1917 in music

This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1917.

Specific locations

 * 1917 in British music
 * 1917 in Norwegian music

Specific genres

 * 1917 in country music
 * 1917 in jazz

Events

 * March 7 – "Livery Stable Blues", recorded with "Dixie Jazz Band One Step" on February 26 by the Original Dixieland Jass Band (a white 5-piece group from New Orleans led by cornetist Nick LaRocca) for the Victor Talking Machine Company in the United States, becomes the first jazz recording commercially released (described as a "foxtrot"). On August 17 the band records "Tiger Rag"
 * May 12 – Béla Bartók's ballet The Wooden Prince is premiered in Budapest
 * First African American jazz recordings made by Wilbur Sweatman's Band
 * Eddie Cantor makes his first recordings
 * Songs of the First World War become popular in the U.S.

Bands formed

 * See Category:Musical groups established in 1917

Published popular music

 * "All The World Will Be Jealous Of Me" w. Al Dubin m. Ernest R. Ball
 * "Any Time Is Kissing Time" w. Oscar Asche m. Frederic Norton from the musical Chu Chin Chow
 * "Are You From Heaven?" w.m. L. Wolfe Gilbert & Anatole Friedland
 * "At the Jazz Band Ball" w.m. Edwin B. Edwards, Nick LaRocca, Tony Spargo & Larry Shields
 * "A Bachelor Gay" w. Frank Clifford Harris & (Arthur) Valentine m. James W. Tate from the musical The Maid of the Mountains
 * "Barnyard Blues" w.m. Edwin B. Edwards, Nick La Rocca, Tony Sbarbaro & Larry Shields
 * "The Bells Of St Mary's" w. Douglas Furber m. A. Emmett Adams
 * "The Bombo-Shay" by Henry Creamer
 * "Bring Back My Daddy to Me" m. George W. Meyer w. William Tracey & Howard Johnson
 * "Bring Me A Rose" w.m. Charles Shisler
 * "Cheer Up, Liza" John L. Golden, Raymond Hubbell
 * "Cleopatra Had A Jazz Band" w. Jack Coogan m. Jimmy Morgan
 * "Come To The Fair" w. Helen Taylor m. Easthope Martin
 * "The Darktown Strutters' Ball" w.m. Shelton Brooks
 * "Dixie Jass Band One-Step" Original Dixieland Jass Band
 * "Down in the Valley" trad US
 * "Eileen (Alanna Asthore)" w. Henry Blossom m. Victor Herbert
 * "For Me And My Gal" w. Edgar Leslie & E. Ray Goetz m. George W. Meyer
 * "For Your Country and My Country" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "Give a Man a Horse He Can Ride" w. James Thomson m. Geoffrey O'Hara
 * "Give Me the Moonlight, Give Me the Girl" w. Lew Brown m. Albert Von Tilzer
 * "Going Up" w. Otto Harbach m. Louis A. Hirsch
 * "Good Luck and God Be With You, Laddie Boy" w. Will D. Cobb m. Gus Edwards
 * "Good Bye Broadway, Hello France" w. C. Francis Reisner & Benny Davis m. Billy Baskette
 * "Goodbye, Ma! Goodbye, Pa! Goodbye, Mule, with Yer Old Hee-Haw!" w. William Herschell m. Barclay Walker
 * "'Good-bye,' That Means You" w. Andrew B. Sterling m. Arthur Lange
 * "Good-bye-ee" w.m. R. P. Weston & Bert Lee
 * "Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here" w. D. A. Esrom (pseudonym of Dolly Morse) m. Theodore F. Morse & Arthur Sullivan
 * "Have A Heart" w. P. G. Wodehouse m. Jerome Kern
