This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1951.

Specific locations

* 1951 in British music * 1951 in Norwegian music

Specific genres

* 1951 in country music * 1951 in jazz

Events

January 29 Events Pre-1600 * 904 – Sergius III is elected pope, after coming out of retirement to take over the papacy from the deposed antipope Christopher. * 946 – Caliph Al-Mustakfi is blinded and deposed by Emir Mu'izz al-Dawla, ruler o ...

–

Nilla Pizzi Nilla Pizzi, stage name of Adionilla Pizzi (; 16 April 1919 – 12 March 2011), was an Italian singer and actress. Born in Sant'Agata Bolognese, she was particularly famous in Italy during the 1950s and 1960s. She won the first edition of the ...

wins the first annual

Sanremo Music Festival The Sanremo Music Festival, officially the Italian Song Festival () and commonly known as just (), is the most popular Italian song contest and awards ceremony, held annually in the city of Sanremo, Liguria. It is the longest-running annual ...

with "Grazie dei fiori". *

February 22 Events Pre-1600 * 1076 – Having received a letter during the Lenten synod of 14–20 February demanding that he abdicate, Pope Gregory VII excommunicates Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor. * 1316 – The Battle of Picotin, between Ferdina ...

– The first complete performance of

Charles Ives Charles Edward Ives (; October 20, 1874May 19, 1954) was an American modernist composer, one of the first American composers of international renown. His music was largely ignored during his early career, and many of his works went unperformed f ...

's Symphony No. 2, written between 1897 and 1902, is given in

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...

by the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...

orchestra, conducted by

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

. *

March 3 Events Pre-1600 * 473 – Gundobad (nephew of Ricimer) nominates Glycerius as emperor of the Western Roman Empire. * 724 – Empress Genshō abdicates the throne in favor of her nephew Shōmu who becomes emperor of Japan. * 1575 &nd ...

-5 –

Jackie Brenston Jackie Brenston (August 24, 1928 or 1930Most published sources and the U.S. Social Security Death Index give 1930 as his year of birth. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and reportedly his gravestone give 1928. – December 15, 1979) ...

"and His Delta Cats" (actually

Ike Turner Izear Luster "Ike" Turner Jr. (November 5, 1931 – December 12, 2007) was an American musician, bandleader, songwriter, record producer, and talent scout. An early pioneer of 1950s rock and roll, he is best known for his work in the 1960s and 1 ...

Kings of Rhythm The Kings of Rhythm are an American music group formed in the late 1940s in Clarksdale, Mississippi and led by Ike Turner through to his death in 2007. Turner would retain the name of the band throughout his career, although the group has underg ...

) record "

Rocket 88 "Rocket 88" (originally stylized as Rocket "88") is a song that was first recorded in Memphis, Tennessee, in March 1951. The recording was credited to " Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats", who were actually Ike Turner and his Kings of Rhythm. T ...

" at

Sam Phillips Samuel Cornelius Phillips (January 5, 1923 – July 30, 2003) was an American record producer. He was the founder of Sun Records and Sun Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, where he produced recordings by Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, ...

Sun Studio Sun Studio is a recording studio opened by rock-and-roll pioneer Sam Phillips at 706 Union Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee, on January 3, 1950. It was originally called Memphis Recording Service, sharing the same building with the Sun Records label ...

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

, a candidate for the first rock and roll record (released in April). *

March 5 Events Pre-1600 * 363 – Roman emperor Julian leaves Antioch with an army of 90,000 to attack the Sasanian Empire, in a campaign which would bring about his own death. * 1046 – Nasir Khusraw begins the seven-year Middle Eastern ...

– The

Suk Trio The Suk Trio was a Czech piano trio founded in 1951 and disbanded in 1990. They made their debut on March 5 at the Rudolfinum Hall in Prague with Josef Suk (violin), Jiří Hubička (piano) and Saša Večtomov (cello). The permanent member of t ...

, consisting of

Josef Suk (violinist) Josef Suk (8 August 1929 – 7 July 2011) was a Czech violinist, violist, chamber musician and conductor. In his home country he carried the title of National Artist. Youth and studies Josef Suk was born in Prague, the grandson of the composer ...

, Jiří Hubička (pianist) and

Saša Večtomov Saša Večtomov (12 December 1930 – 29 December 1989) was a Czechoslovak cellist and music pedagogue. Biography Večtomov first studied piano and cello with his father, cellist/composer Ivan Večtomov (1902–81), a soloist in the Czech Phil ...

(cellist), make their debut, at the

Rudolfinum The Rudolfinum is a building in Prague, Czech Republic. It is designed in the neo-renaissance style and is situated on Jan Palach Square on the bank of the river Vltava. Since its opening in 1885, it has been associated with music and art. Curr ...

Hall in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

(Czechoslovakia). *

April 4 Events Pre-1600 * 503 BC – Roman consul Agrippa Menenius Lanatus celebrates a triumph for a military victory over the Sabines. * 190 – Dong Zhuo has his troops evacuate the capital Luoyang and burn it to the ground. * 611 – ...

–

Frankie Laine Frankie Laine (born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio; March 30, 1913 – February 6, 2007) was an American Singing, singer, songwriter, and actor whose career spanned nearly 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to hi ...

, newly signed by

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

, becoming the highest paid vocalist of his day, immediately justifies his new contract by recording the double-sided megahit "

Jezebel Jezebel (;"Jezebel"
(US) and ) was the daughte ...

"/"

Rose, Rose, I Love You "Rose, Rose, I Love You" () is a 1940 Mandarin popular song composed by Chen Gexin and first recorded by Yao Lee. An English-language version whose lyrics have little in common with the original Mandarin was first recorded by Frankie Laine i ...

", the latter being the only major popular music chart hit in the United States written by a Chinese composer (

Chen Gexin Chen Gexin (; September 19, 1914 — January 25, 1961) was a Chinese popular music songwriter. He also used the pen names Lín Méi () and Qìng Yú (). Chen Genxin was beaten to death in his sleep during the Rightist movement. Biography Chen ...

). *

April 18 Events Pre-1600 * 796 – King Æthelred I of Northumbria is murdered in Corbridge by a group led by his ealdormen, Ealdred and Wada. The ''patrician'' Osbald is crowned, but abdicates within 27 days. * 1428 – Peace of Ferrara betw ...

– An article entitled "The Fight Against Formalism in Art and Literature, for a Progressive German Culture" appears in the ''Tägliche Rundschau'', official daily of the Soviet Government in Germany, promulgating the new cultural policy of the

DDR DDR or ddr may refer to: *ddr, ISO 639-3 code for the Dhudhuroa language *DDr., title for a double doctorate in Germany *DDR, station code for Dadar railway station, Mumbai, India *' (German Democratic Republic), official name of the former East ...

. *

May 9 Events Pre-1600 * 328 – Athanasius is elected Patriarch of Alexandria. *1009 – Lombard Revolt: Lombard forces led by Melus revolt in Bari against the Byzantine Catepanate of Italy. *1386 – England and Portugal formally rati ...

–26 – The

Queen Elisabeth Competition The Queen Elisabeth Competition ( nl, Koningin Elisabethwedstrijd, french: Concours musical international Reine Élisabeth) is an international competition for career-starting musicians held in Brussels. The competition is named after Queen ...

for violin is held (for the first time under that name) in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, Belgium.

Leonid Kogan Leonid Borisovich Kogan (russian: Леони́д Бори́сович Ко́ган; uk, Леонід Борисович Коган; 14 November 1924 – 17 December 1982) was a preeminent Soviet violinist during the 20th century. Many consider ...

is awarded first prize. *

June 9 Events Pre-1600 *411 BC – The Athenian coup succeeds, forming a short-lived oligarchy. * 53 – The Roman emperor Nero marries Claudia Octavia. * 68 – Nero dies by suicide after quoting Vergil's ''Aeneid'', thus ending th ...

–

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

's opera ''

L'anima del filosofo ''L'anima del filosofo, ossia Orfeo ed Euridice'' (''The Soul of the Philosopher, or Orpheus and Euridice''), Hob. 28/13, is an opera in Italian in four acts by Joseph Haydn, the last he wrote. The libretto, by Carlo Francesco Badini, is based ...

'', better known by its alternative title ''Orfeo ed Euridice'' and written in 1791–92, is given its world premiere at the

Maggio Musicale Fiorentino The Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (English: Florence Musical May) is an annual Italian arts festival in Florence, including a notable opera festival, under the auspices of the Opera di Firenze. The festival occurs between late April into June annuall ...

. *

June 14 Events Pre-1600 * 1158 – The city of Munich is founded by Henry the Lion on the banks of the river Isar. *1216 – First Barons' War: Prince Louis of France takes the city of Winchester, abandoned by John, King of England, and soo ...

– Bill Haley and His Saddlemen record their version of "

", combining the

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

arrangement of the version recorded in early March by Jackie Brentson with

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

trappings. *

June 22 Events Pre-1600 * 217 BC – Battle of Raphia: Ptolemy IV Philopator of Egypt defeats Antiochus III the Great of the Seleucid kingdom. * 168 BC – Battle of Pydna: Romans under Lucius Aemilius Paullus defeat Macedonian King Perseus ...

–

July 10 Events Pre-1600 * 138 – Emperor Hadrian of Rome dies of heart failure at his residence on the bay of Naples, Baiae; he is buried at Rome in the Tomb of Hadrian beside his late wife, Vibia Sabina. * 645 – Isshi Incident: Prin ...

– Darmstädter Internationale Ferienkurse held in

Darmstadt Darmstadt () is a city in the States of Germany, state of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Frankfurt Rhine Main Area, Rhine-Main-Area (Frankfurt Metropolitan Region). Darmstadt has around 160,000 inhabitants, making it th ...

. *

July 2 Events Pre-1600 * 437 – Emperor Valentinian III begins his reign over the Western Roman Empire. His mother Galla Placidia ends her regency, but continues to exercise political influence at the court in Rome. * 626 – Li Shimin, th ...

