1903 in music

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This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1903.

Events

• February 11 - Anton Bruckner's 9th Symphony is premiered in Vienna
• February 23 (Julian = March 8 Gregorian) – George Enescu conducts the world premieres of three of his works, the Suite No. 1 for orchestra, op. 9, in C major, and the two Romanian Rhapsodies, op. 11, in A major and D major, as part of a concert at the Romanian Athenaeum in Bucharest.
• Enrico Caruso joins cast of New York's Metropolitan Opera Company and makes first records for the Victor Talking Machine Company.
• Frederick Delius marries Jelka Rosen.
• Mississippi John Hurt begins performing.
• Victor Herbert's Babes in Toyland premieres.
• Charles W. Clark is the first American to give a concert at the Paris National Conservatoire of Music, an honor that had not been given to an American in seventy years of those concerts.

Published popular music

• "Always In The Way" w.m. Charles K. Harris
• "Always Leave Them Laughing When You Say Goodbye" w.m. George M. Cohan
• "Are We To Part Like This?" w.m. Harry Castling & Charles Collins
• "Anona" w.m. Vivian Grey
• "Bedelia" w. William Jerome m. Jean Schwartz
• "The Beer That Made Milwaukee Famous" w.m. Dan McAvoy
• "The Burning of Rome" by E. T. Paull
• "By The Sycamore Tree" w. George V. Hobart m. Max Hoffmann
• "Congo Love Song" w.m. Bob Cole & J. Rosamond Johnson
• "Daisy Donahue" w. James O'Dea m. Robert J. Adams
• "Dear Old Girl" w. Richard Henry Buck m. Theodore F. Morse
• "Dear Sing Sing" Schwartz
• "Down At The Old Bull And Bush" w.m. Florrie Forde
• "Flowers Of Dixieland" w. Edgar Smith m. J. Rosamond Johnson
• "General Hardtack On Guard" w.m. Dave Reed Jr
• "Good-bye, Eliza Jane" w. Andrew B. Sterling m. Harry Von Tilzer
• "Hamlet Was A Melancholy Dane" w. William Jerome m. Jean Schwartz
• "Hannah!" by Joseph Farrell
• "He Was A Sailor" w. William Jerome m. Jean Schwartz
• "Hurrah For Baffin's Bay" w. Vincent Bryan m. Theodore F. Morse
• "I Can't Do The Sum" w. Glen MacDonough m. Victor Herbert
• "I Could Love You In A Steam Heat Flat" w. Vincent Bryan m. J. B. Mullen
• "I Never Could Love Like That" Bowman, Johns
• "Ida, Sweet As Apple Cider" w. Eddie Leonard m. Eddie Munson
• "I'm A Jonah Man" w.m. Alex Rogers
• "I'm On The Water Wagon Now" w. Paul West m. John Walter Bratton
• "I'm Thinking Of You All The While" Reed Jnr
• "I'm Wearing My Heart Away For You" w.m. Charles K. Harris
• "In The Village By The Sea" w. Andrew B. Sterling m. Stanley Crawford
• "Indolence" Jason Mathews
• "Is Your Mother In, Molly Malone?" w.m. Mills & Everard
• "It Takes the Irish to Beat the Dutch" w. Edward Madden m. Theodore F. Morse
