maria Donizetti, Italian opera composer
1796 in music –
1795 in music – First Beethoven Piano Sonatas written (Op. 2)
1794 in music –
1793 in music – Scots Wha Hae
1792 in music – Birth of Gioachino Antonio Rossini, Italian composer
1791 in music – Mozart's Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute); death of Mozart
1790 in music –

1780s[]

1789 in music – Mozart's Così fan tutte
1788 in music – Death of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, German composer and keyboardist
1787 in music – Mozart's Don Giovanni
1786 in music – Birth of Carl Maria Friedrich Ernst von Weber, German opera composer, Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro (The marriage of Figaro)
1785 in music – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composes his Piano Concerto No. 21
1784 in music –
1783 in music –
1782 in music – Birth of Niccolò Paganini, Italian composer and ultra virtuoso violinist; Death of Johann Christian Bach, German composer, Mozart's Die Entführung aus dem Serail (The Abduction from the Seraglio)
1781 in music –
1780 in music –

1770s[]

1779 in music –
1778 in music –
1777 in music – Il mondo della luna by Joseph Haydn, premieres in Eszterháza, Hungary
1776 in music –
1775 in music –
1774 in music –
1773 in music –
1772 in music –
1771 in music –
1770 in music – Ludwig van Beethoven born

1760s[]

1769 in music –
1768 in music –
1767 in music –
1766 in music –
1765 in music –
1764 in music – Death of Jean-Philippe Rameau, French composer and music theorist
1763 in music –
1762 in music – Orfeo ed Euridice by Christoph Willibald Gluck, premieres in Vienna
1761 in music –
1760 in music – La buona figliuola by Niccolò Piccinni, premieres in Rome

1750s[]

1759 in music – George Frideric Handel dies
1758 in music –
1757 in music – Death of Domenico Scarlatti, Italian composer and harpsichordist
1756 in music – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart born
1755 in music –
1754 in music –
1753 in music –
1752 in music – Muzio Clementi born
1751 in music –
1750 in music – Johann Sebastian Bach dies, Antonio Salieri born

1740s[]

1749 in music – Johann Sebastian Bach finishes his Mass in B Minor; George Frideric Handel composes the Music for the Royal Fireworks
1747 in music – Johann Sebastian Bach finishes his Musical Offering
1746 in music –
1745 in music –
1744 in music – Johann Sebastian Bach finishes the Book II from The Well-Tempered Clavier
1743 in music –
1742 in music – première of Messiah by George Frideric Handel, in Dublin
1741 in music – Death of Antonio Lucio Vivaldi, Italian composer and violinist Bach's Goldberg Variations are published
1740 in music –

1730s[]

1739 in music – The Clavier-Übung III by Johann Sebastian Bach is published
1738 in music –
1737 in music –
1736 in music – Alexander's Feast by George Frideric Handel
1735 in music – Birth of Johann Christian Bach, German composer
1734 in music –
1733 in music – La serva padrona by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, the first opera buffa, premieres in Naples; Hippolyte et Aricie by Jean-Philippe Rameau, premieres in Paris, Death of François Couperin, French composer and harpsichordist
1732 in music – Joseph Haydn born
1731 in music –
1730 in music –

1720s[]

1729 in music –
1728 in music – The Beggar's Opera by John Gay and Johann Christoph Pepusch, premieres in London
1727 in music – Zadok the Priest (the coronation anthem) by George Frideric Handel, Johann Sebastian Bach finishes and presents his St Matthew Passion
1726 in music –
1725 in music – publication of Twelve concerti, Op. 8 by Antonio Vivaldi, including the Four Seasons – Death of Alessandro Scarlatti, Italian composer
1724 in music – Giulio Cesare by George Frideric Handel premières in London, Johann Sebastian Bach presents his St John Passion
1723 in music – Vivaldi composes The Four Seasons
1722 in music – Johann Sebastian Bach finishes the Book I from The Well-Tempered Clavier, Traité de l'harmonie by Jean-Philippe Rameau causes a revolution in music theory.
1721 in music –
1720 in music – Johann Sebastian Bach presents his Brandenburg Concertos to Christian Ludwig; Johann Sebastian Bach completes the Sonatas and partitas for solo violin