–14 – The seventh annual

Cheltenham Music Festival The Cheltenham Music Festival is a British music festival, held annually in Cheltenham in the summer months (June, July) since 1945. The festival is renowned for premieres of contemporary music, hosting over 250 music premieres as of July 200 ...

is held in

Cheltenham Cheltenham (), also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a spa town and borough on the edge of the Cotswolds in the county of Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort, following the discovery of mineral s ...

, England, with a performance of

Brian Easdale Brian Easdale (10 August 1909 – 30 October 1995) was a British composer of operatic, orchestral, choral and film music, best known for his ballet film score ''The Red Shoes'' of 1948. Life Easdale was born in Manchester, and was educated at ...

's opera ''The Sleeping Children'', premieres of the first symphonies of

Malcolm Arnold Sir Malcolm Henry Arnold (21 October 1921 – 23 September 2006) was an English composer. His works feature music in many genres, including a cycle of nine symphonies, numerous concertos, concert works, chamber music, choral music and music ...

, John Gardner and Arnold van Wyk,

Franz Reizenstein Franz Theodor Reizenstein (7 June 191115 October 1968) was a German-born British composer and concert pianist. He left Germany for sanctuary in Britain in 1934 and went on to have his teaching and performing career there. As a composer, he succ ...

's Serenade for Winds and Maurice Jacobson's Symphonic Suite, as well as performances of works by

Humphrey Searle Humphrey Searle (26 August 1915 – 12 May 1982) was an English composer and writer on music. His music combines aspects of late Romanticism and modernist serialism, particularly reminiscent of his primary influences, Franz Liszt, Arnold Schoen ...

Robert Masters Robert Masters (15 June 1879 – 29 June 1967) was a New Zealand politician of the Liberal and later United parties, as well as a cabinet minister. Biography Early life and career Masters was born in 1879 at Greymouth and was educated at Grey ...

Benjamin Frankel Benjamin Frankel (31 January 190612 February 1973) was a British composer. His best known pieces include a cycle of five string quartets, eight symphonies, and concertos for violin and viola. He was also notable for writing over 100 film scores ...

and

Philip Sainton Philip Prosper Sainton (10 November 1891 – 2 September 1967) was a British–French composer, conductor, and violist. Biography He was born in Arques-la-Bataille, in Seine-Maritime, France, grandson to violinist Prosper Sainton and co ...

. *

July 11 Events Pre-1600 * 472 – After being besieged in Rome by his own generals, Western Roman Emperor Anthemius is captured in St. Peter's Basilica and put to death. * 813 – Byzantine emperor Michael I, under threat by conspiracies, abd ...

– Disc jockey and music promoter

Alan Freed Albert James "Alan" Freed (December 15, 1921 – January 20, 1965) was an American disc jockey. He also produced and promoted large traveling concerts with various acts, helping to spread the importance of rock and roll music throughout Nor ...

broadcasts his first

Rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

radio programme from station WJW in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

. Freed uses the term

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

to describe R&B, in an effort to introduce the music to a broader white audience. *

July 14 Events Pre-1600 * 982 – King Otto II and his Frankish army are defeated by the Muslim army of al-Qasim at Cape Colonna, Southern Italy. * 1223 – Louis VIII becomes King of France upon the death of his father, Philip II. * 142 ...

–21 – The Haslemere Music Festival, consisting of six concerts of

early music Early music generally comprises Medieval music (500–1400) and Renaissance music (1400–1600), but can also include Baroque music (1600–1750). Originating in Europe, early music is a broad musical era for the beginning of Western classical m ...

, takes place in

Haslemere The town of Haslemere () and the villages of Shottermill and Grayswood are in south west Surrey, England, around south west of London. Together with the settlements of Hindhead and Beacon Hill, they comprise the civil parish of Haslemere i ...

, England. *

July 29 Events Pre-1600 * 587 BC – The Neo-Babylonian Empire sacks Jerusalem and destroys the First Temple. * 615 – Pakal ascends the throne of Palenque Palenque (; Yucatec Maya language, Yucatec Maya: ), also anciently known in the ...

– The annual

Bayreuth Festival The Bayreuth Festival (german: link=no, Bayreuther Festspiele) is a music festival held annually in Bayreuth, Germany, at which performances of operas by the 19th-century German composer Richard Wagner are presented. Wagner himself conceived ...

resumes for the first time since the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, now under the general direction of

Wieland Wagner Wieland Wagner (5 January 1917 – 17 October 1966) was a German opera director, grandson of Richard Wagner. As co-director of the Bayreuth Festival when it re-opened after World War II, he was noted for innovative new stagings of the operas, depa ...

, with an opening concert of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 conducted by

Wilhelm Furtwängler Gustav Heinrich Ernst Martin Wilhelm Furtwängler ( , , ; 25 January 188630 November 1954) was a German conductor and composer. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest symphonic and operatic conductors of the 20th century. He was a major ...

, followed by productions of ''

Der Ring des Nibelungen (''The Ring of the Nibelung''), WWV 86, is a cycle of four German-language epic music dramas composed by Richard Wagner. The works are based loosely on characters from Germanic heroic legend, namely Norse legendary sagas and the '' Nibe ...

'', ''

Parsifal ''Parsifal'' ( WWV 111) is an opera or a music drama in three acts by the German composer Richard Wagner and his last composition. Wagner's own libretto for the work is loosely based on the 13th-century Middle High German epic poem ''Parzival'' ...

'' and ''

Die Meistersinger Die, as a verb, refers to death, the cessation of life. Die may also refer to: Games * Die, singular of dice, small throwable objects used for producing random numbers Manufacturing * Die (integrated circuit), a rectangular piece of a semicondu ...

''. *August – The annual

Salzburg Festival The Salzburg Festival (german: Salzburger Festspiele) is a prominent festival of music and drama established in 1920. It is held each summer (for five weeks starting in late July) in the Austrian town of Salzburg, the birthplace of Wolfgang Amad ...

takes place in

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the ...

, Austria, featuring four opera productions from the

Vienna State Opera The Vienna State Opera (, ) is an opera house and opera company based in Vienna, Austria. The 1,709-seat Renaissance Revival venue was the first major building on the Vienna Ring Road. It was built from 1861 to 1869 following plans by August S ...

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

's ''

Idomeneo ' (Italian for ''Idomeneus, King of Crete, or, Ilia and Idamante''; usually referred to simply as ''Idomeneo'', K. 366) is an Italian language opera seria by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The libretto was adapted by Giambattista Varesco from a French ...

'' and ''

Die Zauberflöte ''The Magic Flute'' (German: , ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. The work is in the form of a ''Singspiel'', a popular form during the time it was written that includ ...

'' and

Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...

's ''

Otello ''Otello'' () is an opera in four acts by Giuseppe Verdi to an Italian libretto by Arrigo Boito, based on Shakespeare's play ''Othello''. It was Verdi's penultimate opera, first performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan, on 5 February 1887. Th ...

'', all conducted by

, and Berg's ''

Wozzeck ''Wozzeck'' () is the first opera by the Austrian composer Alban Berg. It was composed between 1914 and 1922 and first performed in 1925. The opera is based on the drama ''Woyzeck'', which the German playwright Georg Büchner left incomplete at h ...

'', conducted by

Karl Böhm Karl August Leopold Böhm (28 August 1894 – 14 August 1981) was an Austrian conductor. He was best known for his performances of the music of Mozart, Wagner, and Richard Strauss. Life and career Education Karl Böhm was born in Graz. T ...

, as well as seven orchestral concerts by the

Vienna Philharmonic The Vienna Philharmonic (VPO; german: Wiener Philharmoniker, links=no) is an orchestra that was founded in 1842 and is considered to be one of the finest in the world. The Vienna Philharmonic is based at the Musikverein in Vienna, Austria. It ...

(two conducted by

and one each by

Edwin Fischer Edwin Fischer (6 October 1886 – 24 January 1960) was a Swiss classical pianist and conductor. He is regarded as one of the great interpreters of J.S. Bach and Mozart in the twentieth century. Biography Fischer was born in Basel and studied ...

Rafael Kubelík Rafael Jeroným Kubelík, KBE (29 June 1914 – 11 August 1996) was a Czech conductor and composer. Son of a well-known violinist, Jan Kubelík, he was trained in Prague, and made his debut with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of 1 ...

Eugen Jochum Eugen Jochum (; 1 November 1902 – 26 March 1987) was a German conductor, best known for his interpretations of the music of Anton Bruckner, Carl Orff, and Johannes Brahms, among others. Biography Jochum was born to a Roman Catholic family in ...

, and

Leopold Stokowski Leopold Anthony Stokowski (18 April 1882 – 13 September 1977) was a British conductor. One of the leading conductors of the early and mid-20th century, he is best known for his long association with the Philadelphia Orchestra and his appeara ...

), six choral concerts, four chamber-music concerts, three solo recitals, and a number of smaller events. *

September 5 Events Pre-1600 * 917 – Liu Yan declares himself emperor, establishing the Southern Han state in southern China, at his capital of Panyu. * 1367 – Swa Saw Ke becomes king of Ava * 1590 – Alexander Farnese's army forces Hen ...

– Opening of the month-long Berlin Festival of the Arts, with a performance in the New Schillertheater of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 by the

Berlin Philharmonic The Berlin Philharmonic (german: Berliner Philharmoniker, links=no, italic=no) is a German orchestra based in Berlin. It is one of the most popular, acclaimed and well-respected orchestras in the world. History The Berlin Philharmonic was fo ...

conducted by

. Subsequent musical events include performances of

Gian Carlo Menotti Gian Carlo Menotti (, ; July 7, 1911 – February 1, 2007) was an Italian composer, librettist, director, and playwright who is primarily known for his output of 25 operas. Although he often referred to himself as an American composer, he kept h ...

's ''

The Consul ''The Consul'' is an opera in three acts with music and libretto by Gian Carlo Menotti, his first full-length opera. Performance history Its first performance was on March 1, 1950 at the Schubert Theatre in Philadelphia with Patricia Neway as the ...

'',

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...