• "It Was The Dutch" w. Vincent Bryan m. J. B. Mullen
• "It's The Man In The Sailor Suit" w. Fred C. Farrell m. Theodore F. Morse
• "Jack Tar March" by John Philip Sousa
• "Julie" w. William Jerome m. Jean Schwartz
• "Lazy Moon" w. Bob Cole m. J. Rosamond Johnson
• "Like A Star That Falls From Heaven" w. Arthur Lamb m. Kerry Mills
• "Little Yellow Bird" w.m. C. W. Murphy & William Hargreaves
• "The Maid Of Timbucktoo" w. James Weldon Johnson m. Bob Cole
• "The March Of The Toys" m. Victor Herbert
• "Main Gazebo" Chris Praetorius
• "Mary Ellen" Bryan, Lemonier
• "Melody Of Love" w. Tom Glazer m. H. Engelmann
• "The Military Band" m. Victor Herbert
• "Moriaty" w. Charles Horwitz m. Fred V. Bowers
• "Mother O' Mine" w. Rudyard Kipling m. Frank E. Tours
• "My Cosy Corner Girl" w. Charles Noel Douglas m. John Walter Bratton
• "My Hula Lula Girl" by Jean Schwartz & William Jerome
• "My Little Coney Isle" w. Andrew B. Sterling m. Harry Von Tilzer
• "My Little Creole Babe" w.m. Maude Nugent
• "My Little 'Rang Outang" w. Edward Madden m. Theodore F. Morse
• "Navajo" w. Harry H. Williams m. Egbert Van Alstyne
• "An Old Man's Darling" w.m. Fred Murray & George Everard
• "Only A Dream Of A Golden Past" w. Alfred Bryan m. Stanley Crawford
• "Out Where The Breakers Roar" w. Harlow Hyde m. H. W. Petrie
• "Over The Pilsner Foam" w. Vincent Bryan m. J. B. Mullen
• "Palm Leaf Rag" by Scott Joplin
• "Please Mother, Buy Me A Baby" w.m. Will D. Cobb & Gus Edwards
• "The Saftest Of The Family" w. Harry Lauder & Bobry Beaton m. Harry Lauder
• "Save It For Me" w. James Weldon Johnson m. Bob Cole
• "Spring Beautiful Spring" m. Paul Lincke
• "Stop Your Ticklin', Jock" w. Harry Lauder & Frank Folley m. Harry Lauder
• "Summer Breeze March & Two-Step" by James Scott
• "There's A Little Street In Heaven That They Call Broadway" w. Jack T. Waldron & A. Baldwin Sloane m. A. Baldwin Sloane
• "Toyland" w. Glen MacDonough m. Victor Herbert
• "The Toymaker's Shop" m. Victor Herbert
• "Two Eyes Of Blue" w. George H. Taylor m. Leslie Stuart
• "Two Eyes Of Brown" w. Edward Madden m. Stephen Howard
• "Under A Panama" w. Vincent Bryan m. J. B. Mullen
• "Under The Anheuser Bush" w.m. Andrew B. Sterling & Harry Von Tilzer
• "Up In A Coconut Tree" w. Edward Madden m. Theodore F. Morse
• "Upper Broadway After Dark" w. Edward Gardinier m. Maurice Levi
• "When I'm Away From You Dear" w.m. Paul Dresser
• "The Woodchuck Song" w. Robert Hobart Davis m. Theodore F. Morse
• "The Wreck Of The Old '97" w.m. Henry C. Work
• "Your Dad Gave His Life For His Country" w. Harry J. Breen m. T. Mayo Geary
• "You're The Flower Of My Heart, Sweet Adeline" w. Richard H. Gerard m. Henry W. Armstrong