 * "Hawaiian Butterfly" w. George A. Little m. Billy Baskette & Joseph H. Santley
 * "Homeward Bound" m. George Meyer w. Howard Johnson and Coleman Goetz
 * "Homing" w. Arthur L. Salmon m. Teresa del Riego
 * "How Can I Forget When There's So Much To Remember" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "Huckleberry Finn" by Cliff Hess
 * "I Don't Know Where I'm Going But I'm On My Way" w.m. George Fairman
 * "I Don't Want to Get Well" w. Howard Johnson & Harry Pease m. Harry Jentes
 * "I May Be Gone for a Long, Long Time" w. Lew Brown m. Albert Von Tilzer
 * "I Wish You All the Luck in the World" w. & m. by Abe Olman
 * "I'd Love To Be A Monkey In The Zoo" w. Bert Hanlon m. Willie White
 * "I'll Take You Back To Italy" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "I'm All Bound Round With The Mason-Dixon Line" w. Sam M. Lewis & Joe Young m. Jean Schwartz
 * "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows" w. Joseph McCarthy m. Harry Carroll (melody adapted from Chopin)
 * "If I Find The Guy Who Wrote "Poor Butterfly"" w. William Jerome m. Arthur Green
 * "Indiana" w. Ballard MacDonald m. James F. Hanley
 * "Indianola" m. Henry R. Stern & Domenico Savino
 * "Joan of Arc, They Are Calling You" w. Alfred Bryan & Willie Weston m. Jack Wells
 * "Johnson Rag" m. Guy H. Hall & Henry Kleinhauf
 * "Just A Baby's Prayer At Twilight" w. Sam M. Lewis & Joe Young m. M. K. Jerome
 * "Leave It to Jane" w. P. G. Wodehouse m. Jerome Kern
 * "Let's All Be Americans Now" w.m. Irving Berlin, Edgar Leslie & George W. Meyer
 * "Lily Of The Valley" w. L. Wolfe Gilbert m. Anatole Friedland
 * "Little Mother of Mine" w. Walter H. Brown m. Harry T. Burleigh
 * "Little Sir Echo" w. Laura R. Smith m. J. S. Fearis
 * "Livery Stable Blues" Alcide Nunez & Ray Lopez
 * "Lorraine (My Beautiful Alsace Lorraine)" w. Alfred Bryan m. Fred Fisher
 * "Love Will Find A Way" w. Harry Graham m. Harold Fraser-Simson. Introduced by José Collins in the musical The Maid of the Mountains
 * "Mad'moiselle From Armentieres" w.m. anon
 * "McNamara's Band" w. John J. Stamford m. Shamus O'Connor
 * "The Modern Maiden's Prayer" w. Ballard MacDonald m. James F. Hanley
 * "My Sunshine Jane" w. J. Keirn Brennan m. Ernest R. Ball
 * "My Sweetie" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "'N' Everything" w.m. Al Jolson, B. G. DeSylva & Gus Kahn
 * "Napoleon" w. P.G. Wodehouse m. Jerome Kern
 * "Nesting Time in Flatbush" w. P. G. Wodehouse m. Jerome Kern
 * "Oh It's a Lovely War" w.m. Maurice Scott
 * "Oh Johnny, Oh Johnny, Oh!" w. Ed Rose m. Abe Olman
 * "Ole Miss Rag" w.m. W. C. Handy
 * "On the Road to Home Sweet Home" w. Gus Kahn m. Egbert van Alstyne
 * "Ostrich Walk" m. Edwin B. Edwards, Nick LaRocca, Tony Spargo & Larry Shields
 * "Out Where the West Begins" w. Arthur Chapman m. Estelle Philleo
 * "Over There" w.m. George M. Cohan
 * "Paddy McGinty's Goat" w.m. R.P. Weston, Bert Lee & The Two Bobs
 * "A Paradise For Two" w. Frank Clifford Harris & Valentine m. James W. Tate