's ''Let's Make an Opera'' and the first German performance of ''

Oklahoma! ''Oklahoma!'' is the first musical theater, musical written by the duo of Rodgers and Hammerstein. The musical is based on Lynn Riggs' 1931 play, ''Green Grow the Lilacs (play), Green Grow the Lilacs''. Set in farm country outside the town of ...

''. *

September 11 Events Pre-1600 * 9 – The Battle of the Teutoburg Forest ends: The Roman Empire suffers the greatest defeat of its history and the Rhine is established as the border between the Empire and the so-called barbarians for the next four hu ...

– ''

The Rake's Progress ''The Rake's Progress'' is an English-language opera from 1951 in three acts and an epilogue by Igor Stravinsky. The libretto, written by W. H. Auden and Chester Kallman, is based loosely on the eight paintings and engravings ''A Rake's Progres ...

'', an opera by

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of the ...

with libretto by

W. H. Auden Wystan Hugh Auden (; 21 February 1907 – 29 September 1973) was a British-American poet. Auden's poetry was noted for its stylistic and technical achievement, its engagement with politics, morals, love, and religion, and its variety in ...

and

Chester Kallman Chester Simon Kallman (January 7, 1921 – January 18, 1975) was an American poet, librettist, and translator, best known for collaborating with W. H. Auden on opera librettos for Igor Stravinsky and other composers. Life Kallman was born in ...

, premieres in

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

, conducted by the composer. *

September 17 Events Pre-1600 * 1111 – Highest Galician nobility led by Pedro Fróilaz de Traba and the bishop Diego Gelmírez crown Alfonso VII as "King of Galicia". * 1176 – The Battle of Myriokephalon is the last attempt by the Byzantine Empi ...

–22 – The fourth annual Swansea Festival of Music and the Arts opens in

Swansea Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe). The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, with a controversial speech by one of Wales's leading composers, Daniel Jones. The festival is the final component in the

Festival of Britain The Festival of Britain was a national exhibition and fair that reached millions of visitors throughout the United Kingdom in the summer of 1951. Historian Kenneth O. Morgan says the Festival was a "triumphant success" during which people: ...

and consists of seven programmes, featuring Welsh composer

Arwel Hughes Arwel Hughes OBE (25 August 1909 – 23 September 1988) was a Welsh orchestral conductor and composer. Life and career Hughes was born in Rhosllannerchrugog near Wrexham and was educated at Ruabon Grammar School and at the Royal College ...

's new oratorio ''St. David'' and appearances by

Victoria de los Ángeles Victoria de los Ángeles López García (1 November 192315 January 2005) was a Catalan Spanish operatic lyric soprano and recitalist whose career began after the Second World War and reached its height in the years from the mid-1950s to the mid- ...

Zino Francescatti René-Charles "Zino" Francescatti (August 9, 1902 – September 17, 1991) was a French virtuoso violinist. Zino Francescatti was born in Marseilles, to a musical family. Both parents were violinists. His father, who also played the cello, had stu ...

André Navarra André-Nicolas Navarra (Biarritz, 13 October 1911 – Siena, 31 July 1988) was a French cellist and cello teacher. Early life He was born into a musical family in Biarritz, his father being a bassist of Italian descent."'Play From The Stomach, ...

Walter Susskind Jan Walter Susskind (1 May 1913 – 25 March 1980) was a Czech-born British conductor, teacher and pianist. He began his career in his native Prague, and fled to Britain when Germany invaded the city in 1939. He worked for substantial periods in ...

and

Jean Martinon Jean Francisque-Étienne Martinon (usually known simply as Jean Martinon (); 10 January 19101 March 1976) was a French conductor and composer. Biography Martinon was born in Lyon, where he began his education, going on to the Conservatoire ...

. *

October 6 Events Pre-1600 * 105 BC – Cimbrian War: Defeat at the Battle of Arausio accelerates the Marian reforms of the Roman army of the mid-Republic. * 69 BC – Third Mithridatic War: The military of the Roman Republic subdue Armenia. *A ...

–7 – The

Donaueschinger Musiktage The Donaueschingen Festival (german: Donaueschinger Musiktage, links=no) is a festival for new music that takes place every October in the small town of Donaueschingen in south-western Germany. Founded in 1921, it is considered the oldest festiv ...

features the world premieres of

Ernst Krenek Ernst Heinrich Krenek (, 23 August 1900 – 22 December 1991) was an Austrian, later American, composer of Czech origin. He explored atonality and other modern styles and wrote a number of books, including ''Music Here and Now'' (1939), a study ...

's Double Concerto for viola, piano, and small orchestra,

Rolf Liebermann Rolf Liebermann (14 September 1910 – 2 January 1999), was a Swiss composer and music administrator. He served as the Artistic Director of the Hamburg State Opera from 1959 to 1973 and again from 1985 to 1988. He was also Artistic Director of ...

's Piano Sonata,

Pierre Boulez Pierre Louis Joseph Boulez (; 26 March 1925 – 5 January 2016) was a French composer, conductor and writer, and the founder of several musical institutions. He was one of the dominant figures of post-war Western classical music. Born in Mont ...

's ''

Polyphonie X ''Polyphonie X'' (1950–51) is a three- movement composition by Pierre Boulez for eighteen instruments divided into seven groups, with a duration of roughly fifteen minutes. Following the work's premiere, Boulez withdrew the score, stating that it ...

'' for 18 solo instruments,

Hermann Reutter Hermann Reutter (; 17 June 19001 January 1985) was a German composer and pianist who worked as an academic teacher, university administrator, recitalist, and accompanist. He composed several operas, orchestral works, and chamber music, and especi ...

's ''Der himmlische Vagant, lyrische Portrait des F. Villon von Klabund'' for alto and baritone voices and instrumental ensemble, and

Marcel Mihalovici Marcel Mihalovici (Bucharest, 22 October 1898 – Paris, 12 August 1985) was a French composer born in Romania. He was discovered by George Enescu in Bucharest. He moved to Paris in 1919 (at age 21) to study under Vincent d'Indy. His works include ...

's ''Étude en deux parties'' for piano and ensemble, as well as German first performances of works by

Messiaen Olivier Eugène Prosper Charles Messiaen (, ; ; 10 December 1908 – 27 April 1992) was a French composer, organist, and ornithology, ornithologist who was one of the major composers of the 20th-century classical music, 20th century. His m ...

, Guido Turchi, Harsányi, Jelinek, and

Honegger Arthur Honegger (; 10 March 1892 – 27 November 1955) was a Swiss composer who was born in France and lived a large part of his life in Paris. A member of Les Six, his best known work is probably ''Antigone'', composed between 1924 and 1927 to ...

, and a performance of Henze's Third Symphony. *

October 21 Events Pre-1600 *1096 – A Seljuk Turkish army successfully fights off the People's Crusade. *1097 – First Crusade: Crusaders led by Godfrey of Bouillon, Bohemund of Taranto, and Raymond IV, Count of Toulouse, begin the Siege of A ...

– Opening of a "Festival of Music and the Arts" at Wexford in Ireland, the forerunner of

Wexford Festival Opera Wexford Festival Opera () is an opera festival that takes place in the town of Wexford in south-eastern Ireland during the months of October and November. The festival began in 1951 under Tom Walsh and a group of opera lovers who quickly gener ...

. *

October 22 Events Pre-1600 * 451 – The Chalcedonian Creed, regarding the divine and human nature of Jesus, is adopted by the Council of Chalcedon, an ecumenical council. * 794 – Emperor Kanmu relocates the Japanese capital to Heian-kyō (no ...

– Reopening of the

Royal Opera House The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Op ...

, London, with a production of

Puccini Giacomo Puccini (Lucca, 22 December 1858Bruxelles, 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he was descended from a long lin ...

's ''

Turandot ''Turandot'' (; see below) is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, posthumously completed by Franco Alfano in 1926, and set to a libretto in Italian by Giuseppe Adami and Renato Simoni. ''Turandot'' best-known aria is "Nessun dorma", whi ...

'', conducted by Sir

John Barbirolli Sir John Barbirolli ( Giovanni Battista Barbirolli; 2 December 189929 July 1970) was a British conductor and cellist. He is remembered above all as conductor of the Hallé Orchestra in Manchester, which he helped save from dissolution in 194 ...

and with Gertrude Grob-Prandl in the title role. *

November 29 Events Pre-1600 * 561 – Following the death of King Chlothar I at Compiègne, his four sons, Charibert I, Guntram, Sigebert I and Chilperic I, divide the Frankish Kingdom. * 618 – The Tang dynasty scores a decisive victory over t ...

–

December 3 Events Pre-1600 * 915 – Pope John X crowns Berengar I of Italy as Holy Roman Emperor (probable date). 1601–1900 * 1775 – American Revolutionary War: becomes the first vessel to fly the Grand Union Flag (the precursor to the ...

– The Hamburg Radio Symphony Orchestra, conducted by

Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt (5 May 190028 May 1973) was a German conductor and composer. After studying at several music academies, he worked in German opera houses between 1923 and 1945, first as a répétiteur and then in increasingly senior conduc ...

, plays four concerts in London as part of a thirteen-concert tour of England and Ireland. *November –

Dinah Shore Dinah Shore (born Frances Rose Shore; February 29, 1916 – February 24, 1994) was an American singer, actress, and television personality, and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1940s. She rose to prominence as a recording artist during ...

begins her first TV series, ''The Dinah Shore Show'', which will run for 5½ years. *

December 7 Events Pre-1600 *43 BC – Cicero, Marcus Tullius Cicero is assassinated in Formia on orders of Marcus Antonius. * 574 – Byzantine Emperor Justin II, suffering recurring seizures of insanity, adopts his general Tiberius II Constant ...

– Opening of the opera season at

La Scala La Scala (, , ; abbreviation in Italian of the official name ) is a famous opera house in Milan, Italy. The theatre was inaugurated on 3 August 1778 and was originally known as the ' (New Royal-Ducal Theatre alla Scala). The premiere performan ...

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

, three weeks earlier than the traditional date of December 26, with a double-bill consisting of Verdi's ''

I vespri siciliani ''I vespri siciliani'' (; ''The Sicilian Vespers'') is a five-act Italian opera originally written in French for the Paris Opéra by the Italian romantic composer Giuseppe Verdi and translated into Italian shortly after its premiere in June 1855. ...