Recorded popular music

• "Always In The Way" (w.m. Charles K. Harris)
  - Byron G. Harlan on Edison Records
• "Any Rags?" (w.m. Thomas S. Allen)
  - Arthur Collins on Edison
• "The Arrow And The Song" (w. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow m. Michael William Balfe)
  - Herbert Goddard on Victor Records
• "Badinage" (m. Victor Herbert)
  - Edison Grand Concert Band on Edison
• "Bedelia" (w. William Jerome m. Jean Schwartz)
  - George J. Gaskin on Columbia Records
  - Edward M. Favor on Columbia
  - Billy Murray on Edison
• "The Beer That Made Milwaukee Famous" (w.m. Dan McAvoy)
  - Edward M. Favor on Edison
  - Dan W. Quinn on Victor
• "Blaze Away" (m. Abe Holzmann)
  - banjos Vess L. Ossman & Bill Farmer on Victor
• "Blaze Away" (m. Abe Holzmann)
  - Kendle's Band on Victor
• "By The Sycamore Tree" (w. George V. Hobart m. Max Hoffmann)
  - Harry Macdonough on Edison
  - Bob Roberts on Columbia
  - Billy Murray on Victor
• "Come Down Ma' Evenin' Star" (w. Robert B. Smith m. John Stromberg)
  - Mina Hickman on Victor
• "Congo Love Song" (w.m. Bob Cole & J. Rosamond Johnson)
  - Harry Macdonough on Edison
  - Mina Hickman on Victor
• "Could You Be True To Eyes Of Blue If You Looked Into Eyes Of Brown?" (w.m. Will D. Cobb & Gus Edwards)
  - Harry Macdonough on Victor
• "The Country Girl" (w. Stanislaus Stange m. Julian Edwards)
  - Vesta Victoria on Gramophone Records
• "Didn't Know Exactly What To Do" (w. Frank Pixley m. Gustav Luders)
  - Edward M. Favor on Edison
• "Down On The Farm" (w. Raymond A. Browne m. Harry Von Tilzer)
  - Franklyn Wallace on Edison
• "Flowers Of Dixieland" (w. Edgar Smith m. J. Rosamond Johnson)
  - Franklyn Wallace on Edison
• "The Gambling Man(1)" (w. William Jerome m. Jean Schwartz)
  - Silas Leachman on Victor
• "Good-bye, Eliza Jane" (w. Andrew B. Sterling m. Harry Von Tilzer)
  - Arthur Collins on Edison
• "Hamlet Was A Melancholy Dane" (w. William Jerome m. Jean Schwartz)
  - Edward M. Favor on Edison
• "He Ought To Have A Tablet In The Hall of Fame" (w. Arthur L. Robb m. John Walter Bratton)
  - Edward M. Favor on Edison
• "He Was A Sailor" (w. William Jerome m. Jean Schwartz)
  - Collins & Harlan on Edison
• "Heidelberg Stein Song" (w. Frank Pixley m. Gustav Luders)
  - Harry Macdonough on Edison & Victor
• "Hiawatha" (w. James O'Dea m. Neil Moret)
  - Edison Grand Concert Band on Edison
  - Harry Macdonough on Edison
  - Metropolitan Orchestra on Victor
  - Sousa's Band on Victor
• "Hurrah For Baffin's Bay" (w. Vincent Bryan m. Theodore F. Morse)
  - Collins & Harlan on Edison
  - Dan W. Quinn on Victor
• "I Could Love You In A Steam Heat Flat" (w. Vincent Bryan m. J. B. Mullen)
  - Harry West on Edison
• "I Like You, Lil, For Fair" (Ade, Loraine)
  - Billy Murray on Victor
• "I Never Could Love Like That" (Bowman, Johns)
  - Billy Murray on Victor
• "I Want To Be A Lidy" (w. George Dance m. George Dee)
  - Clarke's Band Of Providence on Victor
• "I Wonder Why Bill Bailey Don't Come Home" (w.m. Frank Fogerty, Matt C. Woodward & William Jerome)
  - Arthur Collins on Victor & Edison
• "I'll Wed You In The Golden Summertime" (w. Alfred Bryan m. Stanley Crawford)
  - John H. Bieling & Harry Macdonough on Victor
• "I'm A Jonah Man" (w.m. Alex Rogers)
  - Dan W. Quinn on Victor
  - Arthur Collins on Edison & Victor
• "I'm Thinking Of You All The While" (Reed Jnr)
  - Billy Murray on Victor
• "I'm Wearing My Heart Away For You" (w.m. Charles K. Harris)
  - Harry Macdonough & John H. Bieling on Victor
• "In Silence" (w. Sydney Rosenfeld m. A. Baldwin Sloane)
  - Arthur Clifford on Edison
• "In The City Of Sighs And Tears" (w. Andrew B. Sterling m. Kerry Mills)
  - J. W. Myers on Victor
• "In the Good Old Summer Time" (w. Ren Shields m. George "Honey Boy" Evans)
  - Haydn Quartet on Victor
  - S. H. Dudley & Harry Macdonough with Sousa's Band on Victor
  - Harry Macdonough on Victor
• "In The Sweet Bye And Bye" (w. Vincent P. Bryan m. Harry Von Tilzer)
  - J. Aldrich Libbey on Edison
