1953 in music

Specific locations

• 1953 in British music
• 1953 in Norwegian music

  Specific genres

• 1953 in country music
• 1953 in jazz

  Events

• February 6 – Contralto Kathleen Ferrier, already terminally ill with cancer, leaves Covent Garden Opera House in London on a stretcher after being taken ill on the second night of her run-in Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice.
• March 12 – Heinrich Sutermeister's opera Romeo and Juliet receives its first UK performance at Sadler's Wells Theatre in London, conducted by James Robertson.
• May 26 – Werner Meyer-Eppler, Fritz Enkel, Herbert Eimert and Robert Beyer open a pioneering electronic music studio at the Cologne studios of the NWDR.
• July 16–29 – The Internationale Ferienkurse für Neue Musik are held at Darmstadt.
• July 18 – Elvis Presley's Sun recordings: Elvis Presley makes his first recordings.
• September 27 – Helen Traubel ends her long association with the Metropolitan Opera in New York City after having appeared in Chicago as a night-club singer.
• October – Sir Arthur Bliss replaces Sir Arnold Bax as Master of the Queen's Music in the United Kingdom.
• October 5 – Wilhelm Furtwängler and the soloist's in the Vienna State Opera's production of Don Giovanni publicly protest the suspension of Egon Hilbert as administrator of the Burg Theater and State Opera.
• October 19 – Opening of the Covent Garden opera season in London, with a production of Wagner's Die Walküre.
• October 30 – Ernst Marboe is announced as the new administrator of the Vienna State Opera and Burg Theater, replacing Egon Hilbert.
• November 2 – the Metropolitan Opera announces that a new two-year contract has been agreed with the musicians' union, averting a threatened strike by the orchestra.
• November 17 – Carl Ebert is announced as the new Intendant of the Städtische Oper, Berlin.
• December 7 – the La Scala opera season opens with a production of Alfredo Catalani's La Wally, to mark the hundredth anniversary of the composer's birth.
• Alfred Schnittke becomes a student of Evgeny Golubev.
• Frank Sinatra begins recording at Capitol.
• "Crazy Man, Crazy", recorded by Bill Haley & His Comets, becomes the first rock and roll single to make the Billboard national American musical charts.
• American singer Frankie Laine sets the all-time United Kingdom record for weeks at Number One in a given year on the UK Singles Chart, when his hit singles "Answer Me," "Hey Joe!" and "I Believe" hold the top slot for 27 weeks: a little over half a year. "I Believe", Number One for 18 weeks, also holds the all-time record for a single. Over 50 years later, both records will still hold.
• Eddie Fisher becomes "The Coca-Cola Kid" on the television show, Coke Time at a salary of one million dollars a year.
• The Platters form in Los Angeles.
• The Erato Records label is founded to promote French classical music.

  Albums released

• Anita O'Day Collates – Anita O'Day
• The Astaire Story – Fred Astaire
• Broadway's Best – Jo Stafford
• By the Light of the Silvery Moon – Doris Day
• Calamity Jane – Doris Day
• Country Girl – Bing Crosby
• Dean Martin Sings – Dean Martin
• Dinah Shore Sings the Blues – Dinah Shore
• Georgia Gibbs Sings Oldies – Georgia Gibbs
• Jazz at Massey Hall – The Quintet
• Kay Starr Style – Kay Starr
• Let There Be Love – Joni James
• May I Sing To You – Eddie Fisher
• New Concepts of Artistry in Rhythm – Stan Kenton
• Portrait Of New Orleans – Jo Stafford and Frankie Laine
• Requested By You – Frank Sinatra
• Sinatra Sings His Greatest Hits – Frank Sinatra
• Songs by Tom Lehrer – Tom Lehrer
• Songs of Open Spaces – Guy Mitchell
• Starring Jo Stafford – Jo Stafford

