See also: 1940 in music, other events of 1941, 1942 in music and the list of 'years in music'.

Events

• January 5 - Ernesto Bonino debuts on Italian radio
• January 15 - Olivier Messiaen's Quatuor pour la fin du temps is premiered in Stalag VIIIA in Silesia.
• January 20 - Béla Bartók's String Quartet No. 6 is premiered in New York City.
• February 11 - 1st Gold record presented to Glenn Miller for Chattanooga Choo Choo.
• May 10 - London's Queen's Hall, venue for the Promenade Concerts, is bombed by the Luftwaffe. The Proms re-locate to the Royal Albert Hall.
• August 18 - In a brutal police operation in Nazi Germany, over 300 Swing Kids were arrested, marking the end of tolerance to swing music.
• Alan Lomax (working for the Library of Congress) discovers Muddy Waters and Son House, among others
• Les Paul designs and builds the first solid-body electric guitar.
• Woody Guthrie writes and records "Roll on Columbia" in Portland, Oregon on a commission from the Bonneville Power Administration.
• Enrico Gentile leaves Quartetto Ritmo. Felice Chiusano replaces him and the group is renamed Quartetto Cetra.
• Dutch Leschan sisters of Trio Lescano become Italian citizens.

Top hit records

• "Amapola" by Jimmy Dorsey
• "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" - Andrews Sisters
• "Chattanooga Choo Choo" by Glenn Miller
• "Daddy" by Sammy Kaye
• "Green Eyes" by Jimmy Dorsey
• "I Don't Want to Set the World On Fire" by Hoarce Heidt
• "I'll Be with You in Apple Blossom Time" - Andrews Sisters
• "Maria Elena" by Jimmy Dorsey
• "Piano Concerto in B Flat" by Freddy Martin
• "There I Go" by Vaughn Monroe
• "There'll Be Some Changes Made" by Benny Goodman
• "You and I" by Glenn Miller