1710s[]

1719 in music –
1718 in music –
1717 in music – Water Music by George Frideric Handel
1716 in music – Juditha triumphans is composed by Antonio Vivaldi
1715 in music –
1714 in music – Birth of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, German composer
1713 in music – Death: Arcangelo Corelli, Italian composer and violinist
1712 in music –
1711 in music – Rinaldo by Handel, premieres in London, the first all-Italian opera performed in London
1710 in music – Agrippina by Handel, premieres in Venice

1700s[]

1709 in music –
1708 in music –
1707 in music –
1706 in music – Johann Pachelbel dies
1705 in music –
1704 in music –
1703 in music –
1702 in music –
1701 in music –
1700 in music –

1690s[]

1699 in music –
1698 in music –
1697 in music –
1696 in music –
1695 in music – Henry Purcell dies
1694 in music –
1693 in music –
1692 in music –
1691 in music – King Arthur by Henry Purcell
1690 in music –

1680s[]

1689 in music – Dido and Aeneas, opera, by Henry Purcell and Nahum Tate (libretto) performed
1688 in music –
1687 in music – Death of Jean-Baptiste Lully, French composer
1686 in music –
1685 in music – Albion and Albanius, opera, by Louis Grabu; Birth of: Johann Sebastian Bach and Georg Friedrich Häendel (German composers, organists and harpsichordists); Domenico Scarlatti, Italian composer and harpsichordist
1684 in music –
1683 in music – Birth of Jean-Philippe Rameau, French composer and music theorist
1682 in music –
1681 in music –
1680 in music –

1670s[]

1679 in music –
1678 in music – Birth of Antonio Lucio Vivaldi, Italian composer and violinist
1677 in music –
1676 in music –
1675 in music – Psyche by Matthew Locke
1674 in music –
1673 in music –
1672 in music –
1671 in music –
1670 in music –

1660s[]

1669 in music –
1668 in music – Birth of François Couperin, French composer and harpsichordist
1667 in music –
1666 in music –
1665 in music –
1664 in music – Heinrich Schutz completes
1663 in music –
1662 in music –
1661 in music –
1660 in music – Birth of Alessandro Scarlatti, Italian composer and harpsichordist

1650s[]

1659 in music – Henry Purcell born
1658 in music –
1657 in music –
1656 in music –
1655 in music –
1654 in music –
1653 in music – Arcangelo Corelli, Johann Pachelbel born
1652 in music –
1651 in music – La Calisto by Francesco Cavalli
1650 in music –

1640s[]

1649 in music – Giasone by Francesco Cavalli, premieres in Venice, the first opera to separate aria and recitative
1648 in music –
1647 in music –
1646 in music –
1645 in music –
1644 in music – Ormindo by Francesco Cavalli, premieres in Venice
1643 in music – death of Claudio Monteverdi
1642 in music – L'incoronazione di Poppea by Claudio Monteverdi, premiered in Venice
1641 in music –
1640 in music – Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria by Claudio Monteverdi, premieres in Venice

1630s[]

1639 in music –
1638 in music –
1637 in music – The first commercial opera house open to the public, Teatro San Cassiano, opens in Venice
1636 in music –
1635 in music –
1634 in music –
1633 in music –
1632 in music – Birth of Jean-Baptiste Lully, French composer
1631 in music –
1630 in music –

1620s[]

1629 in music –
1628 in music –
1627 in music –
1626 in music –
1625 in music –
1624 in music –
1623 in music –
1622 in music –
1621 in music –
1620 in music –

1610s[]

1619 in music – Michael Praetorius,
1618 in music –
1617 in music – Johann Hermann Schein, Banchetto musicale
1616 in music –
1615 in music –
1614 in music – Marco da Gagliano,
1613 in music –
1612 in music –
1611 in music – William Byrd, ; Carlo Gesualdo,
1610 in music – Claudio Monteverdi, Vespro della Beata Vergine 1610

1600s[]