  Biggest hit singles

#	Artist	Title	Year	Country	Chart entries
1	Dean Martin	That's Amore	1953		US BB 1 of 1953, POP 1 of 1953, UK 2 – Jan 1954, US 1940s 2 – Nov 1953, RYM 2 of 1953, Scrobulate 47 of Italian, DDD 73 of 1953, Party 101 of 2007
2	Les Paul & Mary Ford	Vaya Con Dios	1953		US 1940s 1 – Jun 1953, US 1 for 11 weeks Aug 1953, Italy 2 of 1954, US BB 3 of 1953, POP 3 of 1953, UK 7 – Nov 1953, RYM 24 of 1953, Europe 97 of the 1950s
3	Perry Como	Don't Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes	1953		UK 1 – Jan 1953, US 1940s 1 – Dec 1952, US 1 for 5 weeks Jan 1953, US BB 20 of 1953, POP 20 of 1953, RYM 31 of 1953
4	Eddie Fisher	I'm Walking Behind You	1953		UK 1 – May 1953, US 1940s 1 – May 1953, US 1 for 2 weeks Jul 1953, US BB 16 of 1953, POP 23 of 1953, RYM 119 of 1953
5	Hank Williams	Your Cheatin' Heart	1953		RYM 1 of 1953, DDD 2 of 1953, US BB 4 of 1953, POP 4 of 1953, RIAA 34, Scrobulate 87 of country, Rolling Stone 213, Acclaimed 286

US No. 1 hit singles

Top hits on record

Top R&B and country hits on record

• "The Clock" – Johnny Ace with the Beale Streeters
• "Hound Dog" – Big Mama Thornton
• "I Forgot More Than You'll Ever Know"- The Davis Sisters
• " He Treats Your Daughter Mean"- Ruth Brown
• "Mess Around" – Ray Charles
• "Please Don't Leave Me" – Fats Domino
• "Your Cheatin' Heart" – Hank Williams