Published popular music

• "All That Meat And No Potatoes" w.m. Fats Waller & Ed Kirkeby
• "The Anniversary Waltz" w. Al Dubin m. Dave Franklin
• "Apollo Jump" m. Ernest Puree, Prince Robinson & Lucius "Lucky" Millinder
• "Arthur Murray Taught Me Dancing In A Hurry" w. Johnny Mercer m. Victor Schertzinger
• "Baby Mine" w. Ned Washington m. Frank Churchill
• "Be Honest With Me" w.m. Fred Rose & Gene Autry
• "Blue Champagne" w.m. Jimmy Eaton, Grady Watts & Frank Ryerson
• "Blues In The Night" w. Johnny Mercer m. Harold Arlen
• "Boa Noite" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Warren
• "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" w.m. Don Raye & Hughie Prince
• "Botch-A-Me" w. (Eng) Eddie Stanley (Ital) R. Morbelli & L. Astore m. R. Morbelli & L. Astore
• "Chattanooga Choo Choo" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Warren
• "Cherry" w.m. Charles N. Daniels
• "Chica Chica Boom Chic" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Warren
• "Could You Please Oblige Us With A Bren Gun?" w.m. Noël Coward
• "Daddy" w.m. Bobby Troup
• "Deep In The Heart Of Texas" w. June Hershey m. Don Swander
• "Down Forget-Me-Not Lane" w.m. Horatio Nicholls , Charlie Chester & Reg Morgan
• "Elmer's Tune" w.m. Elmer Albrecht, Sammy Gallop & Dick Jurgens
• "Everything Happens To Me" w. Tom Adair m. Matt Dennis
• "Five Guys Named Moe" w. Larry Wynn m. Jerry Bresler
• "God Bless The Child" w.m. Arthur Herzog Jr & Billie Holiday
• "Goodbye Mama, I'm Off To Yokohama" w.m. J. Fred Coots
• "He Wears A Pair Of Silver Wings" w. Eric Maschwitz m. Michael Carr
• "Hey Little Hen" w.m. Ralph Butler & Noel Gay
• "How About You?" w. Ralph Freed m. Burton Lane
• "Humpty Dumpty Heart" w. Johnny Burke m. James Van Heusen
• "The Hut-Sut Song" w.m. Leo V. Killion, Ted McMichael & Jack Owens
• "I Could Write A Book" w. Lorenz Hart m. Richard Rodgers
• "I Don't Want To Set The World On Fire" w.m. Eddie Seiler, Sol Marcus, Bennie Benjamin & Eddie Durham
• "I Don't Want To Walk Without You" w. Frank Loesser m. Jule Styne
• "I Got It Bad (And That Ain't Good)" w. Paul Francis Webster m. Duke Ellington
• "I Guess I'll Have To Dream The Rest" w. Mickey Stoner & Martin Block m. Harold Green
• "I Know Why (And So Do You)" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Warren
• "I Remember You" w. Johnny Mercer m. Victor Schertzinger
• "I Said No!" w. Frank Loesser m. Jule Styne
• "I See A Million People" w. Robert Sour m. Una Mae Carlisle
• "I, Yi, Yi, Yi, Yi" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Warren
• "I'll Remember April" w. Don Raye & Patricia Johnston m. Gene De Paul
• "It Happened In Sun Valley" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Warren
• "It's So Peaceful In The Country" w.m. Alex Wilder
• "I've Got Sixpence" w.m. Elton Box & Desmond Cox
• "Jenny" w. Ira Gershwin m. Kurt Weill
• "Jersey Bounce" m. Bobby Plater, Tiny Bradshaw, Edward Johnson & Robert B. Wright
• "Jim" w. Nelson Shawn m. Caesar Petrillo & Edward Ross
• "Kiss The Boys Goodbye" w. Frank Loesser m. Victor Schertzinger
• "Knock Me A Kiss" w.m. Mike Jackson
• "Let's All Meet At My House" w. Johnny Burke m. James Van Heusen
• "Let's Get Away From It All" w. Tom Adair m. Matt Dennis
• "Let's Not Talk About Love" w.m. Cole Porter
• "London Pride" w.m. Noël Coward
• "Ma! I Miss Your Apple Pie" w.m. Carmen Lombardo & John Jacob Loeb
• "Misirlou" w. (Eng) Milton Leeds, S. K. Russell & Fred Wise m. N. Roubanis
• "Moonlight Cocktail" w. Kim Gannon m. C. Luckeyth "Lucky" Roberts
• "My Adobe Hacienda" w.m. Louise Massey & Lee Penny
• "My Ship" w. Ira Gershwin m. Kurt Weill
• "My Sister And I" w.m. Hy Zaret, Joan Whitney & Alex Kramer
• "Oh, Look At Me Now" w. John De Vries m. Joe Bushkin
• "Please Take A Letter Miss Brown" Paul Cunningham, Ernie Burnett
• "Racing With The Moon" w. Vaughn Monroe & Pauline Pope m. Johnny Watson
• "Remember Pearl Harbour" w.m. Don Reid & Sammy Kaye
• "Road To Zanzibar" w. Johnny Burke m. Jimmy Van Heusen from the film Road To Zanzibar
• "Rose O'Day" w.m. Charles Tobias & Al Lewis
• "Sand In My Shoes" w. Frank Loesser m. Victor Schertzinger
• "The Shrine Of Saint Cecilia" w. Carroll Loveday m. Nils Johan
• "A Sinner Kissed An Angel" w. Mack David m. Larry Shayne
• "Skylark" w. Johnny Mercer m. Hoagy Carmichael
• "Someone's Rocking My Dreamboat" w.m. Leon René, Otis René & Emerson Scott
• "Starlight Serenade" w.m. Sonny Miller, Frederick Tysh & Hans May
• "The Story Of A Starry Night" w.m. Jerry Livingston , Al Hoffman & Mann Curtis
• "A String Of Pearls" w. Eddie De Lange m. Jerry Gray
• "Sun Valley Jump" m. Jerry Gray from the film Sun Valley Serenade
• "Take The "A" Train" w.m. Billy Strayhorn
• "Tangerine" w. Johnny Mercer m. Victor Schertzinger
• "Tchaikovsky ( And Other Russians)" w. Ira Gershwin m. Kurt Weill
• "Tenement Symphony" w. Sid Kuller & Ray Golden m. Hal Borne
• "That Lovely Weekend" w.m. Ted Heath & Moira Heath
• "There Goes That Song Again" Allie Wrubel
• "There, I've Said It Again" w.m. Redd Evans & Dave Mann
• "This Is New" w. Ira Gershwin m. Kurt Weill
• "(Lights Out) 'Til Reveille" w. Stanley Cowan m. Stanley Cowan & Bobby Worth
• "Tonight We Love" w. Bobby Worth m. Freddy Martin & Ray Austin
• "Two In Love" w.m. Meredith Willson
• "Violets For Your Furs" w. Tom Adair m. Matt Dennis
• "The Waiter And The Porter And The Upstairs Maid" w.m Johnny Mercer
• "Walking The Floor Over You" w.m. Ernest Tubb
• "We're The Couple In The Castle" w. Frank Loesser m. Hoagy Carmichael
• "When I See An Elephant Fly" w. Ned Washington m. Oliver Wallace
• "When My Blue Moon Turns To Gold Again" w.m. Wiley Walker & Gene Sullivan
• "When They Sound The Last All Clear" w.m. Hugh Charles, Louis Elton
• "The White Cliffs Of Dover" w. Nat Burton m. Walter Kent
• "Why Don't We Do This More Often?" w. Charles Newman m. Allie Wrubel
• "Winter Weather" w.m. Ted Shapiro
• "You And I" w.m. Meredith Willson