• "In The Village By The Sea" (w. Andrew B. Sterling m. Stanley Crawford)
  - Byron G. Harlan on Edison
• "It Takes The Irish To Beat The Dutch" (w. Edward Madden m. Theodore F. Morse)
  - Billy Murray on Victor Monarch
• "It Was The Dutch" (w. Vincent Bryan m. J. B. Mullen)
  - Collins & Harlan on Edison
• "Juanita" (w. Caroline Norton m. trad Sp.)
  - Haydn Quartette on Victor
• "Julie" (w. Wiliam Jerome m. Jean Schwartz)
  - Edward M. Favor on Edison
• "Just For Tonight(1)" (w.m. Frank O. French)
  - Albert C. Campbell on Edison
• "The Leader Of The Frocks And Frills" (w. Robert B. Smith m. Melville Ellis)
  - Clarke's Band of Providence on Victor
• "Like A Star That Falls From Heaven" (w. Arthur Lamb m. Kerry Mills)
  - Joe Natus on Victor
• "The Maid Of Timbucktoo" (w. James Weldon Johnson m. Bob Cole)
  - Harry Macdonough on Edison
• "Massa's In De Cold Ground" (w. m. Stephen Collins Foster)
  - Edison Male Quartette on Edison
• "Meet Me When The Sun Goes Down" (w. Vincent Bryan m. Harry von Tilzer)
  - William H. Thompson (singer) on Victor
• "Melody Of Love" (w. Tom Glazer m. H. Engelmann)
  - Edison Symphony Orchestra on Edison
• "The Message Of The Rose" (w. Will A. Heelan m. Leo Edwards)
  - George Seymour Lenox on Edison
• "The Message Of The Violet" (w. Frank Pixley m. Gustav Luders)
  - J. W. Myers on Victor
• "Mighty Lak' A Rose" (w. Frank Lebby Stanton m. Ethelbert Nevin)
  - Arthur Clifford on Edison
• "Moriaty" (w. Charles Horwitz m. Fred V. Bowers)
  - Collins & Harlan on Edison
• "My Cosy Corner Girl" (w. Charles Noel Douglas m. John Walter Bratton)
  - Henry Burr on Columbia
  - Harry Macdonough on Edison
• "My Little Coney Isle" (w. Andrew B. Sterling m. Harry von Tilzer)
  - Harry Tally on Edison
• "My Little 'Rang Outang" (Madden, Morse)
  - Billy Murray on Victor
• "My Own United States" (w. Stanislaus Stange m. Julian Edwards)
  - J. W. Myers on Victor
• "My Sulu Lulu Loo" (w. George Ade m. Nat D. Mann)
  - Clarke's Band Of Providence on Victor
• "Only A Dream Of A Golden Past" (w. Alfred Bryan m. Stanley Crawford)
  - Franklyn Wallace on Edison
• "Out Where The Breakers Roar" (w. Harlow Hyde m. H. W. Petrie)
  - Frank C. Stanley on Edison
• "Please Mother, Buy Me A Baby" (w.m. Will D. Cobb & Gus Edwards)
  - Byron G. Harlan on Victor & Edison
• "Pretty Little Dinah Jones" (w.m. J. B. Mullen)
  - Harry Macdonough on Edison
• "R-E-M-O-R-S-E" (w. George Ade m. Alfred G. Wathall)
  - Joe Natus on Victor
• "Sal" (w.m. Paul Rubens)
  - Madge Crichton with piano Landon Ronald on Gramophone & Typewriter Records
• "Sammy" (w. James O'Dea m. Edward Hutchinson)
  - Harry Macdonough on Edison
• "Sammy" (w. James O'Dea m. Edward Hutchinson)
  - Henry Burr on Columbia
• "Sly Musette" (w. Sydney Rosenfeld m. A. Baldwin Sloane)
  - Harry Macdonough on Edison
• "Tell Me Dusky Maiden" (w. James Weldon Johnson & Bob Cole m. J. Rosamond Johnson)
  - S. H. Dudley & Harry Macdonough on Victor
• "Then I'd Be Satisfied With Life" (w.m. George M. Cohan)
  - Edward M. Favor on Edison
• "There's One In A Million Like You" (w. Grant Clarke m. Jean Schwartz)
  - Walter Van Brunt on Edison
• "Two Eyes Of Blue" (w. George H. Taylor m. Leslie Stuart)
  - Harry Macdonough on Victor
  - Mina Hickman on Victor
• "Under The Bamboo Tree" (w.m. Bob Cole & J. Rosamond Johnson)
  - Mina Hickman on Victor
• "Up In A Coconut Tree" (Madden, Morse)
  - Billy Murray on Victor Monarch
• "Upper Broadway After Dark" (w. Edward Gardinier m. Maurice Levi)
  - Edward M. Favor on Edison
• "The Vacant Chair" (w. Henry S. Washburne m. George Frederick Root)
  - Byron G. Harlan on Edison
• "Wait At The Gate For Me" (w. Ren Shields m. Theodore F. Morse)
  - J. W. Myers on Victor
• "What's The Matter With The Moon Tonight?" (w. Sydney Rosenfeld m. A. Baldwin Sloane)
  - Arthur Clifford on Edison
• "When The Fields Are White With Cotton" (w. Robert F. Roden w. Max S. Witt)
  - Franklyn Wallace on Edison
• "When We Were Two Little Boys" (w. Edward Madden m. Theodore F. Morse)
  - Billy Murray on Victor