'' and Stravinsky's ''

''. *

Teresa Brewer Teresa Brewer (born Theresa Veronica Breuer; May 7, 1931 – October 17, 2007) was an American singer whose style incorporated pop, country, jazz, R&B, musicals, and novelty songs. She was one of the most prolific and popular female singers of th ...

leaves the London label for

Coral Records Coral Records was a subsidiary of Decca Records that was formed in 1949. Coral released music by Patsy Cline, Buddy Holly, the McGuire Sisters and Teresa Brewer. Coral issued jazz and swing music in the 1940s, but after Bob Thiele became head o ...

. *

Georgia Gibbs Georgia Gibbs (born Frieda Lipschitz; August 17, 1918December 9, 2006) was an American popular singer and vocal entertainer rooted in jazz. Already singing publicly in her early teens, Gibbs achieved acclaim and notoriety in the mid-1950s interp ...

leaves Coral to sign with

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...

, where she will have all of her biggest hits.

Albums released

*''Ballin' the Jack'' –

*''

Beloved Hymns ''Beloved Hymns'' is a studio album by Bing Crosby released in 1951 featuring eight hymns recorded with the Ken Darby Choir and organ accompaniment on May 6, 1949. Reception Crosby researcher Fred Reynolds said of the recording session at which ...

'' –

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, musician and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwide. He was a ...

*'' Bing and the Dixieland Bands'' – Bing Crosby *'' Bing Sing Victor Herbert'' – Bing Crosby *''Blue Period'' –

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

*''Country Style'' – Bing Crosby *''Dig'' –

*''Down Memory Lane'' – Bing Crosby *'' Folk Song Favorites'' –

Patti Page Clara Ann Fowler (November 8, 1927 – January 1, 2013), known professionally as Patti Page, was an American singer and actress. Primarily known for pop and country music, she was the top-charting female vocalist and best-selling female ar ...

*''Go West, Young Man'' – Bing Crosby *'' Historically Speaking'' –

Gerry Mulligan Gerald Joseph Mulligan (April 6, 1927 – January 20, 1996), also known as Jeru, was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, composer and arranger. Though primarily known as one of the leading jazz baritone saxophonists—playing the instrum ...

*''Hoop-De-Doo'' –

Ames Brothers The Ames Brothers were a singing quartet, consisting of four siblings from Malden, Massachusetts, who were particularly famous in the 1950s for their traditional pop music hits. Biography The Urick brothers were born in Malden, Massachusetts. ...

*'' I'll See You in My Dreams'' –

Doris Day Doris Day (born Doris Mary Kappelhoff; April 3, 1922 – May 13, 2019) was an American actress, singer, and activist. She began her career as a big band singer in 1939, achieving commercial success in 1945 with two No. 1 recordings, " Sent ...

*''In the Evening by the Moonlight'' – Ames Brothers *''Let's Polka'' – Frank Yankovic Orchestra (Pontiac Records PLP-520) *'' Lullaby of Broadway'' – Doris Day *''Music, Maestro Please'' –

*'' On Moonlight Bay'' – Doris Day *''One for My Baby'' – Frankie Laine *''

Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' () is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play '' Porgy'', itse ...

'' – Various Artists *''Precious Memories'' – Bill Kenny *''Sentimental Me'' – Ames Brothers *''Sweet Leilani'' – Ames Brothers *''Teresa Brewer'' –

*''Two Tickets to Broadway'' –

*'' Way Back Home'' – Bing Crosby *''Wonderful Words'' –

The Mills Brothers The Mills Brothers, sometimes billed the Four Mills Brothers, and originally known as the Four Kings of Harmony, were an American jazz and traditional pop vocal quartet who made more than 2,000 recordings that sold more than 50 million copies an ...

US No 1 hit singles

These singles reached the top of US

Billboard magazine ''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the music ...

's charts in 1951.

Biggest hit singles

The following songs achieved the highes
chart positions
in the limited set of charts available for 1951.

Top hits on record

Top R&B hits on record

" – Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats *"Sixty-Minute Man" –

Dominoes Dominoes is a family of tile-based games played with gaming pieces, commonly known as dominoes. Each domino is a rectangular tile, usually with a line dividing its face into two square ''ends''. Each end is marked with a number of spots (also ca ...

*"The Glory Of Love" –

Five Keys The Five Keys were an American rhythm and blues vocal group who were instrumental in shaping this genre in the 1950s. They were formed with the original name of Sentimental Four in Newport News, Virginia, US, in the late 1940s, and initially consi ...

The Thrill Is Gone "The Thrill Is Gone" is a slow minor-key blues song written by West Coast blues musician Roy Hawkins and Rick Darnell in 1951. Hawkins's recording of the song reached number six in the Billboard R&B chart in 1951. In 1970, "The Thrill Is Gon ...

" –

Roy Hawkins Roy Theodore Hawkins (February 7, 1903 – March 19, 1974) was an American blues singer, pianist, and songwriter. After working in clubs, he broke through with his 1950 song "Why Do Things Happen to Me" inspired by an auto accident which par ...

Published popular music

* "Alice In Wonderland" – w.

Bob Hilliard Bob Hilliard (born Hilliard Goldsmith; January 28, 1918 – February 1, 1971) was an American lyricist. He wrote the words for the songs: " Alice in Wonderland", "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning", " Any Day Now", "Dear Hearts and Gentle ...

Sammy Fain Sammy Fain (born Samuel E. Feinberg; June 17, 1902 – December 6, 1989) was an American composer of popular music. In the 1920s and early 1930s, he contributed numerous songs that form part of The Great American Songbook, and to Broadway theatre. ...

* "All In The Golden Afternoon" – w.

* "Allentown Jail" – w.m.

Irving Gordon Irving Gordon (February 14, 1915 – December 1, 1996) was an American songwriter. Biography Irving Gordon was born in Brooklyn, New York, to a Jewish family, and later lived on Coney Island. He was named Israel Goldener but later changed his na ...

* "

And So To Sleep Again "And So to Sleep Again" is a popular song, written in 1951 by Joe Marsala and Sunny Skylar. It was popularized by Patti Page in 1951. The Page recording was issued by Mercury Records as catalog number 5706, and first reached the '' Billboard'' ...

" w.m.

Joe Marsala Joseph Francis Marsala (January 4, 1907 – March 4, 1978) was an Italian-American jazz clarinetist and songwriter. His younger brother was trumpeter Marty Marsala and he was married to jazz harpist Adele Girard. Music career He was born in Ch ...

& Sunny Skylar * " Anywhere I Wander" – w.m.

Frank Loesser Frank Henry Loesser (; June 29, 1910 – July 28, 1969) was an American songwriter who wrote the music and lyrics for the Broadway musicals ''Guys and Dolls'' and ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'', among others. He won a Tony ...

* "A-Round The Corner" – trad arr.

Josef Marais Joseph Pessach (November 17, 1905, Sir Lowry's Pass Village – April 27, 1978, Los Angeles), better known by his stage name Josef Marais, was a folk-singer from South Africa. Biography Marais left South Africa in the 1920s to study violin an ...

* "Asia Minor" – w.m. Roger King Mozian * "A-Sleepin' At The Foot Of The Bed" – Happy Wilson, Luther Patrick * " Be My Life's Companion" – w.m.

& Milton De Lugg * "Beautiful Brown Eyes" – trad arr. Arthur Smith &

Alton Delmore Alton may refer to: People *Alton (given name) *Alton (surname) Places Australia *Alton National Park, Queensland *Alton, Queensland, a town in the Shire of Balonne Canada * Alton, Ontario * Alton, Nova Scotia New Zealand * Alton, New Zealand, ...

* " Because of You" – w.m.

Arthur Hammerstein Arthur Hammerstein (December 21, 1872 – October 12, 1955) was an American songwriter, dramatist, playwright and theater manager. Biography Born and educated to a Jewish family in New York City, Hammerstein was the son of the theater impresari ...

Dudley Wilkinson Dudley is a large market town and administrative centre in the county of West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically an exclave of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the ...

* "Belle, Belle, My Liberty Belle" – w.m.

Bob Merrill Henry Robert Merrill Levan (May 17, 1921 – February 17, 1998) was an American songwriter, theatrical composer, lyricist, and screenwriter. He was one of the most successful songwriters of the 1950s on the US and UK single charts. He wrote ...

* "

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = " Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , e ...

" – w.m. Cynthia Strother & Eugene R. Strother * "

The Blacksmith Blues "The Blacksmith Blues" is a song which was written for Ella Mae Morse by Jack Holmes. The recording reached #3 on the ''Billboard'' chart when it was released in 1952, and sold over a million copies. Recordings were later made by Bing Crosby, the ...

" – w.m. Jack Holmes * "Blue Velvet" – w.m. Bernie Wayne & Lee Morris * "Christopher Columbus" – w.m.

Terry Gilkyson Terry Gilkyson (June 17, 1916 — October 15, 1999) was an American folk singer and songwriter. Biography Gilkyson was born in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, and graduated from St. George's School in Middletown, Rhode Island in 1935. By his early ...

* "

Come On-A My House "Come On-a My House" is a song performed by Rosemary Clooney and originally released in 1951. It was written by Ross Bagdasarian and his cousin, Armenian-American Pulitzer Prize-winning author William Saroyan, while driving across New Mexico ...

" – w.m.

Ross Bagdasarian Ross S. Bagdasarian (; January 27, 1919 – January 16, 1972), known professionally by his stage name David Seville, was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor, best known for creating the cartoon band Alvin and the Chipmun ...

William Saroyan William Saroyan (; August 31, 1908 – May 18, 1981) was an Armenian-American novelist, playwright, and short story writer. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1940, and in 1943 won the Academy Award for Best Story for the film ''The ...

* "

Cry Crying is the dropping of tears (or welling of tears in the eyes) in response to an emotional state, or pain. Emotions that can lead to crying include sadness, anger, and even happiness. The act of crying has been defined as "a complex secreto ...

" – w.m.