  Published popular music

• "And This Is My Beloved" w. & m. adapted Robert Wright & George Forrest
• "Angel Eyes" w. Earl Brent m. Matt Dennis
• "Anna" w. William Engvick F. Giordano m. R. Vatro
• "Answer Me, My Love" w. Carl Sigman & m. Gerhard Winkler & Fred Ravich
• "Baubles, Bangles And Beads" w. & m. adapt Robert Wright & George Forrest. Introduced by Doretta Morrow in the musical Kismet
• "Bell Bottom Blues" w. Hal David m. Leon Carr
• "Bimbo" w.m. Rodney Morris
• "Black Hills Of Dakota" w. Paul Francis Webster m. Sammy Fain. Introduced by Doris Day in the film Calamity Jane.
• "The Boy Friend" w.m. Sandy Wilson.
• "Can-Can" w.m. Cole Porter
• "Caribbean" w.m. Mitchell Torok
• "C'est Magnifique" w.m. Cole Porter. Introduced by Lilo and Peter Cookson in the musical Can-Can
• "Changing Partners" w. Joe Darion m. Larry Coleman
• "Chicka Boom" w.m. Bob Merrill
• "Crying In the Chapel" w.m. Artie Glenn
• "Cry Me a River" w.m. Arthur Hamilton
• "Dragnet" w.m. Walter Schumann
• "Ebb Tide" w. Carl Sigman m. Robert Maxwell
• "Eh, Cumpari!" trad Ital w. m. adapt. Julius LaRosa & Archie Bleyer
• "Ev'rybody Loves Saturday Night" Campbell
• "Fate" w. & m. adapt Robert Wright & George Forrest from music by Alexander Borodin Adapted from Symphony No. 2 in B Minor. It was introduced by Alfred Drake and Doretta Morrow in the musical Kismet.
• "From Here to Eternity" w. Robert Wells m. Fred Karger
• "Gambler's Guitar" w.m. Jim Lowe
• "Gee!" w.m. Viola Watkins, Daniel Norton & William Davis
• "Giddy-Up-A Ding Dong" w.m. Freddie Bell, Pep Lattanzi
• "Goodnite, Sweetheart, Goodnite" James Hudson, Calvin Carter
• "Half a Photograph" w. Bob Russell m. Hal Stanley
• "The Happy Wanderer" w. Florenz Siegesmund & Edith Möller Antonia Ridge m. Friedrich Wilhelm Möller
• "Here's That Rainy Day" w. Johnny Burke m. Jimmy Van Heusen. Introduced by John Raitt in the musical Carnival In Flanders.
• "Hold My Hand" w.m. Jack Lawrence & Richard Myers
• "I Believe" w.m. Ervin Drake, Jimmy Shirl, Irvin Graham & Al Stillman
• " I Get So Lonely" w.m. Pat Ballard
• "I Love Paris" w.m. Cole Porter. Introduced by Lilo in the musical Can-Can
• "I Really Don't Want To Know" w. Howard Barnes m. Don Robertson
• "I'm Walking Behind You" w.m. Billy Reid
• "Istanbul " w. Jimmy Kennedy m. Nat Simon
• "It's All Right With Me" w.m. Cole Porter
• "It's Love" w. Betty Comden & Adolph Green m. Leonard Bernstein. Introduced by George Gaynes in the musical Wonderful Town. Performed in the 1955 London production by Dennis Bowen.
• "Just Walkin' In The Rain" w.m. Johnny Bragg & Robert S. Riley
• "Little Things Mean a Lot" w.m. Carl Stutz & Edith Lindeman
• "Look at That Girl" w.m. Bob Merrill
• "Make Love to Me" w. Alan Copeland & Bill Norvas Music from "Tin Roof Blues" 1923.
• "The Man That Got Away" w. Ira Gershwin m. Harold Arlen
• "The Man With The Banjo" w. Robert Mellin m. Fritz Schulz Reichel
• "Marriage Type Love" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers. Introduced by Arthur Maxwell and Helena Scott in the musical Me And Juliet.
• "Matilda, Matilda!" w.m. Harry Thomas
• "Melancholy Serenade" m. Jackie Gleason
• "Mexican Joe" w.m. Mitchell Torok
• "Money Burns a Hole In My Pocket" w. Bob Hilliard m. Jule Styne. Introduced by Dean Martin in the 1954 film Living It Up.
• "Money Honey" w.m. Jesse Stone
• "My Love, My Love" w. Bob Haymes m. Nick Acquaviva
• "No Other Love" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers. Introduced by Isabel Bigley and Bill Hayes in the musical Me And Juliet.
• "Non Dimenticar" w. Shelley Dobbins Michele Galdieri m. P. G. Redi
• "Not Since Nineveh" w. & m. adapt Robert Wright & George Forrest From Borodin's "Polovetsian Dances".
• "Oh! My Pa-Pa" w. John Turner & Geoffrey Parsons m. Paul Burkhard
• "The Olive Tree" w. & m. adapt Robert Wright & George Forrest from music by Alexander Borodin
• "Rags to Riches" w.m. Richard Adler & Jerry Ross
• "Ricochet" w.m. Larry Coleman, Joe Darion & Norman Gimbel
• "Rock Around the Clock" w.m. Jimmy De Knight & Max C. Freedman
• "Santa Baby" w.m. Joan Javits, Phil Springer & Tony Springer
• "Satin Doll" w.m. Billy Strayhorn & Duke Ellington
• "Secret Love" w. Paul Francis Webster m. Sammy Fain. Introduced by Doris Day in the film Calamity Jane
• "Seven Lonely Days" w.m. Alden Shuman, Earl Shuman & Marshal Brown
• "Shake a Hand" w.m. Joe Morris
• "Sippin' Soda" adapt. P. Campbell
• "The Song From "Moulin Rouge"" w. William Engvick Jacques Larue m. Georges Auric
• "Stranger in Paradise" w. & m. adapt Robert Wright & George Forrest. Introduced by Doretta Morrow and Richard Kiley in the musical Kismet.
• "Such a Night" w.m. Lincoln Chase
• "Sway" w. Norman Gimbel Pablo Beltrán Ruiz m. Pablo Beltran Ruiz
• "Teach Me Tonight" w. Sammy Cahn m. Gene De Paul
• "Tell Me a Story" w.m. Terry Gilkyson
• "Tell Us Where the Good Times Are" w.m. Bob Merrill
• "That's Amore" w. Jack Brooks m. Harry Warren
• "Vaya con Dios" w.m. Larry Russell, Inez James & Buddy Pepper
• "Wanted" w.m. Jack Fulton & Lois Steele
• "When Love Goes Wrong" w. Harold Adamson m. Hoagy Carmichael from the film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
• "You Won't Forget Me" w. Kermit Goell m. Fred Spielman Introduced by India Adams dubbing for Joan Crawford in the film Torch Song
• "You, You, You" w. Robert Mellin Walter Rothenberg m. Lotar Olias
• "Young at Heart" w. Carolyn Leigh m. Johnny Richards