1609 in music –
1608 in music – Lamento d'Arianna by Claudio Monteverdi; by Thomas Weelkes
1607 in music – La Favola D'Orfeo by Claudio Monteverdi
1606 in music –
1605 in music –
1604 in music –
1603 in music –
1602 in music – Cento concerti by Lodovico Viadana, the first book to feature basso continuo
1601 in music – Le nuove musiche by Giulio Caccini
1600 in music – the first oratorio: Rappresentatione di Anima, et di Corpo by Emilio de' Cavalieri

1590s[]

1599 in music –
1598 in music –
1597 in music – John Dowland's First Book of Lute Songs; Dafne, the first known opera
1596 in music –
1595 in music –
1594 in music – Orlande de Lassus completes Lagrime di San Pietro (posthumously published); Orlande de Lassus dies
1593 in music –
1592 in music –
1591 in music –
1590 in music – Claudio Monteverdi, Il secondo libro de madrigali a 5

1580s[]

1589 in music –
1588 in music –
1587 in music –
1586 in music –
1585 in music –
1584 in music –
1583 in music –
1582 in music –
1581 in music – The court entertainment Ballet comique de la reine by Balthazar de Beaujoyeulx was presented on Oct 15
1580 in music – Appearance of three Fantasias for viol consort by William Byrd. Founding of Concerto delle donne under the direction of Luzzasco Luzzaschi: Consisting of women voices, this group becomes a significant part of Alfonso II d'Este's court entertainment.

1570s[]

1579 in music –
1578 in music –
1577 in music –
1576 in music –
1575 in music –
1574 in music –
1573 in music –
1572 in music –
1571 in music –
1570 in music –

1560s[]

1569 in music –
1568 in music –
1567 in music – Birth of Claudio Monteverdi, Italian composer and singer
1566 in music –
1565 in music –
1564 in music –
1563 in music –
1562 in music –
1561 in music –
1560 in music – First works for Viol Consort attributed to William Byrd

1550s[]

1559 in music –
1558 in music –
1557 in music –
1556 in music –
1555 in music –
1554 in music –
1553 in music –
1552 in music –
1551 in music –
1550 in music –

1540s[]

1549 in music –
1548 in music –
1547 in music –
1546 in music – Death of John Taverner, English composer.
1545 in music –
1544 in music –
1543 in music –
1542 in music –
1541 in music –
1540 in music – Birth of William Byrd, English composer; Thomas Tallis begins writing his first works for the Latin church service.

1530s[]

1539 in music – Jacques Arcadelt's First book of madrigals for four voices is published, the most reprinted madrigal book of the century
1538 in music – printing of the first Protestant hymn-book, Ein Hubsch new Gesangbuch; publication of the first book of madrigals by Maddalena Casulana, the first printed book of music by a woman in European history.
1537 in music –
1536 in music –
1535 in music –
1534 in music –
1533 in music –
1532 in music –
1531 in music –
1530 in music – Madrigali de diversi musici: libro primo de la Serena is published, the first book of madrigals to use the word 'madrigal' to describe them. The majority of the pieces in it are by Philippe Verdelot.

1520s[]

1529 in music –
1528 in music –
1527 in music –
1526 in music –
1525 in music – birth of Palestrina
1524 in music –
1523 in music –
1522 in music – death of Jean Mouton (c. 1459 – October 30, 1522)
1521 in music – death of Josquin
1520 in music – Musica di messer Bernardo Pisano sopra le canzone del Petrarcha is published, the first printed book of secular music dedicated to a single composer. It contains the first madrigals, though they are not called by that name.

1510s[]

1519 in music –
1518 in music –
1517 in music –
1516 in music –
1515 in music –
1514 in music –
1513 in music –
1512 in music –
1511 in music –
1510 in music – Josquin des Prez composes the Missa de Beata Virgine

1490s and 1500s[]

1509 in music –
1508 in music –
1507 in music –
1506 in music –
1505 in music –
1504 in music –
1503 in music –
1502 in music –
1501 in music – publication of Harmonice Musices Odhecaton by Ottaviano Petrucci, the first printed collection of polyphonic music
1500 in music –
1499 in music –
1498 in music –
1497 in music –
1496 in music –
1495 in music –
1494 in music –
1493 in music –
1492 in music –
1491 in music –
1490 in music –

Early history[]

15th century[]