Churchill Kohlman Churchill Kohlman (January 28, 1906 – May 25, 1983) was an American songwriter who wrote Johnnie Ray's 1951 hit, "Cry" while working in a Pittsburgh dry cleaning factory as the night watchman. Royalties from "Cry" were the subject of a bitter ...

* "Dance Me Loose" – w. Mel Howard m. Lee Erwin * "

Domino Dominoes is a family of tile-based games played with gaming pieces, commonly known as dominoes. Each domino is a rectangular tile, usually with a line dividing its face into two square ''ends''. Each end is marked with a number of spots (also ca ...

" – w. (Eng) Don Raye (Fr) Jacques Plante m. Louis Ferrari * " Getting To Know You" – w.

Oscar Hammerstein II Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II (; July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and (usually uncredited) director in the musical theater for almost 40 years. He won eight Ton ...

Richard Rodgers Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers was one of the most ...

* " Good Morning Mister Echo" – w.m. Bill Putman & Belinda Putman * "

Half As Much "Half as Much" is an American pop standard song written by Curley Williams in 1951. It was first recorded by country music singer Hank Williams in 1952 and reached number two on the '' Billboard'' Country Singles chart. Hank Williams version ...

" – w.m. Curly Williams * "He Had Refinement" – w.

Dorothy Fields Dorothy Fields (July 15, 1904 – March 28, 1974) was an American librettist and lyricist. She wrote over 400 songs for Broadway musicals and films. Her best-known pieces include "The Way You Look Tonight" (1936), "A Fine Romance" (1936), "On th ...

m. Arthur Schwartz * " Hello, Young Lovers" – w.

* "Hey, Good Lookin"' – w.m.

Hank Williams Hank Williams (born Hiram Williams; September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th century, he reco ...

* "How Could You Believe Me When I Said I Love You When You Know I've Been A Liar All My Life?" – w.

Alan Jay Lerner Alan Jay Lerner (August 31, 1918 – June 14, 1986) was an American lyricist and librettist. In collaboration with Frederick Loewe, and later Burton Lane, he created some of the world's most popular and enduring works of musical theatre bot ...

m. Burton Lane * "I Can't Help It (If I'm Still In Love With You)" – w.m.

* " I Get Ideas" – w.

Dorcas Cochran Dorcas Cochran (c. 1903 – July 6, 1991) was an American lyricist and screenwriter. She is also referenced by her married name, Dorcas Cochran Jewell. Biography As a lyricist, her best-known song was " Again," which had multiple recorded ver ...

m. Lenny Sanders * " I Have Dreamed" – w.

* "

I Love Lucy ''I Love Lucy'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning six seasons. The show starred Lucille Ball, her husband, Desi Arnaz, along with ...

theme song" m. Eliot Daniel * "I Love The Sunshine Of Your Smile" – w. Jack Hoffman m. Jimmy MacDonald * "I Still See Elisa" – w.

Frederick Loewe Frederick Loewe (, originally German Friedrich (Fritz) Löwe ; June 10, 1901 – February 14, 1988) was an Austrian-United States, American composer. He collaborated with lyricist Alan Jay Lerner on a series of Broadway musicals, including ''Br ...

. Introduced by James Barton in the musical '' Paint Your Wagon''. Performed in the film version by

Clint Eastwood Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western TV series '' Rawhide'', he rose to international fame with his role as the "Man with No Name" in Sergio Leone's "''Doll ...

. * "I Talk To The Trees" – w.

. Introduced by

Tony Bavaar Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leagu ...

and

Olga San Juan Olga San Juan (March 16, 1927January 3, 2009) was an American actress. Born in Brooklyn, she began her brief film career with Paramount Pictures after being scouted at Copacabana. She performed in several Hollywood musicals in the 1940s and on ...

in the musical '' Paint Your Wagon'' * "

I Whistle A Happy Tune "I Whistle a Happy Tune" is a show tune from the 1951 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, ''The King and I.'' It is sung by the Governess Anna Leonowens (originally played on Broadway by Gertrude Lawrence) to her son Louis after the curtain rises on ...

" – w.

* "I Wish I Wuz" – w.m. Sid Kuller &

Lyn Murray Lyn Murray (born Lionel Breeze, August 13, 1909 – May 20, 1989) was a composer, conductor, and arranger of music for radio, film and television. Early years Born in London, Murray was the son of a violinist. Before entering a career in music, ...

. Introduced in the film ''

Slaughter Trail ''Slaughter Trail'' is a 1951 Cinecolor Western film produced and directed by Irving Allen, filmed in Corriganville and released by RKO Pictures. Plot A trio of masked bandits rob a stagecoach secretly assisted by one of the passengers. The ...

'' * "I Won't Cry Anymore" – w. Fred Wise m. Al Frisch * "I'm A Fool To Want You" – w.m. Jack Wolf, Joel Herron &

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Chairman of the Board" and later called "Ol' Blue Eyes", Sinatra was one of the most popular ...

* "I'm Late" – w.

* " In The Cool, Cool, Cool Of The Evening" – w.

Johnny Mercer John Herndon Mercer (November 18, 1909 – June 25, 1976) was an American lyricist, songwriter, and singer, as well as a record label executive who co-founded Capitol Records with music industry businessmen Buddy DeSylva and Glenn E. Wallich ...

Hoagy Carmichael Hoagland Howard Carmichael (November 22, 1899 – December 27, 1981) was an American musician, composer, songwriter, actor and lawyer. Carmichael was one of the most successful Tin Pan Alley songwriters of the 1930s, and was among the first ...

. Introduced by

and

Jane Wyman Jane Wyman ( ; born Sarah Jane Mayfield; January 5, 1917 – September 10, 2007)"Actress, P ...

in the film ''

Here Comes the Groom ''Here Comes the Groom'' is a 1951 American musical romantic comedy film produced and directed by Frank Capra and starring Bing Crosby and Jane Wyman. Based on a story by Robert Riskin and Liam O'Brien, the film is about a foreign correspondent w ...

''. * "It's All In The Game" – w.

Carl Sigman Carl Sigman (September 24, 1909 – September 26, 2000) was an American songwriter. Early life Born in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, New York to a Jewish-American family, Sigman graduated from law school and passed his bar exams to practice in ...

Charles Gates Dawes Charles Gates Dawes (August 27, 1865 – April 23, 1951) was an American banker, general, diplomat, composer, and Republican politician who was the 30th vice president of the United States from 1925 to 1929 under Calvin Coolidge. He was a co-reci ...

Based on "Melody" by Dawes 1912. * "

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas "It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" is a Christmas song written in 1951 by Meredith Willson. The song was originally titled "It's Beginning to Look Like Christmas". The song has been recorded by many artists, but was a hit for Perry Co ...

" – w.m.

Meredith Willson Robert Reiniger Meredith Willson (May 18, 1902 – June 15, 1984) was an American flutist, composer, conductor, musical arranger, bandleader, playwright, and writer. He is perhaps best known for writing the book, music, and lyrics for the 195 ...

* "

Jezebel Jezebel (;"Jezebel"
(US) and ) was the daughte ...

" – w.m.

Wayne Shanklin Wayne Shanklin (June 6, 1917 – June 16, 1970) was an American singer, songwriter and producer. His best known compositions were "Jezebel", " Chanson D'Amour (Song of Love)", and " The Big Hurt". Personal life Shanklin was born June 6, 1916, i ...

* "A Kiss To Build A Dream On" – w.

m. Harry Ruby * " Kisses Sweeter Than Wine" – w. Paul Campbell m. Joel Newman * "

The Little White Cloud That Cried "The Little White Cloud that Cried" is a popular song written by Johnnie Ray and published in 1951. The biggest hit version was recorded by Ray and The Four Lads in 1951. The recording was released by Okeh Records as catalog number 6840. It was ...

" – w.m.

Johnnie Ray John Alvin Ray (January 10, 1927 – February 24, 1990) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Highly popular for most of the 1950s, Ray has been cited by critics as a major precursor to what became rock and roll, for his jazz and blu ...

* "The March Of The Siamese Children" – m.

* "

Mister and Mississippi "Mister and Mississippi" is a popular song, written by Irving Gordon. It was published in 1951 and first recorded by Tennessee Ernie Ford the same year. Background The popularity of this song apparently led Gordon, a number of years later, to cr ...

" – w.m.

* "Misto Cristofo Columbo" – w.m.

Jay Livingston Jay Livingston (born Jacob Harold Levison, March 28, 1915 – October 17, 2001) was an American composer best known as half of a song-writing duo with Ray Evans that specialized in songs composed for films. Livingston wrote music and Evans t ...

Ray Evans Raymond Bernard Evans (February 4, 1915 – February 15, 2007) was an American songwriter. He was a partner in a composing and song-writing duo with Jay Livingston, known for the songs they composed for films. Evans wrote the lyrics and Living ...

* "

Mockin' Bird Hill "Mockin' Bird Hill" is a song written in 3/4 time by Calle Jularbo, with lyrics by George Vaughn Horton. It is perhaps best known through recordings by Patti Page, Horton's own Pinetoppers, and the duo of Les Paul and Mary Ford in 1951, or by Do ...

" – w.m. Vaughn Horton * "The Morningside Of The Mountain" – w.m.

Dick Manning Dick Manning (born Samuel Medoff (Самуил Медов), June 12, 1912 – April 11, 1991) was a Russian-born American songwriter, best known for his many collaborations with Al Hoffman. Manning composed the first full-length musical to be ...

& Larry Stock * "

My Truly, Truly Fair "My Truly, Truly Fair" is a traditional popular music, popular song written by Bob Merrill. It was published in 1951. The song was one of a number of Bob Merrill songs popularized by Guy Mitchell. Mitchell recorded it with Mitch Miller and his or ...

" – w.m.

* "No Two People" – w.m.

* "Sail Away" – w.m.

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time'' magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and ...

* "Shall We Dance?" – w.

* "

Somewhere Along The Way "Somewhere Along the Way" is a popular song. The music was written by Jimmy Van Heusen under the pseudonym Kurt Adams, the lyrics by Sammy Gallop. The sheet music was published in 1952. The original recording by Nat King Cole was released by ...