Classical music

• Hakon Borresen - Romance for Cello and Piano/Orchestra
• Frederick Delius - Sea Drift
• Edward Elgar - The Apostles (oratorio)
• Joseph Holbrooke - The Bells
• Joseph Jongen - Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 1
• Carl Nielsen - Helios Overture
• Vítězslav Novák - Slovak Suite
• Alexander Scriabin - 8 Études, Op. 42

Opera

• Eugen d'Albert - Tiefland
• Scott Joplin - A Guest of Honor (lost)
• Juan Manen - Giovanna di Napoli
• Emile Pessard - L'épave premiered on February 17 at the Bouffes-Parisiens, Salle Choiseul, Paris

Musical theater

• Babes In Toyland Broadway production opened at the Majestic Theatre on October 13 and ran for 192 performances
• The Cherry Girl London production opened at the Vaudeville Theatre on December 29 and ran for 215 performances
• The Duchess of Dantzig London production opened at the Lyric Theatre on October 17 and ran for 236 performances
• The Earl and the Girl London production opened at the Adelphi Theatre on December 10 and transferred to the Lyric Theatre on September 12, 1904, for a total run of 371 performances
• The Fisher Maiden (Music: Harry von Tilzer) Broadway production opened at the Victoria Theater on October 5 and ran for 32 performances. Starring Al Shean, George A. MacFarlane, Edna Bronson, Bessie Tannehill, Dorothy Jardon and Frances Cameron.
• In Dahomey Broadway production opened at the New York Theatre on February 18 and ran for 53 performances
• In Dahomey London production opened at the Shaftesbury Theatre on May 16 and ran for 251 performances
• The Jersey Lily Broadway production opened at the Victoria Theater on September 14 and ran for 24 performances
• Madame Sherry Vienna production
• Madame Sherry London production opened at the Apollo Theatre on December 23
• The Medal and the Maid London production opened at the Lyric Theatre on April 25
• My Lady Molly London production opened at Terry's Theatre on March 14
• The Orchid London production opened at the Gaiety Theatre on October 26 and ran for 559 performances
• A Princess of Kensington London production opened at the Savoy Theatre on January 22 and ran for 115 performances
• The Rogers Brothers In London Broadway production opened at the Knickerbocker Theatre on September 7 and ran for 64 performances
• The School Girl London production opened on May 9 at the Prince of Wales Theatre and ran for 333 performances.
• Three Little Maids Broadway production opened at Daly's Theatre on September 1 and ran for 130 performances
• The Wizard of Oz Broadway production opened at the Majestic Theatre on January 21 and ran for 293 performances