Josquin des Prez composes the
1490s in music – Josquin des Prez – Nymphes des bois; The Chigi codex is compiled.
1480s in music – Johannes Ockeghem completes Requiem; Josquin des Prez composes the Missa L'homme armé super voces musicales
1460s in music – Anna Inglese sings at the festivities for the marriage of Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan and Bona of Savoy^[36]
1450s in music – Antoine Busnois writes the O Crux Lignum
1440s in music – Bianca de' Medici is born
The Old Hall Manuscript is compiled

14th century[]

1370s in music – Death of Guillaume de Machaut
1360s in music – Guillaume de Machaut composes Messe de Nostre Dame, the first complete polyphonic ordinary of the mass
1300s in music
- 1306 in music – 22 May, Edward I of England holds the Feast of the Swans at Westminster Abbey, with music involving over 150 minstrels from a number of European countries.

13th century[]

The Worcester Fragments are compiled.

12th century[]

The Magnus Liber is compiled by Léonin
The Codex Calixtinus is compiled

Ancient music[]

1st millennium in music
1st millennium BC in music
2nd millennium BC in music

References[]

^ "Bring Me the Horizon on how divorce and trauma shaped new album 'Amo': 'Everything boils down to love in the end'". August 25, 2018.
^ "Maynard James Keenan says Tool's new album is coming in 2019". September 10, 2018.
^ Madonna Breaks iTunes Pre-Order Record With 'MDNA' | Prefix Archived March 3, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
^ Hung Up
^ Lewis, Randy (April 8, 2009). "Beatles' catalog will be reissued September 9 in remastered versions". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 2, 2009.
^ Brown, Helen (April 23, 2012). "Norah Jones Little Broken Hearts CD review". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved April 27, 2012.
^ "The boys are back". Windsor Star. August 7, 2008. Retrieved August 21, 2008.
^ "Taking It Back". Daily Record. October 26, 2007. Archived from the original on April 20, 2013. Retrieved November 21, 2008.
^ "Linkin Park headlines Live Earth Tokyo". Live Earth, LLC. May 25, 2007. Archived from the original on March 6, 2012. Retrieved May 3, 2008.
^ "The Evolution of Britney Spears: 2000 – Oops... she did it again". MSN. May 12, 2011. Archived from the original on September 25, 2014. Retrieved May 3, 2012.
^ "Usher Confessions part II Video". Black Entertainment Television. Retrieved June 23, 2012.
^ ^a ^b Byrne, Ciar (August 18, 2005). "The real Slim Shady stands up the fans on his European tour". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on May 14, 2009. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
^ Raide, Stephanie (June 8, 2011). "Eminem – the Fast Rising Rapper". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on October 22, 2012. Retrieved May 10, 2012.
^ "Avril Lavigne Ends North American Run of Shows with Two Dates in Washington Beginning May 9". transworldnews.com. May 4, 2008. Archived from the original on December 5, 2008. Retrieved May 29, 2008.
^ "Evanescence Biography". Artistdirect. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
^ Putti, Laura (August 24, 2001). "Il nuovo Michael Jackson fa un tuffo nel passato". La Repubblica. Retrieved May 10, 2009.
^ Michael Jackson
^ MTV – Michael Jackson Biography Archived August 4, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
^ Sex
^ Hlavaty, Craig (February 13, 2012). "Whitney Houston: An Overview of Her Films". Houston Press. Retrieved June 30, 2012.
^ "Adele's 21 Closing in on Billboard Charts Record". Black Entertainment Television. January 26, 2012. Retrieved June 30, 2012.
^ Blakeley, Kiri (May 10, 2011). "Why Shania Twain Can't Sing". Forbes. Retrieved August 23, 2012.
^ Montgomery, James (February 1, 2010). "'You Oughta Know': The Story Behind Beyonce's Grammy Cover". MTV. MTV Network. Retrieved May 3, 2008.
^ Cashmere, Paul (April 24, 2008). "Mariah Carey Has the Right Energy in E=MC2". Undercover Pty., Ltd. Retrieved May 8, 2008.
^ Reporter, Metro (March 8, 2010). "Oscars 2010 special: Avatar v The Hurt Locker v Inglourious Basterds v Up In The Air". Metro.co.uk. Associated Newspapers. Retrieved March 23, 2010.
^ Bidasio, Claudia (May 19, 2008). "Gli imperdibili di Michel Jackson". . Archived from the original on June 27, 2009. Retrieved May 9, 2009.
^ "Michael Jackson sulla sedia a rotelle". . July 11, 2008. Archived from the original on August 22, 2008. Retrieved May 10, 2009.
^ Anderson, Jason (June 15, 2009). "Learning to Love Celine Dion". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. Retrieved December 27, 2009.
^ "Girl gone wild: is it time for Madonna to grow up?". The Irish Times. March 23, 2012. Retrieved September 21, 2012.
^ Kawaguchi, Judith (October 23, 2007). "Words to Live by: Goh Hotoda". The Japan Times. Toshiaki Ogasawara. Retrieved December 2, 2009.
^ "With dreams in her heart". The Telegraph. April 28, 2001. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
^ dsussman (February 11, 2010). "The Top 10 Worst Albums that Went Platinum". Spike. Archived from the original on April 5, 2014. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
^ Grossberg, Josh (July 25, 2007). "Backstreet Boys Unite!". E! Entertainment Television. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
^ "Liz the 'Fame' Dame". BBC News. February 15, 2000. Retrieved January 7, 2012.
^ MTV – Michael Jackson Biography Archived August 4, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
^ Lubkin, Gregory (Summer 2002). "Review: Music and Patronage in the Sforza Court, by Paul A. Merkley and Lora L. M. Merkley" Archived February 14, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. Journal of the American Musicological Society, Vol. 55, No. 2, pp. 346–353. Retrieved via JSTOR February 8, 2016 (subscription required).