" – w.

Sammy Gallop Sammy Gallop (March 16, 1915 – February 24, 1971) was an American lyricist, known for his big band and swing songs of the 1940s and 1950s. Biography Gallop was born in Duluth, Minnesota. He originally worked as a surveyor and draftsman. On ...

m. Kurt Adams * "

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

" – w.m.

& Milton De Lugg * "

Shrimp Boats "Shrimp Boats" was a popular song in the 1950s. It was written by Paul Mason Howard and Paul Weston and published in 1951. The original sheet music was arranged by Hawley Ades. Charting versions were recorded by Jo Stafford (Weston's wife) and D ...

" – w.m. Paul Mason Howard &

Paul Weston Paul Weston (born Paul Wetstein; March 12, 1912 – September 20, 1996) was an American pianist, arranger, composer, and conductor who worked in music and television from the 1930s to the 1970s, pioneering mood music and becoming known as "the F ...

* "

(It's No) Sin "(It's No) Sin" is a 1951 popular song with music by George Hoven and lyrics by Chester R. Shull. This song should not be confused with "It's a Sin", another popular song of the same era. First recordings Popular recordings of the song wer ...

" – w. Chester R. Shull m. George Hoven * "

Slow Poke "Slow Poke" is a 1951 popular song. Background "Slow Poke" is credited to three writers: Pee Wee King, Redd Stewart, and Chilton Price. Actually Price wrote the song in 1951, as she thought the song described her friend, King, very well. King ...

" – w.m. Pee Wee King, Redd Stewart & Chilton Price * "So Far, So Good" – w. Betty Comden & Adolph Green m. Jule Styne from the revue ''Two on the Aisle, Two On The Aisle'' * "Something Wonderful (song), Something Wonderful" – w.

* "Sound Off" – w.m. Willie Lee Duckworth, B. Lentz * "Sparrow In The Tree Top" – w.m.

* "Suzy Snowflake" – w.m. Sid Tepper & Roy C. Bennett * "Sweet Violets" – arr. Cy Coben & Charles Grean * "Tell Me Why (1951 song), Tell Me Why" – w. Al Alberts m. Marty Gold * "They Call the Wind Maria, They Call The Wind Maria" – w.

. Introduced in the musical '' Paint Your Wagon'' by Rufus Smith (actor), Rufus Smith * "The Thrill Is Gone (1951 song), The Thrill Is Gone" – w.m. Rick Darnell &

* "Thumbelina" – w.m.

* "Too Young (1951 song), Too Young" – w. Sylvia Dee m. Sidney Lippman * "Top Banana" – w.m.

from the musical ''Top Banana (musical)'' * "The Typewriter" – m. Leroy Anderson * "Unforgettable (Irving Gordon song), Unforgettable" – w.m.

* "Vanity (1951 song), Vanity" – w. Jack Manus & Bernard Bierman m. Guy Wood * "Very Good Advice" – w.

* "A Very Merry Un-Birthday To You" – w.m. Mack David, Al Hoffman & Jerry Livingston * "Wand'rin' Star" – w.

. Introduced by Rufus Smith (actor), Rufus Smith, Robert Penn and Jared Reed in the musical '' Paint Your Wagon''. * "We Kiss In A Shadow" – w.

* "When The World Was Young" – w. (Eng)

(Fr) Angela Vannier m. M. Philippe-Gerard * "Wonderful Copenhagen" – w.m.

* "Would I Love You (Love You, Love You)" – w. Bob Russell (songwriter), Bob Russell m. Harold Spina

Classical music

Premieres

Compositions

*Jean Absil **''Contes'' for trumpet and piano, Op. 76 **''Les météores'', ballet for orchestra Op. 77 *Murray Adaskin – ''Ballet Symphony'' for orchestra * Yasushi Akutagawa **Ballata for violin and piano **''Kappa'' ballet for orchestra **''Shitsuraku-en'' (Paradise Lost) ballet for orchestra *Hugo Alfvén – ''Sängen till Folkare'' for baritone and piano or male choir and piano or male choir unaccompanied *Hendrik Andriessen **''Aubade'' for brass quartet **Choral No. 4 for organ (revised version) **Liederen (3), for choir **Sonata for unaccompanied cello **Suite for brass quartet **Wind Quintet *Jurriaan Andriessen (composer), Jurriaan Andriessen – Flute Concerto *István Anhalt **''Arc en ciel'' ballet for two pianos **''Funeral Music'' for ten instruments **Piano Sonata **''Psalm 19: A Benediction'' for baritone and piano **''Songs of Love'' (3) for SSA choir *George Antheil **''Accordion Dance'' for orchestra **''Fragments from Shelley'' (8) for choir and piano **''Nocturne in Skyrockets'' for orchestra **Sonata for flute and piano **Sonata for trumpet and piano *Denis ApIvor **''The Goodman of Paris'' ballet for orchestra, Op. 18 **''A Mirror for Witches'' ballet for orchestra, Op.19 **Suite Concertante for piano and small orchestra, Op.18a *Boris Arapov – ''Russian Suite'' for orchestra *Violet Archer – ''Fantasy in the Form of a Passacaglia'' for brass *José Ardévol – Symphonic Variations for cello and orchestra *

**Oboe Sonatina, Op. 28 **Clarinet Sonatina, Op. 29 **''Machines'', symphonic study, Op. 30 **''A Sussex Overture'', Op. 31 **Concerto for Piano four-hands (Arnold), Concerto for Piano Four-Hands and String Orchestra, Op. 32 **''English Dances'', set 2, Op. 33 *Alexander Arutiunian – Concertino for piano and orchestra *Georges Auric – ''Chemin de lumière'' ballet (also orchestral suite) *Milton Babbitt **''Du (Babbitt), Du'' for soprano and piano **''The Widow's Lament in Springtime'', for soprano and piano * Jesús Bal y Gay – Concerto Grosso * Luciano Berio **''Deus meus'' for voice and three instruments **''Due liriche di Garcia Lorca'' for bass and orchestra **''Due pezzi (Berio), Due pezzi'' for violin and piano **''Opus no. Zoo'' for reciter and wind quintet **Sonatina for wind quartet [withdrawn] *

– ''