 * "Regretful Blues" w. Grant Clarke m. Cliff Hess
 * "Reflection Rag" m. Scott Joplin
 * "The Road to Paradise" w. Rida Johnson Young m. Sigmund Romberg from the musical Maytime
 * "Rockaway" by Howard Johnson
 * "Rolled Into One" w. P. G. Wodehouse m. Jerome Kern
 * "Rose Room" w. Harry Williams m. Art Hickman
 * "Sailin' Away on the Henry Clay" w. Gus Kahn m. Egbert Van Alstyne
 * "Say a Prayer for the Boys "Out There"" w. Bernie Grossman m. Alex Marr
 * "Send Me Away With A Smile" w.m. Louis Weslyn & Al Piantadosi
 * "Shim-Me-Sha-Wabble" m. Spencer Williams
 * "Sing Me Love's Lullaby" w. Dorothy Terris m. Theodore F. Morse
 * "The Siren's Song" w. P. G. Wodehouse m. Jerome Kern
 * "Six Times Six Is Thirty-Six" w. Bert Hanlon m. William White
 * "Slippery Hank" Frank H. Losey
 * "Smile And Show Your Dimple" w.m. Irving Berlin (reworked 1933 as "Easter Parade")
 * "Smiles" w. J. Will Callahan m. Lee S. Roberts
 * "Some Sunday Morning" w. Gus Kahn & Raymond B. Egan m. Richard A. Whiting
 * "Somewhere in France" w. Arthur Wimperis m. Herbert Ivey
 * "Somewhere in France Is Daddy" w. m. Great Howard (Howard Miller)
 * "Somewhere In France (Is The Lily)" w. Philander Chase Johnson m. Joseph E. Howard
 * "Southern Gals" w. Jack Yellen m. Albert Gumble
 * "The Story Book Ball" w.m. Billie Montgomery & George Perry
 * "Sweet Emalina My Gal" w. Henry Creamer m. Turner Layton
 * "That's The Kind Of Baby For Me" w.m. Jack Egan & Alfred Harrison
 * "There Are Fairies At The Bottom Of Our Garden" w.m. Liza Lehmann
 * "There's A Lump Of Sugar Down In Dixie" w. Alfred Bryan & Jack Yellen m. Albert Gumble
 * "There's Something Nice About The South" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "They Go Wild Simply Wild Over Me" w. Joseph McCarthy m. Fred Fisher
 * "They'll Be Whistling It All Over Town" w. E. Ray Goetz m.Jean Schwartz
 * "Thine Alone" w. Henry Blossom m. Victor Herbert
 * "The Tickle Toe" w. Otto Harbach m. Louis Hirsch
 * "Tiger Rag" w. Harry De Costa m. Edwin B. Edwards, Nick La Rocca, Tony Sbarbaro, Henry Ragas & Larry Shields
 * "Till The Clouds Roll By" w. P. G. Wodehouse, Guy Bolton & Jerome Kern m. Jerome Kern
 * "Ugly Chile" w.m. Clarence Williams
 * "The Waggle O' The Kilt" w.m. Harry Lauder
 * "Wait Till The Cows Come Home" w. Anne Caldwell m. Ivan Caryll
 * "When the Boys Come Home" w. John Hay m. Oley Speaks
 * "When the Clouds of War Roll By" w. Nat Binns m. Earl Haubrich
 * "When Yankee Doodle Learns To Parlez Vous Francais" w. Will Hart m. Edward G. Nelson
 * "Where Do We Go from Here?" w. Howard Johnson m. Percy Wenrich
 * "Where The Morning Glories Grow" w. Gus Kahn & Raymond B. Egan m. Richard A. Whiting
 * "Why Am I Always The Bridesmaid?" w.m. Fred Leigh, Charles Collins & Lily Morris
 * "Will You Remember?" w. Rida Johnson Young m. Sigmund Romberg
 * "Wonder Eyes" m. Percy E. Fletcher
 * "Yah-De-Dah" m. Mel B. Kaufman
 * "You Brought Ireland Right Over To Me" w. J. Keirn Brennan m. Ernest R. Ball
 * "You Never Knew About Me" w. P. G. Wodehouse m. Jerome Kern