External links[]

Music Timeline A Chronology of Music From Prehistory to the Present Day.

[1] "Bring Me the Horizon on how divorce and trauma shaped new album 'Amo': 'Everything boils down to love in the end'". August 25, 2018.

[2] "Maynard James Keenan says Tool's new album is coming in 2019". September 10, 2018.

[3] Madonna Breaks iTunes Pre-Order Record With 'MDNA' | Prefix Archived March 3, 2016, at the Wayback Machine

[4] Hung Up

[5] Lewis, Randy (April 8, 2009). "Beatles' catalog will be reissued September 9 in remastered versions". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 2, 2009.

[6] Brown, Helen (April 23, 2012). "Norah Jones Little Broken Hearts CD review". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved April 27, 2012.

[Backstreet_Windsor-7] "The boys are back". Windsor Star. August 7, 2008. Retrieved August 21, 2008.

[BSB_sales_updated!-8] "Taking It Back". Daily Record. October 26, 2007. Archived from the original on April 20, 2013. Retrieved November 21, 2008.

[Live_earth_Linkin-9] "Linkin Park headlines Live Earth Tokyo". Live Earth, LLC. May 25, 2007. Archived from the original on March 6, 2012. Retrieved May 3, 2008.

[10] "The Evolution of Britney Spears: 2000 – Oops... she did it again". MSN. May 12, 2011. Archived from the original on September 25, 2014. Retrieved May 3, 2012.

[11] "Usher Confessions part II Video". Black Entertainment Television. Retrieved June 23, 2012.

[independent_2-12] Byrne, Ciar (August 18, 2005). "The real Slim Shady stands up the fans on his European tour". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on May 14, 2009. Retrieved May 10, 2012.

[13] Raide, Stephanie (June 8, 2011). "Eminem – the Fast Rising Rapper". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on October 22, 2012. Retrieved May 10, 2012.

[14] "Avril Lavigne Ends North American Run of Shows with Two Dates in Washington Beginning May 9". transworldnews.com. May 4, 2008. Archived from the original on December 5, 2008. Retrieved May 29, 2008.

[15] "Evanescence Biography". Artistdirect. Retrieved September 23, 2012.

[HIStory_20_million_copies-16] Putti, Laura (August 24, 2001). "Il nuovo Michael Jackson fa un tuffo nel passato". La Repubblica. Retrieved May 10, 2009.

[17] Michael Jackson

[MTV —_Michael_Jackson_Biography-18] MTV – Michael Jackson Biography Archived August 4, 2012, at the Wayback Machine

[19] Sex

[20] Hlavaty, Craig (February 13, 2012). "Whitney Houston: An Overview of Her Films". Houston Press. Retrieved June 30, 2012.