'' *Martin Boykan – Duo for violin and piano *

– ''Six Metamorphoses after Ovid'' for oboe and piano *Earle Brown – Three Pieces for piano *John Cage **''Imaginary Landscape No. 4'' **''Music of Changes'' *Elliott Carter – String Quartet No. 1 (Carter), String Quartet No. 1 *Carlos Chávez – "Happy Birthday", for a cappella chorus *Henry Cowell **''Clown'' dance music for piano **''Duet for Sidney with Love from Henry'' for violin and cello **''Her Smile Is as Sweet as a Rose'' for unaccompanied voice **Scherzo for soprano and alto recorders **''Signature of Light'' for voice and piano **''Tenth Anniversary'' for piano *George Crumb **Pieces (3) for piano **Prelude and Toccata for piano *Dimitrie Cuclin – Sinfonia No. 13 *Luigi Dallapiccola – ''Tartiniana'' *David Diamond (composer), David Diamond **''The Midnight Meditation'' song cycle for voice and piano **''Mizmor L'David'', sacred service for tenor, choir, and organ **Piano Trio **String Quartet No. 4 *Henri Dutilleux – Symphony No. 1 (Dutilleux), Symphony No. 1 *George Enescu – String Quartet No. 2 (Enescu), String Quartet No. 2, Op. 22, No. 2 *Morton Feldman **''Extensions I'', for violin and piano **''Intersection'', for tape **''Intersection I'' for orchestra **''Marginal Intersection'' for orchestra **''Projection II'', for 5 instruments **''Projection III'', for two pianos **''Projection IV'', for violin and piano **''Projection V'', for 9 instruments **Songs (4), for soprano, cello, and piano **''Structures (Feldman), Structures'' for string quartet *Howard Ferguson (composer), Howard Ferguson – Piano Concerto (Ferguson), Piano Concerto in D *Gerald Finzi **"God Is Gone Up", from ''3 Anthems'' Op. 27 **''All This Night'', Op. 33 **''Muses and Graces'', Op. 34 **''Let Us Now Praise Famous Men'', Op. 35 *Lukas Foss – Piano Concerto No. 2 *Roberto Gerhard **''Sardana No. 3 (Gerhard), Sardana No. 3'' for winds and percussion **Piano Concerto (Gerhard), Piano Concerto *Reinhold Glière – Horn Concerto (Glière), Horn Concerto *Karel Goeyvaerts **Sonata for Two Pianos (Goeyvaerts), Sonata for Two Pianos **''Nummer 2'' for thirteen instruments *Bengt Hambraeus **''Cantata pro defunctis'' for baritone and organ **Concerto for Organ and Harpsichord (revised version) **''Liturgia pro organo'' *Howard Hanson – ''Fantasy-Variations on a Theme of Youth'' for piano and strings *Roy Harris **''Cumberland Concerto'' for orchestra **Fantasy for piano and "pops" orchestra **''Red Cross Hymn'' for choir and band *Paul Hindemith – ''Die Harmonie der Welt'' Symphony *Vagn Holmboe – Symphony No. 8 (Holmboe), ''Sinfonia boreale'' (Symphony No. 8) *Alan Hovhaness **Concerto No. 1 ("Arevakal") for orchestra, Op. 88 **Concerto No. 2 for violin and strings, Op. 89, No. 1 **''Fantasy on an Ossetin Tune'' for piano, Op. 85 **Four Motets, for SATB choir, Op. 87 **''From the End of the Earth'' for SATB choir and organ (or piano), Op. 187 **''Gamelan and Jhala'' for carillon, Op. 106 **''Hanna'' for 2 clarinets and 2 pianos, Op. 101 **''Hymn to a Celestial Musician'' for piano, Op. 111, No. 2 **''Jhala'' for piano, Op. 103 **''Make Haste'', motet for SATB choir, Op. 86 **''Khaldis'' concerto for 4 trumpets, piano, and percussion, Op. 91 **''Khirgiz Suite'' for violin and piano, Op. 73, No. 1 **''Lullaby'' (a.k.a. ''Slumber Song'' for piano, Op. 52, No. 2 **''Sing Aloud'' for SATB choir, Op. 68 **Suite for violin, piano and percussion, Op. 99 **''Talin'' concerto for viola and strings, Op. 93, No. 1 **''Toccata and Fugue on a Kabardin Tune'' for piano, Op. 6, No. 2 **''Upon Enchanted Ground'' for flute, cello, harp, and tam-tam, Op. 90, No. 1 *Akira Ifukube – ''Drumming of Japan'' *André Jolivet – Piano Concerto *Wojciech Kilar – **''Sonatina'' for flute and piano **Three preludes for piano **''Variations on a Theme by Paganini'' for piano *Gail Kubik – Symphony Concertante (Kubik), Symphony Concertante [1952 Pulitzer] *György Ligeti – ''Concert românesc'' *Douglas Lilburn – Symphony No. 2 (Lilburn), Symphony No. 2 *Witold Lutosławski **''Jesień (Lutosławski), Jesień'' **''Polskich pieśni ludowych na tematy żołnierskie'' (10) for male choir **''Recitative and Arioso'' for violin and piano **''Silesian Triptych'' *Gian Francesco Malipiero – ''Sinfonia dello Zodiaco'' *Frank Martin (composer), Frank Martin – Violin Concerto (Martin), Violin Concerto *Bohuslav Martinů **Piano Trio No. 3 (Martinu), Piano Trio No. 3 **Serenade for Two Clarinets and String Trio **''Stowe Pastorals'' *Peter Mennin – String Quartet No. 2 (Mennin), String Quartet No. 2 *Darius Milhaud **''Le candélabre à sept branches'', Op. 315 **''Concertino d'automne'' for two pianos and eight instruments, Op. 309 **''Concertino d'été'' for viola and chamber orchestra, Op. 311 **''Les miracles de la foi'', cantata for tenor, chorus and orchestra, Op. 314 *José Pablo Moncayo – ''Muros verdes'' for piano *Xavier Montsalvatge **''Cuarteto indiano'' **''Poema Concertante'' for violin and orchestra *Luigi Nono **''Composizione no. 1'' for orchestra **''Polifonica – monodia – ritmica'', for flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, saxophone, horn, piano, and percussion * Vincent Persichetti – Symphony No. 4 (Persichetti), Symphony No. 4 *Allan Pettersson – ''Seven Sonatas for Two Violins'' *Walter Piston – String Quartet No. 4 (Piston), String Quartet No. 4 *Henri Pousseur **''Missa brevis (Pousseur), Missa brevis'' for four mixed voices **''Sept Versets des Psaumes de la Pénitence'' for four solo voices or mixed choir * Sergei Prokofiev – Symphony-Concerto (Prokofiev), Symphony-Concerto for cello and orchestra *Peter Racine Fricker – Symphony No. 2 (Racine Fricker), Symphony No. 2 *Joaquín Rodrigo – ''Sonatas de Castilla'' *Guy Ropartz – String Quartet No. 6 (Ropartz), String Quartet No. 6 *Ned Rorem **''Cycle of Holy Songs'' (Psalms 134, 142, 148, 150) for vice and piano **''From an Unknown Past'' song cycle for voice and piano **''Love in a Life'' for voice and piano **''The Nightingale'' for voice and piano **''Seven Choruses'' for a cappella choir **''To a Young Girl'' for voice and piano *Edmund Rubbra – String Quartet No. 2 (Rubbra), String Quartet No. 2 *Hermann Schroeder – ''Ave Maria zart'' chorale-prelude for organ *Mátyás Seiber – Clarinet Concertino (Seiber), Concertino for clarinet and ensemble *Roger Sessions – String Quartet No. 2 (Sessions), String Quartet No. 2 *Dmitri Shostakovich – 24 Preludes and Fugues (Shostakovich), Preludes and Fugues (24) for piano *Reginald Smith Brindle – Concertino for guitar and chamber orchestra *Karlheinz Stockhausen – ''Kreuzspiel'' *Virgil Thomson **''Chromatic Double Harmonies: Portrait of Sylvia Marlowe in Nine Etudes'' for piano **''De profundis'' (Psalm 30), SATB choir (revised version) **''For a Happy Occasion (Happy Birthday for Mrs. Zimbalist)'' for piano *Eduard Tubin – Sonata for alto saxophone solo *David Van Vactor – Violin Concerto *Heitor Villa-Lobos, Villa-Lobos, Heitor **Guitar Concerto (Villa-Lobos), Guitar Concerto **''Quinteto (em forma de chôros)'', version for conventional wind quintet with Horn (instrument), horn instead of cor anglais **''Rudá'' (Dio d'amore), symphonic poem and ballet **String Quartet No. 13 (Villa-Lobos), String Quartet No. 13 **Symphony No. 9 (Villa-Lobos), Symphony No. 9 *Frank Wigglesworth – ''Summer Scenes'' for flute, oboe, and strings

Opera

– ''Billy Budd (opera), Billy Budd'', with libretto by E. M. Forster and Eric Crozier (1 December, Covent Garden) *Paul Dessau – ''The Trial of Lucullus'', with libretto by Bertolt Brecht (March 18, Berlin), despite rumours that the work would be forbidden by the East German authorities. *Jean Françaix – ''L'apostrophe'', libretto based on Balzac (1 July, Amsterdam, Netherlands Opera) *

– ''Orfeo et Euridice'' (9 June, Teatro della Pergola, Florence, at the fourteenth

). *Marcel Landowski – ''Le Rire de Nils Halerius'' *Jan Meyerowitz – ''Eastward in Eden'', libretto adapted by Dorothy Gardner from her own play (16 November, Detroit, Wayne State University Theatre). *Gian-Carlo Menotti – ''Amahl and the Night Visitors'' 24 December, NBC television broadcast, live from Radio City Studio H-8 (New York). *

– ''

'', with libretto by

and

, Venice, Teatro La Fenice, 11 September. * Peter Tranchell – ''The Mayor of Casterbridge'', libretto adapted from the novel by Thomas Hardy (30 July, Cambridge, Arts Theatre). * Ralph Vaughan Williams – ''The Pilgrim's Progress'' * Egon Wellesz – ''Incognita'', from a novel by William Congreve (December, Oxford).Andrew Porter (music critic), Andrew Porter, "New Wellesz Opera: 'Incognita,' Based on Congreve Story, Has Its First Performance at Oxford", ''The New York Times'' (16 December): 117.

Jazz

Musical theater

* ''And So To Bed'' (Vivian Ellis) London production opened at the Noël Coward Theatre, New Theatre on October 17 and ran for 323 performances * ''Flahooley'' (E. Y. Harburg and

) Broadway production opened at the Broadhurst Theatre on May 14 and ran for 40 performances. * ''Gay's the Word (musical), Gay's The Word'' London production opened at the Saville Theatre on February 16 and ran for 504 performances * ''The King and I'' (

and

) – Broadway production opened at the St. James Theatre on March 29 and ran for 1,246 performances * ''Kiss Me, Kate'' (Cole Porter) – London production opened at the London Coliseum, Coliseum on March 8 and ran for 501 performances * ''Make a Wish (musical), Make a Wish'' (Hugh Martin)Broadway production opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on April 18 and ran for 102 performances. Starred Nanette Fabray. * ''

'' first German production (Berlin) * '' Paint Your Wagon'' (

and

) – Broadway production opened at the Shubert Theatre (Broadway), Shubert Theatre on November 12 and ran for 289 performances * ''Penny Plain'' – London production * ''See You Later'' (Sandy Wilson) London production opened at the Watergate Theatre, London, Watergate Theatre on October 3. * ''Seventeen (musical), Seventeen'' Broadway production opened at the Broadhurst Theatre on June 21 and ran for 182 performances * ''South Pacific (musical), South Pacific'' (Rodgers & Hammerstein) – London production * ''Top Banana (musical), Top Banana'' Broadway production opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on November 1 and ran for 350 performances. * ''A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (musical), A Tree Grows in Brooklyn'' Broadway production opened at the Alvin Theatre on April 19 and ran for 267 performances * ''Two on the Aisle, Two On The Aisle'' – Broadway production opened at the Mark Hellinger Theatre on July 19 and ran for 279 performances * ''Zip Goes a Million, Zip Goes A Million'' (Book: Eric Maschwitz Words: Eric Maschwitz Music: George Posford – London production opened at the Palace Theatre, London, Palace Theatre on October 20 and ran for 544 performances. Starring George Formby, Sara Gregory & Warde Donovan. Directed by Charles Hickman

Musical films

* ''Alice in Wonderland (1951 film), Alice In Wonderland'' (original Disney animated film) * ''An American in Paris (film), An American In Paris'' starring Gene Kelly, Leslie Caron, Oscar Levant, Georges Guétary and Nina Foch * ''Call Me Mister'' starring Betty Grable and Dan Dailey * ''Excuse My Dust'' starring Red Skelton, Monica Lewis, Sally Forrest, Macdonald Carey and William Demarest. Dirested by Roy Rowland (film director), Roy Rowland. * ''The Great Caruso'' (starring Mario Lanza) * ''

'' released September 20 starring

and

Jane Wyman Jane Wyman ( ; born Sarah Jane Mayfield; January 5, 1917 – September 10, 2007)"Actress, P ...

. * ''The Lemon Drop Kid'' starring Bob Hope and Marilyn Maxwell. * ''Lullaby of Broadway (film), Lullaby Of Broadway'' starring

and Gene Nelson * ''Mr. Imperium'' starring Lana Turner and Ezio Pinza * ''On Moonlight Bay (film), On Moonlight Bay'' starring

and Gordon MacRae * ''On the Riviera'' starring Danny Kaye, Gene Tierney and Corinne Calvet * ''Purple Heart Diary'' starring Frances Langford, Judd Holdren, Ben Lessy and Tony Romano (musician), Tony Romano. Directed by Richard Quine. * ''Rich, Young and Pretty'' starring Jane Powell, Danielle Darrieux, Wendell Corey, Vic Damone and Una Merkel * ''Royal Wedding'' starring Fred Astaire and Jane Powell * ''Show Boat (1951 film), Show Boat'' (directed by George Sidney based on the stage musical) * ''The Strip (1951 film), The Strip'' starring Mickey Rooney and featuring Louis Armstrong * ''Two Tickets to Broadway'' released November 20 starring Janet Leigh, Tony Martin (entertainer), Tony Martin, Gloria DeHaven, Ann Miller and Bob Crosby.