Hit recordings

 * "Livery Stable Blues/Dixie Jass One Step" by the Original Dixieland Jass Band
 * "Goodbye Broadway, Hello France" by the American Quartet
 * "A Bachelor Gay" by Peter Dawson
 * "I Don't Want To Get Well" by Van & Schenck
 * "Joe Turner Blues" by Wilbur Sweatman
 * "Long Boy" by Byron G. Harlan With The Peerless Quartet
 * "Over There" recorded by
 * Billy Murray
 * Nora Bayes
 * "Poor Butterfly" by the Victor Military Band
 * "That's The Kind Of A Baby For Me" by Eddie Cantor
 * "The Waggle O' The Kilt" by Harry Lauder
 * "Yaddie Kaddie Kiddie Kaddie Koo" by Van & Schenck

Classical music

 * Arnold Bax – November Woods
 * Lili Boulanger – Psaume 130 (Du fond de l'abîme)
 * Frank Bridge – Cello Sonata in D minor
 * John Alden Carpenter
 * The Birthday of the Infanta, ballet
 * The Home Road for SATB mixed chorus or unison voices and piano
 * Symphony No. 1 ("Sermons in Stones")
 * Carlos Chávez – Sonata fantasia (Piano Sonata No. 1)
 * Nancy Dalberg – Symphony in C-sharp minor
 * Claude Debussy – Violin Sonata in G minor
 * Frederick Delius – Eventyr (Once Upon a Time)
 * Gabriel Fauré – Cello Sonata No. 1
 * Alexander Glazunov – Piano Concerto No. 2 in B, Op. 100
 * Launy Grøndahl – Violin Concerto in D Major
 * Charles Koechlin
 * La divine vesprée, ballet
 * Paysages et marines, Op. 63bis, version for flute, clarinet, string quartet, and piano
 * Sonata for cello and piano, Op. 66
 * Carl Nielsen – Chaconne, for piano
 * Willem Pijper
 * Symphony No. 1, Pan
 * Sonatina No. 1, for piano
 * De Lente Komt, choral
 * Sergei Prokofiev
 * Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 19
 * Igrok (The Gambler), opera, Op. 24
 * Mimoletnosti (Visions fugitives), 20 pieces for piano, Op. 22
 * Piano Sonata No. 3 ("From Old Notebooks"), Op. 28
 * Piano Sonata No. 4 ("From Old Notebooks"), Op. 29
 * Symphony No. 1 Classical, Op. 25
 * Maurice Ravel – Le tombeau de Couperin, for piano
 * Ottorino Respighi – Ancient Airs and Dances Suite No. 1
 * Arnold Schoenberg – Verklärte Nacht (string orchestra version)
 * Jean Sibelius – Humoresques for Violin and Orchestra opp. 87 and 89
 * Charles Villiers Stanford
 * Aviator's Hymn, for tenor, bass, choir, and organ
 * Irish Rhapsody No. 5, in G Minor, for orchestra
 * Night Thoughts, Op. 148, for piano
 * "On Windy Way When Morning Breaks", partsong
 * Sailing Song, partsong, two soprano voices
 * "St George of England", song
 * Scènes de ballet, Op. 150, for piano
 * Sonata No. 1, in F major, Op. 149, for organ
 * Sonata No. 2 ("Eroica"), in G minor, Op. 151, for organ
 * Sonata No. 3 ("Britannica"), in D minor, Op. 152, for organ
 * Igor Stravinsky
 * Berceuse, for voice and piano
 * Le chant du rossignol, symphonic poem
 * Cinq pièces faciles, for piano 4 hands
 * "Ovsen’", No. 2 from Podblyudnïye (Saucers) (Four Russian Peasant Songs), for women's choir
 * Song of the Volga Boatmen, arrangement for winds and percussion
 * Study, for pianola
 * Valse pour les enfants, for piano (possibly 1916)
 * Karol Szymanowski
 * Sonata No. 3, for piano
 * String Quartet No. 1 in C major
 * Demeter, cantata
 * Agave, cantata
 * Heitor Villa-Lobos
 * String Quartet No. 4
 * Symphony No. 2 Ascenção (Ascension), revised or completed 1943/44
 * Eugène Ysaÿe – Exil, for string orchestra of only violins and violas, Op. 25

Opera

 * Armas Launis – Kullervo
 * Sergei Prokofiev – The Gambler
 * Ignatz Waghalter – Jugend
 * Giacomo Puccini – La rondine, Opéra de Monte-Carlo, 27 March
 * Richard Strauss – Die Frau ohne Schatten
 * Gabriel von Wayditch – The Caliph's Magician
 * Alexander Zemlinsky – Eine florentinische Tragödie