Classical music

• Joseph Achron - Concerto for Piano Solo
• Richard Addinsell - Warsaw Concerto
• Hanns Eisler - Fourteen Ways of Describing the Rain
• Roberto Gerhard - Sinfonía homenaje a Pedrell
• Vitezslav Novak - De Profundis
• Harry Partch - Barstow
• Sergei Prokofiev - String Quartet No. 2 in F, Op. 92
• Dmitri Shostakovich - Symphony No. 7 C major, Op. 60 "Leningrad"

Opera

Musical theater

• Banjo Eyes Broadway production opened on December 25 at the Hollywood Theatre and ran for 126 performances.
• Best Foot Forward Broadway production opened on October 1 at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre and ran for 326 performances.
• Get a Load of This London production opened on November 19 at the Hippodrome Theatre and ran for 698 performances.
• High Kickers Broadway production opened on October 31 at the Broadhurst Theatre and ran for 171 performances.
• It Happens on Ice Broadway Revue opened on July 15 at the Center Theatre and ran for 386 performances.
• Lady in the Dark Broadway production opened on January 23 at the Alvin Theatre and ran for 467 performances.
• Let's Face It Broadway production opened on October 29 at the Imperial Theatre and ran for 547 performances.
• Sons O' Fun Broadway Revue opened on December 1 at the Winter Garden Theatre and ran for 742 performances.

Musical films

• Babes On Broadway
• Birth Of The Blues
• Blues In The Night
• The Chocolate Soldier
• Dumbo
• Kiss The Boys Goodbye
• Lady Be Good
• Moon Over Miami
• Navy Blues
• Playmates
• Road To Zanzibar
• Smilin' Through
• Sun Valley Serenade
• Sunny
• Sweetheart Of The Campus
• That Night In Rio
• They Met In Argentina
• Time Out For Rhythm
• Weekend In Havana
• You'll Never Get Rich
• Ziegfeld Girl