  Classical music">European classical music">Classical music

Premieres

Compositions

• Malcolm Arnold
• *Symphony No. 2
• Carlos Chávez
• *Symphony for Strings
• George Crumb
• *Sonata, for viola and piano
• Ernő Dohnányi
• *American Rhapsody
• Karel Goeyvaerts
• *Nummer 5
• Cristóbal Halffter
• *Piano Concerto
• Ernesto Halffter
• *Fantasia española for cello and piano
• Rodolfo Halffter
• *Hojas de album for piano, Op. 22
• Karl Amadeus Hartmann
• *Concerto for piano, winds and percussion
• Arthur Honegger
• *A Christmas Cantata
• Karel Husa
• *String Quartet No. 2
• Andrew Imbrie
• *String Quartet No. 2
• György Ligeti
• *Sonata for Solo Cello
• Bohuslav Martinů
• *Concerto for violin, piano, and orchestra
• *Overture
• *Fantaisies symphoniques
• Peter Racine Fricker
• *Viola Concerto
• Giacinto Scelsi
• *Five Incantations for piano
• Dmitri Shostakovich
• *Ballet Suite No. 4
• *Symphony No. 10
• Karlheinz Stockhausen
• *
• *Kontra-Punkte
• *Studie I
• Eugen Suchoň – Metamorphosis for orchestra
• Ralph Vaughan Williams – The Old Hundredth Psalm Tune
• Heitor Villa-Lobos
• *Alvorada na Floresta Tropical for orchestra
• *Cello Concerto No. 2
• *Fantaisie concertante for piano, clarinet and bassoon
• *Harp Concerto
• *Odisseia de uma raça, symphonic poem
• *String Quartet No. 14
• *Symphony No. 10, Sumé Pater Patrium

  [Opera]

• The Decembrists first staged 23 June 1953 at the Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow.
• The Dumb Wife, premiered 21 November 1953 at the Guildhall School, London, by the Intimate Opera Company.
• Gloriana composed 1953, first performed on 8 July 1953 at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in the presence of Elizabeth II.
• Irmelin composed 1890–92; first produced Oxford, 4 May 1953.
• Lenora 40/50 first produced in Berlin on 12 February 1953 at the State Opera House in the British sector.
• Man of Enterprise first produced on 8 December 1953 at Tiffin School, Kingston, Surrey, by the school operatic society.
• Menna premiered by the Welsh National Opera at the Pavilion in Cardiff on 9 November, with the composer conducting.
• Nelson, premiered in a concert performance 14 February 1953 by the English Opera Group at Wigmore Hall, London.
• Sevil
• Three's Company, premiered 21 November 1953 at the Guildhall School, London, by the Intimate Opera Company.
• The Tinners of Cornwall, premiered 30 September 1953 at Rudolf Steiner Hall, conducted by Geoffrey Corbett.

  [Jazz]

[Musical theater]

• Airs On A Shoestring London revue opened at the Royal Court Theatre on April 22 and ran for 772 performances
• At The Lyric London production
• The Boy Friend commenced at London's Players Club on April 14 and reopened in an expanded version on October 13 before moving to the West End proper in 1954.
• Braziliana London production
• The Buccaneer London production
• Can-Can – Broadway production opened at the Shubert Theatre on May 7 and ran for 892 performances
• Hazel Flagg Broadway production opened at the Mark Hellinger Theatre on February 11 and ran for 190 performances
• John Murray Anderson's Almanac Broadway revue opened at the Imperial Theatre on December 10 and ran for 227 performances
• The King And I London production opened at the Drury Lane Theatre on October 8 and ran for 926 performances
• Kismet Broadway production opened at the Ziegfeld Theatre on December 3 and ran for 583 performances
• Maggie Broadway production opened at the Royal National Theatre on February 18 and ran for 5 performances
• Me And Juliet Broadway production opened at the Majestic Theatre on May 28 and ran for 358 performances
• Paint Your Wagon – London production opened at Her Majesty's Theatre on February 11 and ran for 477 performances
• The Wayward Way
• Wonderful Town – Broadway production opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on February 25 and ran for 559 performances