Film

 * Pietro Mascagni – Rapsodia Satanica

Musical theatre

 * The Beauty Spot West End production opened at the Gaiety Theatre on 22 December and ran for 152 performances
 * The Better 'Ole London production opened at the Oxford Theatre on August 4 and ran for 811 performances
 * The Boy London production opened at the Adelphi Theatre on September 14 and ran for 801 performances
 * Cheep London revue opened at the Vaudeville Theatre on April 26.
 * Chu Chin Chow Broadway production opened at the Manhattan Opera House on October 22 and ran for 208 performances
 * Eileen opened at the Shubert Theatre on March 19 and ran for 64 performances.
 * Hanky Panky London revue opened at the Empire Theatre on March 24
 * Jack O'Lantern Broadway production opened at the Globe Theatre on October 16 and ran for 265 performances
 * Leave It to Jane Broadway production opened at the Longacre Theatre on August 28 and ran for 167 performances
 * The Maid Of The Mountains London production opened at Daly's Theatre on February 10 and ran for 1352 performances
 * Maytime Broadway production opened at the Shubert Theatre on August 16 and ran for 492 performances
 * Miss 1917 Broadway revue opened at the Century Theatre on November 5 and ran for 72 performances
 * Oh, Boy! (musical) Broadway production opened at the Princess Theatre on February 20 and ran for 463 performances
 * The Riviera Girl Broadway production opened at the New Amsterdam Theatre on September 24 and ran for 78 performances
 * Arlette West End production opened at the Shaftesbury Theatre on 6 September and ran for 280 performances

Births

 * January 2 – Vera Zorina, German dancer and actress (died 2003)
 * January 3 – Pierre Dervaux, French operatic conductor, composer and pedagogue (d. 1992)
 * January 10 – Jerry Wexler, music journalist and record producer (d. 2008)
 * January 12
 * Walter Hendl, American conductor, composer and pianist (d. 2007)
 * Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, major influence on The Beatles (d. 2008)
 * January 15 – Tiny Timbrell, guitarist (d. 1992)
 * January 19 – John Raitt, American actor and singer (d. 2005)
 * February 11 – Arcesia, singer (d. 1983)
 * February 15 – Denise Scharley, French contralto (d. 2011)
 * February 18 – Dona Massin, choreographer (d. 2001)
 * February 25 – Anthony Burgess, composer (d. 1993)
 * February 27 – George Mitchell, founder of the Black and White Minstrels (d. 2002)
 * March 2
 * Desi Arnaz, musician, actor and producer (d. 1986)
 * John Gardner, composer (d. 2011)
 * March 7 – Janet Collins, dancer and choreographer (d. 2003)
 * March 12 – Leonard Chess, founder of Chess Records (d. 1969)
 * March 17 – Brian Boydell, Irish composer (d. 2000)
 * March 18 – Riccardo Brengola, violinist (d. 2004)
 * March 19 – Dinu Lipatti, pianist (d. 1950)
 * March 20 – Vera Lynn, singer (d. 2020)
 * March 21 – Anton Coppola, opera conductor (d. 2020)
 * March 23
 * Josef Locke, tenor (d. 1999)
 * Oscar Shumsky, violinist (d. 2000)
 * March 26 – Rufus Thomas, singer (d. 2001)
 * March 30
 * Els Aarne, composer (d. 1995)
 * Rudolf Brucci, composer (d. 2002)
 * April 9 – Johannes Bobrowski, lyricist (d. 1965)
 * April 12 – Helen Forrest, American jazz singer (d. 1999)
 * April 22 – Yvette Chauviré, ballerina (d. 2016)
 * April 25 – Ella Fitzgerald, jazz singer (d. 1996)
 * April 30 – Bea Wain, US big band singer (d. 2017)
 * May 1
 * Danielle Darrieux, singer and actress (d. 2017)
 * Lily Lian, street singer (d. 2020)
 * May 14
 * Lou Harrison, US composer (d. 2003)
 * Norman Luboff, US choral director (d. 1987)
 * May 16 – Vera Rózsa, singer and voice teacher (d. 2010)
 * May 21 – Dennis Day, US singer (d. 1988)
 * May 22 – Georg Tintner, Austrian conductor (d. 1999)
 * May 28 – Papa John Creach, fiddler (Jefferson Airplane) (d. 1994)
 * June 4 – Robert Merrill, operatic baritone (d. 2004)
 * June 7 – Dean Martin, singer and actor (d. 1995)
 * June 19 – Dave Lambert, US singer and arranger (d. 1966)
 * June 29
 * Sylvia Olden Lee, vocal coach and accompanist (d. 2004)
 * Ulpio Minucci, songwriter and composer (d. 2007)
 * June 24 – Ramblin' Tommy Scott, American singer and guitarist (d. 2013)
 * June 30 – Lena Horne, singer (died 2010)
 * July 2 – Murry Wilson, American songwriter, producer and manager (d. 1973)
 * July 14 – Roshan, Bollywood composer (d. 1967)
 * July 17 – Red Sovine, American country & folk singer-songwriter (d. 1980)
 * July 24
 * Henri Betti, French composer and pianist (d. 2005)
 * Robert Farnon, composer (d. 2005)
 * Leonor Orosa Goquinco, pianist and dancer (d. 2005)
 * August 3 – Antonio Lauro, guitarist and composer (d. 1986)
 * August 17 – Walter Brown, blues shouter (d. 1956)
 * August 22 – John Lee Hooker, blues musician (d. 2001)
 * August 23 – Tex Williams, American country singer (d. 1985)
 * September 5 – Art Rupe, founder of Specialty Records (d. 2022)
 * September 11 – Myrta Silva, singer and composer (d. 1987)
 * September 13 – Robert Ward, composer (d. 2013)
 * September 15 – Richard Arnell, English composer (d. 2009)
 * September 30 – Buddy Rich, American jazz drummer (d. 1987)
 * October 4 – Violeta Parra, Chilean folk musician (suicide 1967)
 * October 7 – June Allyson, American singer and actress (d. 2006)
 * October 10 – Thelonious Monk, American jazz pianist (d. 1982)
 * October 13 – George Osmond, father of the Osmond brothers (d. 2007)
 * October 21
 * William Adam, trumpeter (d. 2013)
 * Dizzy Gillespie, jazz musician (d. 1993)
 * October 24 – Mike Pedicin, jazz bandleader (d. 2016)
 * October 31 – Anna Marly, French singer-songwriter (d. 2006)
 * November 12
 * Hedley Jones, Jamaican musician (d. 2017)
 * Jo Stafford, American pop singer (d. 2008)