[21] "Adele's 21 Closing in on Billboard Charts Record". Black Entertainment Television. January 26, 2012. Retrieved June 30, 2012.

[22] Blakeley, Kiri (May 10, 2011). "Why Shania Twain Can't Sing". Forbes. Retrieved August 23, 2012.

[23] Montgomery, James (February 1, 2010). "'You Oughta Know': The Story Behind Beyonce's Grammy Cover". MTV. MTV Network. Retrieved May 3, 2008.

[Undercover_musicbox-24] Cashmere, Paul (April 24, 2008). "Mariah Carey Has the Right Energy in E=MC2". Undercover Pty., Ltd. Retrieved May 8, 2008.

[25] Reporter, Metro (March 8, 2010). "Oscars 2010 special: Avatar v The Hurt Locker v Inglourious Basterds v Up In The Air". Metro.co.uk. Associated Newspapers. Retrieved March 23, 2010.

[Dangerous_32_million_copies_worldwide-26] Bidasio, Claudia (May 19, 2008). "Gli imperdibili di Michel Jackson". . Archived from the original on June 27, 2009. Retrieved May 9, 2009.

[Dangerous_32_million_copies_worldwide2-27] "Michael Jackson sulla sedia a rotelle". . July 11, 2008. Archived from the original on August 22, 2008. Retrieved May 10, 2009.

[28] Anderson, Jason (June 15, 2009). "Learning to Love Celine Dion". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. Retrieved December 27, 2009.

[29] "Girl gone wild: is it time for Madonna to grow up?". The Irish Times. March 23, 2012. Retrieved September 21, 2012.

[30] Kawaguchi, Judith (October 23, 2007). "Words to Live by: Goh Hotoda". The Japan Times. Toshiaki Ogasawara. Retrieved December 2, 2009.

[31] "With dreams in her heart". The Telegraph. April 28, 2001. Retrieved September 22, 2012.

[32] sussman (February 11, 2010). "The Top 10 Worst Albums that Went Platinum". Spike. Archived from the original on April 5, 2014. Retrieved September 22, 2012.

[33] Grossberg, Josh (July 25, 2007). "Backstreet Boys Unite!". E! Entertainment Television. Retrieved January 7, 2012.

[34] "Liz the 'Fame' Dame". BBC News. February 15, 2000. Retrieved January 7, 2012.

[MTV —_Michael_Jackson_Biographyb-35] MTV – Michael Jackson Biography Archived August 4, 2012, at the Wayback Machine

[36] Lubkin, Gregory (Summer 2002). "Review: Music and Patronage in the Sforza Court, by Paul A. Merkley and Lora L. M. Merkley" Archived February 14, 2016, at the Wayback Machine. Journal of the American Musicological Society, Vol. 55, No. 2, pp. 346–353. Retrieved via JSTOR February 8, 2016 (subscription required).

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v t Lists of years by topic
List of years
The arts	Animation Anime Art Comics Film Games Literature Music Poetry Video games
Communication and technology	Architecture Aviation Home video Radio Television
Philosophy and science	Anthropology Archaeology Environment and environmental sciences Lunar eclipses Paleontology Philosophy Science Spaceflight
Politics and office-holders	Politics and governance Political entities State leaders Colonial and territorial governors Leaders of international organizations Religious leaders
Sport	Association football Ice sports Rugby union

Timeline of musical events

2020s[]

2010s[]

2000s[]

List of 10 best-selling albums of the 2000s[]

1990s[]

List of 10 best-selling albums of the 1990s[]

1980s[]

1970s[]

1960s[]

1950s[]

1940s[]

1930s[]

1920s[]

1910s[]

1900s[]

1890s[]

1880s[]

1870s[]

1860s[]

1850s[]

1840s[]

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1810s[]

1800s[]

1790s[]

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1600s[]

1590s[]

1580s[]

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1540s[]

1530s[]

1520s[]

1510s[]

1490s and 1500s[]

Early history[]

15th century[]

14th century[]

13th century[]

12th century[]

Ancient music[]

See also[]

References[]

External links[]