  [Musical film]s

• The Affairs of Dobie Gillis starring Debbie Reynolds, Bobby Van, Barbara Ruick and Bob Fosse
• The Band Wagon
• By the Light of the Silvery Moon
• Calamity Jane starring Doris Day and Howard Keel
• The Desert Song
• The Farmer Takes a Wife starring Betty Grable, Dale Robertson, John Carroll, Thelma Ritter and Eddie Foy, Jr.
• Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
• I Love Melvin starring Debbie Reynolds and Donald O'Connor
• The Jazz Singer
• Kiss Me Kate starring Howard Keel, Kathryn Grayson, Ann Miller, Keenan Wynn and James Whitmore
• Lili
• Peter Pan animated feature
• Singin' in the Rain starring Gene Kelly, Donald O'Connor and Debbie Reynolds
• Small Town Girl starring Jane Powell, Ann Miller, Farley Granger, S. Z. Sakall, Bobby Van, Billie Burke, Fay Wray and featuring Nat "King" Cole. Directed by László Kardos.
• So This Is Love released July 15 starring Kathryn Grayson as Grace Moore.
• The Stooge released February 4 starring Martin and Lewis.
• Three Sailors and a Girl starring Jane Powell, Gordon MacRae and Gene Nelson
• Torch Song released October 23 starring Joan Crawford and Michael Wilding

  Births

• January 6 – Malcolm Young, rock musician
• January 10 – Pat Benatar, singer
• January 21 – Glenn Kaiser, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• January 23 – Robin Zander, rock musician
• January 26 – Lucinda Williams, singer
• January 29
• *Louie Perez
• *Teresa Teng, singer
• February 3 – Joëlle, singer
• February 18 – Robin Bachman, drummer
• February 20 – Riccardo Chailly, conductor
• February 26 – Michael Bolton, American singer
• March 3 – Robyn Hitchcock, singer-songwriter and guitarist
• March 12 – Ryan Paris, singer
• March 19 – Ricky Wilson
• March 23 – Chaka Khan, singer
• March 31
• *Sean Hopper
• *Greg Martin
• April 4 – Chen Yi, Chinese classical composer and violinist
• April 21 – Todd Phillips, American bassist and composer
• April 28
• * Pat Donohue, guitarist for The Guys All-Star Shoe Band on A Prairie Home Companion)
• * Kim Gordon, American musician, songwriter and visual artist
• May 4 – Oleta Adams, American soul and jazz singer
• May 8
• *Billy Burnette
• *Alex Van Halen
• May 9
• *Connie Kaldor, Canadian singer-songwriter
• *Kojo, singer
• May 15 – Mike Oldfield, composer & musician
• May 16 – Richard Page
• May 17 – George Johnson
• June 6 – June Yamagishi, Japanese-American guitarist
• June 7 – Johnny Clegg, mbaqanga and Afro-pop musician and musical anthropologist
• June 12 – Rocky Burnette, rock singer
• June 19 – Larry Dunn
• June 20
• *Alan Longmuir, pop guitarist
• *Dušan Rapoš, composer
• June 22 – Cyndi Lauper, singer-songwriter
• June 29 – Colin Hay
• July 2 – Mark Hart, American guitarist and keyboard player
• July 6 – Nanci Griffith, singer
• July 18 – Warren Wiebe, American singer
• July 21 – Eric Bazilian
• July 22
• *Jimmy Bruno, American guitarist
• *Sylvia Chang, Taiwanese actress, singer, director and screenwriter
• July 29 – Geddy Lee
• July 31 – Hugh MacDowell
• August 1 – Robert Cray, blues guitarist and singer
• August 2 – Marjo, Canadian singer-songwriter
• August 12 – Peter Ostroushko, mandolinist, fiddler
• August 16 – James "J.T." Taylor
• August 17 – Kevin Rowland, vocalist
• August 24 – Ron Holloway, tenor saxophonist
• August 27 – Alex Lifeson
• August 29 – Rick Downey
• September 2 – John Zorn, composer
• September 7 – Benmont Tench, keyboardist for Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers and others
• September 11 – Tommy Shaw
• September 27 – Greg Ham
• September 28 – Jim Diamond, pop singer-songwriter
• October 7 – Tico Torres, Bon Jovi
• October 10 – Midge Ure, singer-songwriter
• October 14 – Kazumi Watanabe, jazz performer
• October 15 – Tito Jackson
• October 16- Tony Carey
• October 21 – Charlotte Caffey
• October 21 – Eric Faulkner, guitarist and singer-songwriter
• October 26 – Keith Strickland
• October 28 – Desmond Child, American songwriter and producer
• October 31 – Johnny Clegg, singer and instrumentalist
• November 11 – Andy Partridge
• November 13
• *Keith Green, gospel singer-songwriter
• *Andrew Ranken, Celtic punk drummer
• November 18 – Jan Kuehnemund, American guitarist
• November 22 – Urmas Alender, singer
• November 23 – Francis Cabrel, folk singer/songwriter
• December 12
• *Bruce Kulick, American guitarist and songwriter
• *Dave Meniketti, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• December 26 – Harry Christophers, English choral conductor
• Undated – David Owen Norris, English classical pianist, composer, academic and broadcaster