Deaths

 * January – Friederike Grün, operatic soprano (born 1836)
 * January 13 – Albert Niemann, Wagnerian tenor (b. 1831)
 * February 10 – Emile Pessard, French composer (b. 1843)
 * February 25 – Paul Rubens, English songwriter (b. 1875)
 * March 1 – Antonina Miliukova, widow of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (b. 1848)
 * March 4 – Julius Bechgaard, Danish composer (b. 1843)
 * March 25 – Spyridon Samaras, composer (b. 1861)
 * April 1 – Scott Joplin, ragtime composer (b. 1868)
 * April 29 – Florence Farr, actress, singer and composer (b. 1860)
 * May 20 – Romilda Pantaleoni, operatic soprano (b. 1847)
 * May 25 – Edouard de Reszke, operatic bass (b. 1853)
 * June 12 – Teresa Carreño, pianist, singer and conductor (b. 1853)
 * July 16 – Philipp Scharwenka, composer (b. 1847)
 * August 7 – Basil Hood, librettist and lyricist (b. 1864)
 * August 12 – Pavel Gerdt, dancer (b. 1844)
 * September 5 – Marie Hanfstängl, operatic soprano (b. 1848)
 * September 8 – Charles Edouard Lefebvre, French composer (b. 1843)
 * September 11 – Evie Greene, actress and singer (b. 1875)
 * September 15 – Elias Oechsler, composer (b. 1850)
 * October 3 – Eduardo di Capua, singer and songwriter (b. 1865)
 * December 7 – Ludwig Minkus, violinist and composer (b. 1826)
 * December 9 – Nat M. Wills, singer, comedian, and actor (b. 1873)