1563 in music

Events

 * Mikołaj Gomółka leaves the Polish royal court for Kraków.
 * Orlande de Lassus succeeding Ludwig Daser as maestro di cappella to Albrecht V, Duke of Bavaria.
 * Nicola Vicentino becomes maestro di cappella at Vicenza Cathedral.

Publications

 * Giovanni Animuccia – First book of laudi (Rome: Valerio Dorico)
 * Severin Cornet – Canzoni napolitane for four voices (Antwerp: Jean Laet)
 * Gallus Dressler – Praecepta musicae poeticae (MS)
 * Giulio Fiesco – Madrigals for four and five voices (Venice: Girolamo Scotto), also includes four dialogues, two for seven voice and two for eight voices
 * Vincenzo Galilei – First book of intavolature de lauto (Rome: Valerio Dorico), a collection of lute music, including madrigals and ricercars, by various composers
 * Francisco Guerrero – Magnificats in all eight tones (Leuven: Pierre Phalèse)
 * Orlande de Lassus – Third book of madrigals for five voices (Rome: Antonio Barré)
 * Nicolaus Listenius – Rudimenta Musicae Planae
 * Francesco Portinaro – First book of madrigals for four voices (Venice: Girolamo Scotto)

Classical music

 * Antonino Barges – Two motets

Births

 * date unknown
 * John Dowland, English Renaissance composer, singer and lutenist (d. 1626)
 * Cornelis Verdonck, Flemish composer of madrigals (d. 1625)
 * approximate date
 * Giles Farnaby, English composer, perhaps from Truro, Cornwall (d. 1640)
 * Andreas Raselius, German composer (d. 1602)

Deaths

 * February 2 – Hans Neusidler, composer (b. c. 1508)
 * August 11 – Bartolomé de Escobedo, composer (b. c. 1515)
 * date unknown
 * Thomas Appleby, church musician and composer (b. c. 1488)
 * Francesco Cellavenia, composer
 * Francisco de Soto, organist and composer (b. c. 1500)
 * Thomas Preston, organist and composer