Births

• January 3 - Van Dyke Parks
• January 9 - Joan Baez
• January 12 - Long John Baldry
• January 15 - Captain Beefheart
• January 18 - David Ruffin, The Temptations
• January 20 - Ron Townson , The Fifth Dimension
• January 21 - Richie Havens
• January 24 - Aaron Neville, The Neville Brothers
• January 24 - Neil Diamond
• January 30 - Joe Terranova , Danny & The Juniors
• February 4 - John Steel, The Animals
• February 5 - Barrett Strong
• February 11 - Earl Lewis , The Channels
• February 11 - Sergio Mendes
• February 11 - Tom Rush
• February 15 - Brian Holland, songwriter
• February 17 - Eddie Holland, songwriter
• February 17 - Gene Pitney
• February 18 - Herman Santiago, Frankie Lymon & The Teenagers
• February 18 - Irma Thomas
• February 20 - Buffy Sainte-Marie
• February 24 - Joanie Sommers
• March 12 - Paul Kantner , Jefferson Airplane
• March 15 - Mike Love, The Beach Boys
• March 17 - Clarence Clemons, E Street Band
• March 18 - Wilson Pickett
• April 3 - Jan Berry, Jan and Dean
• April 5 - David LaFlame , It's A Beautiful Day
• April 8 - J.J. Jackson
• April 17 - Billy Fury, English singer
• April 28 - Peter Anders , The Tradewinds
• April 28 - Ann-Margret
• April 30 - Johnny Farina , Santo & Johnny
• May 4 - Richard Burns, The Hondells
• May 8 - John Fred , John Fred & His Playboy Band
• May 9 - Peter Birrell , Freddie & The Dreamers
• May 10 - Danny Rapp, Danny and the Juniors
• May 11 - Eric Burdon, The Animals
• May 13 - Ritchie Valens
• May 21 - Ronald Isley, The Isley Brothers
• May 24 - Bob Dylan
• June 1 - Edo de Waart, conductor
• June 2 - William Guest, Gladys Knight and the Pips
• June 2 - Charlie Watts, The Rolling Stones
• June 5 - Martha Argerich
• June 9 - Jon Lord, Deep Purple
• June 10 - Shirley Owens, The Shirelles
• June 12 - Roy Harper
• June 15 - Harry Nilsson
• June 16 - Lamont Dozier, Holland/Dozier/Holland
• June 30 - Lawrence Henley , The Newbeats
• July 5 - Terry Cashman
• July 9 - Donald McPherson , Main Ingredient
• July 17 - Spencer Davis
• July 17 - Gribouille
• July 18 - Martha Reeves
• July 18 - Lonnie Mack
• July 19 - Vicki Carr
• July 24 - Barbara Jean Love , Friends of Distinction
• July 26 - Brenton Wood
• July 28 - Riccardo Muti, conductor
• July 30 - Paul Anka
• August 2 - Doris Coley, The Shirelles
• August 3 - Beverly Lee, The Shirelles
• August 4 - Timi Yuro
• August 14 - David Crosby, The Byrds, Crosby, Stills & Nash
• August 21 - Tom Coster , Santana
• August 24 - Kenny Rogers
• August 26 - Chris Curtis, The Searchers
• August 30 - John McNally , The Searchers
• September 8 - Donald Drowty , Dante & The Evergreens
• September 9 - Otis Redding
• September 10 - Christopher Hogwood, conductor and harpsichordist
• September 13 - David Clayton-Thomas, Blood, Sweat & Tears
• September 19 - Cass Elliot, Mamas & Papas
• September 21 - Dickey Lee
• September 24 - Linda McCartney
• September 26 - Joseph Bauer , Youngbloods
• October 2 - Ron Meagher , Beau Brummels
• October 3 - Chubby Checker
• October 5 - Arlene Smith , The Chantells
• October 5 - Wally Lester , The Skyliners
• October 13 - Paul Simon
• October 17 - James Seals , Seals & Crofts
• October 17 - Alan Howard , The Tremeloes
• October 21 - Manfred Mann
• October 21 - Steve Cropper, Booker T. & the M.G.'s
• October 24 - Helen Reddy
• October 28 - Hank Marvin, The Shadows
• October 28 - Curtis Lee
• October 30 - Otis Williams, The Temptations
• November 2 - Brian Poole , The Tremeloes
• November 2 - Bruce Welch , The Shadows
• November 5 - Art Garfunkel
• November 6 - Doug Sahm, Sir Douglas Quintet
• November 9 - Tom Fogerty, Creedence Clearwater Revival
• November 12 - Jerry Scholl , The Mello-Kings
• November 24 - Donald Duck Dunn , Booker T. & the M.G.'s, The Blues Brothers
• November 27 - Eddie Rabbitt, Amos Garrett
• November 29 - Denny Doherty, The Mamas & Papas
• December 1 - Kelly Jay Fordham , Crowbar
• December 2 - Tom McGuinness , Manfred Mann
• December 12 - Terry Kirkman, The Association
• December 18 - Sam Andrew , Big Brother & The Holding Company
• December 19 - Maurice White, Earth, Wind and Fire
• December 27 - Leslie Maguire , Gerry & The Pacemakers
• December 27 - Mike Pinder , The Moody Blues
• December 29 - Ray Thomas , The Moody Blues

Deaths

• February 21 - La Bolduc, Quebecois singer
• July 8 - Philippe Gaubert , composer and conductor
• July 10 - Jelly Roll Morton
• October 8 - Helen Morgan, US singer and actress
• October 8 - Gus Kahn, US lyric writer
• December 3 - Christian Sinding, composer