Births

• January 4 - Carroll Gibbons, bandleader and composer (d. 1954)
• January 22 - Robin Milford, English composer and educator (d. 1959)
• February 6 - Claudio Arrau, pianist (d. 1991)
• February 12 - Todd Duncan, American baritone, first Porgy in Porgy and Bess (d. 1998)
• March 10 - Bix Beiderbecke, jazz musician (d. 1931)
• April 3 - Bubber Miley, jazz trumpeter (d. 1932)
• May 3 - Bing Crosby, US singer and actor (d. 1977)
• May 12 - Lennox Berkeley, composer (d. 1989)
• May 26 - Bob Hope, English-born US actor, comedian and singer (d. 2003)
• June 6 - Aram Khachaturian, composer (d. 1978)
• June 18 - Jeanette MacDonald, US singer and actress (d. 1965)
• June 26 - St. Louis Jimmy Oden, blues singer (d. 1977)
• July 3 - Dick Robertson (singer), US singer (d. 1944?)
• July 10 - Helen Pickens of the Pickens Sisters US singing group
• July 16 - Carmen Lombardo, Canadian singer, composer and saxophonist (d. 1971)
• August 4 - Helen Kane, US singer (d. 1966)
• August 20 - António Fortunato de Figueiredo, conductor (d. 1981)
• September 15 - Roy Acuff, Country and Western singer (d. 1992)
• October 1 (probable) - Vladimir Horowitz, pianist (d. 1989)
• October 10 - Vladimir Dukelsky aka Vernon Duke, composer (d. 1969)
• October 16 - Big Joe Williams, blues musician (d. 1982)
• October 29 - Yvonne Georgi, ballet dancer and choreographer (d. 1975)
• December 5 - Johannes Heesters, all-round entertainer
• December 17 - Ray Noble, bandleader, composer and arranger (d. 1978)
• date unknown - Caterina Jarboro, operatic soprano (d. 1986)

Deaths

• January 28
  • Augusta Holmès, French composer
  • Robert Planquette, French composer (b. 1850)
• January 31 - Meyer Lutz, conductor and composer (b. 1829)
• February 11 - Henryk Szulc, composer (b. 1836)
• February 17 - Joseph Parry, composer (b. 1841)
• February 22 - Hugo Wolf, composer (b. 1860)
• February 23 - Friedrich Grützmacher, cellist (b. 1832)
• March - Eugène Cormon, librettist (b. 1810)
• March 5 - Thomas Ryan, viola and clarinet player (b. 1827)
• March 19 - Pista Dankó, "gypsy" bandleader and composer
• April 10 - Heinrich Bellermann, music theorist (b. 1832)
• May 1 - Luigi Arditi, violinist, conductor and composer
• May 9 - Giuseppe Cremonini, operatic tenor (b. 1866)
• May 15 - Sybil Sanderson, operatic soprano (b. 1865)
• June - Constance Bache, pianist, composer and music teacher (b. 1846)
• June 29 - Taki Rentaro, pianist and composer (b. 1879)
• July 27 - Lina Sandell, singer
• September 4 - Hermann Zumpe, conductor and composer (b. 1850)
• September 28 - Samuel A. Ward, organist and composer (b. 1847)
• December 12 - Christian Johansson, ballet dancer and teacher (b. 1817)
• December 20 - Kornél Ábrányi, pianist and composer (b. 1822)
• date unknown - Edmond Dédé, Creole composer (b. 1827)