1798 in music

Events

 * July 11 – United States Marine Band established by Act of Congress.
 * September 2 – Opening of the Teatro Comunale (Ferrara) in Italy with a performance of Portogallo's Gli Orazi e i Curiazi.
 * Opening of the Teatro della Concordia in Iesi, Ancona, "one of the few opera houses in Italy from the late 1700s that has never been destroyed by fire or bombs".
 * Completion of the first São João National Theatre in Porto, Portugal as an opera house.
 * Michael Haydn takes on Carl Maria von Weber as a pupil without charge.
 * First edition of Niemetschek's biography of Mozart published.

Classical music

 * Ludwig van Beethoven – Piano Sonata No. 8 in C minor, Op. 13 (Sonata Pathétique)
 * Joseph Eybler – Clarinet Concerto in B-flat major
 * Joseph Haydn
 * The Creation
 * Missa in Angustiis
 * Leopold Kozeluch – Sinfonia Concertante in E-flat major
 * Paul Wranitzky – Grande Sinfonie caracteristique in C minor, Op. 31

Published popular music

 * Edward Jones (Bardd y Brenin) – Popular Cheshire Melodies

Births

 * January 31 – Carl Gottlieb Reissiger, kapellmeister and composer (d. 1859)
 * March 9 – Mathilda Berwald, Hovsångare (d. 1877)
 * October 28 – Henri Bertini, pianist and composer (d. 1876)
 * date unknown
 * Andrea Maffei, librettist (d. 1885)
 * Louis-Désiré Véron, opera manager (d. 1867)
 * Lovisa Charlotta Borgman, violinist (d. 1884)

Deaths

 * January 4 – Giuseppe Giordani, opera composer (b. 1751)
 * January 20 – Christian Cannabich, composer (b. 1731)
 * January 28 – Christian Gottlob Neefe, composer and conductor (b. 1748)
 * July 15 – Gaetano Pugnani, violinist (b. 1731)
 * November 30 – Friedrich Fleischmann, composer (b. 1766)
 * December 16 – Gaetano Brunetti, composer (b. 1744)