  Deaths

• January 1 – Hank Williams, country musician, 29
• January 18 – Arthur Wood, composer, 78
• February 2 – Gustav Strube, conductor and composer, 75
• March 5
• *E. T. Cook, organist and composer, 72
• *Sergei Prokofiev, composer, 61
• March 19 – Irène Bordoni, singer and actress, 68
• March 29 – Arthur Fields, singer-songwriter, 64
• April 23 – Peter DeRose, Tin Pan Alley composer, 53
• April 29 – Kiki, "The Queen of Montparnasse", 51
• April 30 – Lily Brayton, musical theatre star, 76
• May 15 – Mabel Love, dancer, 78
• May 16 – Django Reinhardt, jazz guitarist, 43
• May 19 – Frank Mullings, tenor, 72
• May 22 – Frederick Jackson, librettist and screenwriter
• May 30 – Dooley Wilson, actor, singer and pianist, 67
• June 3 – Florence Price, composer, 66
• June 10 – Grzegorz Fitelberg, conductor, violinist and composer, 73
• June 21 – Ford Dabney, composer and vaudevillian, 75
• June 25 – Jules Van Nuffel, musicologist and composer, 70
• July 5 – Titta Ruffo, operatic baritone, 76
• July 17 – Bernhard van den Sigtenhorst Meyer, Dutch composer, 65
• August 14 – Friedrich Schorr, operatic bass-baritone, 64
• August 29 – Darrell Fancourt, bass-baritone, 67
• September 1 – Jacques Thibaud, violinist, 72
• September 21 – Roger Quilter, composer, 75
• October 3 – Sir Arnold Bax, composer, 69
• October 8 – Kathleen Ferrier, English contralto, 41
• October 18 – Marguerite d'Alvarez, operatic contralto, exact age unknown
• October 27 – Eduard Künneke, composer, 68
• October 29 – William Kapell, pianist, 31
• October 30 – Emmerich Kálmán, composer, 71
• November 10 – Theodora Morse, lyricist, 70
• November 18 – Ruth Crawford Seeger, composer, 52
• November 21 – Larry Shields, jazz musician, 60
• November 26 – Ivor Atkins, organist and choirmaster, 83
• December 5
• *Noel Mewton-Wood, pianist, 31
• *Jorge Negrete, singer and actor, 42
• December 9 – Issay Dobrowen, pianist, conductor and composer, 62
• December 11 – Albert Coates, conductor and composer, 71
• December 29 – Violet MacMillan, Broadway star, 66