Births

*January 6 – Kim Wilson, blues singer (The Fabulous Thunderbirds) *January 9 – Crystal Gayle, country singer *January 19 **Dewey Bunnell (America (band), America) **Martha Davis (The Motels) *January 20 – Ian Hill Judas Priest *January 26 **David Briggs (Australian musician), David Briggs, Australian guitarist, songwriter and producer **Roy Goodman, English violinist and conductor **Andy Hummel, American singer-songwriter and bass player (d. 2010) **Christopher North (Ambrosia), Christopher North, American keyboard player *January 27 **Brian Downey (drummer), Brian Downey, drummer (Thin Lizzy) **Seth Justman (The J. Geils Band) *January 30 – Phil Collins, drummer, singer and actor (Genesis (band), Genesis) *January 31 **K.C. (Harry Wayne Casey), singer (K.C. and the Sunshine Band) **Phil Manzanera, guitarist (Roxy Music) *February 4 – Phil Ehart, American drummer (Kansas (band), Kansas) *February 7 – Andy Chapin, English keyboard player (The Association) (d. 1985) *February 9 – Dennis Thomas (Kool and the Gang) *February 12 – Gil Moore (Triumph (band), Triumph) *February 14 – Sylvain Sylvain, glam rock/protopunk guitarist (New York Dolls) (d. 2021) *February 15 – Melissa Manchester, singer *

– Ellen Greene, singer and actress *February 27 – Steve Harley, singer (Cockney Rebel) *March 4 – Chris Rea, singer-songwriter *

– Willis Alan Ramsey, American singer-songwriter and guitarist *March 9 – Zakir Hussain (musician), Zakir Hussain, Indian tabla player, music producer, film actor and soundtrack composer *March 17 – Scott Gorham (Thin Lizzy) *March 20 – Jimmie Vaughan (The Fabulous Thunderbirds) *March 21 **Russell Thompkins, Jr., vocalist (The Stylistics) **Conrad Lozano (Los Lobos) ** Nigel Dick, British music video director, film director, writer and musician *March 23 – Phil Keaggy, guitarist, singer *April 3 – Mel Schacher (Question Mark & the Mysterians, Grand Funk Railroad) *April 6 – Pascal Rogé, pianist *April 7 – Janis Ian, singer-songwriter *April 8 – Joan Sebastian, born José Figueroa, singer-songwriter (d. 2015) *April 12 – Alex Briley (Village People) *April 13 **Peabo Bryson, singer **Max Weinberg, drummer and bandleader (''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'') *April 14 – Julian Lloyd Webber, cellist *April 20 – Luther Vandross, soul singer (d. 2005) *April 22 – Paul Carrack, singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist *April 27 – Ace Frehley (Kiss (band), Kiss) *May 3 – Christopher Cross, singer-songwriter (Michael McDonald Band, Alan Parsons Project) *May 4 **Jackie Jackson, vocalist (The Jackson Five) **Mick Mars (Mötley Crüe) *May 8 – Philip Bailey, vocalist (Earth, Wind & Fire) *May 10 **Ronald Banks (The Dramatics) **John Magnar Bernes, Norwegian singer and harmonica player *May 16 – Jonathan Richman *May 19 – Joey Ramone, singer (Ramones) (d. 2001) *June 3 – Deniece Williams, singer *June 6 – Dwight Twilley, American singer-songwriter and producer *June 8 – Bonnie Tyler, singer *June 10 – Ed McTaggart (Daniel Amos, The Road Home) *June 12 **Bun E. Carlos (Cheap Trick) **Brad Delp (Boston (band), Boston) (d. 2007) *June 15 – Steve Walsh (musician), Steve Walsh, progressive rock singer-songwriter (Kansas (band), Kansas) *June 19 **Patty Larkin, American singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer **Karen Young (Canadian singer), Karen Young, Canadian singer-songwriter *June 26 – Tony Currenti, drummer (AC/DC) *June 30 – Steve Waller, guitarist (d. 2000) *July 1 – Fred Schneider (The B-52s) *July 7 – Blondie Chaplin, guitarist and singer *

– Bonnie Pointer (The Pointer Sisters) *July 12 – Sylvia Sass, operatic soprano *July 15 – Gregory Isaacs, reggae musician (d. 2010) *July 22 – Richard Bennett (guitarist), Richard Bennett, American guitarist and producer (The Notorious Cherry Bombs) *August 2 – Andrew Gold, singer-songwriter (d. 2011) *August 3 – Johnny Graham (Earth, Wind & Fire) *August 4 – Lois V Vierk, composer *August 13 – Dan Fogelberg, singer-songwriter, composer and multi-instrumentalist (d. 2007) *August 19 – John Deacon, bass guitarist (Queen (band), Queen) *August 23 **Jimi Jamison (Survivor (band), Survivor) **Mark Hudson (musician), Mark Hudson (The Hudson Brothers) *August 25 – Rob Halford (Judas Priest) *August 28 – Wayne Osmond, vocalist, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter (The Osmonds) *September 2 – Mik Kaminski (Electric Light Orchestra) *September 6 – Šaban Šaulić, Serbian folk singer (d. 2019) *September 7 – Chrissie Hynde, singer (The Pretenders) *September 12 – Olga Breeskin, violinist, dancer and actress *September 19 – Daniel Lanois, record producer, guitarist and singer-songwriter *September 22 – David Coverdale, vocalist (Deep Purple, Whitesnake) *September 25 – Peter Dvorský, operatic tenor *October 2 – Sting (musician), Sting, singer *October 5 – Bob Geldof, singer (The Boomtown Rats), social campaigner & organizer of LiveAid *

– Kevin Cronin (REO Speedwagon) *October 7 – John Mellencamp, singer-songwriter, artist and actor *October 13 – John Ford Coley, singer, pianist, guitarist, actor and author *October 19 – Lilia Vera, Venezuelan folk singer *October 20 – Al Greenwood, rock keyboardist (Foreigner (band), Foreigner) *October 23 – Charly García, singer-songwriter and pianist *October 26 – Maggie Roche (The Roches) (d. 2017) *October 27 – K. K. Downing (Judas Priest) *November 1 – Ronald Bell (musician), Ronald Bell (Kool & the Gang) (d. 2020) *November 13 – Bill Gibson (drummer), Bill Gibson (Huey Lewis and the News) *November 14 – Alec John Such, American bass player (Bon Jovi) *November 15 – Joe Puerta, American singer and bass player (Ambrosia (band), Ambrosia) *November 18 – Heinrich Schiff, Austrian cellist and conductor (d. 2016) *November 27 – Kevin Kavanaugh (Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes) *

– Barry Goudreau (Boston (band), Boston) *December 4 – Gary Rossington (Lynyrd Skynyrd, Rossington-Collins Band) *December 10 – Johnny Rodriguez, country singer *December 16 **Robben Ford, guitarist **Mark Heard, singer-songwriter (d. 1992) *December 21 – Nick Gilder, singer and songwriter *December 23 – Johnny Contardo (Sha Na Na) *December 25 – Barbara Dever, operatic soprano *December 26 **Paul Quinn, heavy metal guitarist (Saxon (band), Saxon) **John Scofield, jazz guitarist and composer *December 29 – Yvonne Elliman, singer *December 31 **Tom Hamilton (musician), Tom Hamilton (Aerosmith) **George Thorogood, blues musician *''date unknown'' – Lorenzo Ferrero, composer

Deaths

*January 20 – Alexander Chuhaldin, violinist, conductor, composer, and music educator, 58 *February 3 – Marguerite Boulc'h, Fréhel, French singer, actress, 59 *February 9 – Eddy Duchin, pianist and bandleader, 41 (leukaemia) *February 20 – Howard Brockway, composer, 80 *February 28 – Giannina Russ, operatic soprano, 77 *

– Leo Singer, vaudeville impresario, 73 *March 6 – Ivor Novello, operetta composer, entertainer, 58 (coronary thrombosis) *March 12 – Harold Bauer, pianist and violinist, 77 *March 25 – Sid Catlett, jazz drummer, 41 (heart attack) *April 21 – Olive Fremstad, operatic soprano, 80 *May 29 **Fanny Brice, US actress, comedian and singer **Josef Bohuslav Foerster, Czech classical composer (born 1859) **Robert Kahn (composer), Robert Kahn, composer, 85 *June 4 – Serge Koussevitzky, double-bassist, conductor and composer, 76 *June 26 – Frank Ferera, Hawaiian musician (born 1885) *July 9 **Giannina Arangi-Lombardi, operatic soprano, 60 **Egbert Van Alstyne, US songwriter **Jorgen Bentzon, Denmark, Danish composer *July 13 – Arnold Schoenberg, Austrian composer, 76 *August 15 – Artur Schnabel, pianist, 69 *August 21 – Constant Lambert, composer, 45 (pneumonia and undiagnosed diabetes) *September 2 – Pietro Frosini, accordionist, 67 *September 3 – Leo Sheffield, d'Oyly Carte star, 77 *September 14 – Fritz Busch, conductor, 61 *

– Jimmy Yancey, US jazz pianist *November 4 – Oscar Natzka, opera singer, 39 *November 9 – Sigmund Romberg, composer *November 11 – César Vezzani, operatic tenor, 63 *November 13 – Nikolai Medtner, pianist and composer, 71 *December 1 – Edward Joseph Collins, pianist, conductor and composer *December 26 – Vic Berton, jazz drummer, 55 *''date unknown'' **Giuseppina Huguet, operatic soprano (born 1871) **Margot Ruddock, actress and singer (born 1907) **Vince Courtney songwriter and performer

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:1951 In Music 1951 in music, 20th century in music Music by year