1923-05-23
Birth
Alicia de Larrocha
Alicia de Larrocha, Copenhagen Denmark, pianist (Orquesta Sinfonica) was born
On This Day in Music: May 23
Pick a date, get a soundtrack
Hear the music that defined any day.
Pick a date and press play — the day's milestones, the artists behind them, and a Spotify playlist you can hear right away, no login required.
Loading highlights...
Press play on history
The soundtrack for 2026-05-23
Hit play on the day — no login needed.
Cueing up the day's playlist...
Events and playlists update instantly.
Loading events...
1741-05-23
Birth
Andrea Lucchesi
Andrea Lucchesi, composer was born
1952-05-23
Birth
Anne-Marie David
Anne-Marie David, French singer was born
1851-05-23
Birth
Antoni Stolpe
Antoni Stolpe, composer was born
1759-05-23
Birth
Antonio da Silva Leite
Antonio da Silva Leite, composer was born
1910-05-23
Birth
Artie Shaw
Artie Shaw, [Arthur Arshawsky], NYC, bandleader (Come'on my House) was born
1911-05-23
Birth
Boris Kremenliev
Boris Kremenliev, composer was born
1918-05-23
Birth
Bulent Arel
Bulent Arel, composer was born
1918-05-23
Birth
Bumps Blackwell
Bumps Blackwell, rocker was born
1983-05-23
Birth
Cristiano Bilanzola
Cristiano Bilanzola, Canadian musician and film-maker was born
1901-05-23
Birth
Edmund Rubbra
Edmund Rubbra, Northampton England, composer (Morning Watch) [or 3/23] was born
1958-05-23
Birth
François Feldman
François Feldman, French singer was born
1944-05-23
Birth
General George Norman Johnson
General George Norman Johnson, US singer (Down at the Beach Club) was born
1753-05-23
Birth
Giovanni Battista Viotti
Giovanni Battista Viotti, violonist/composer was born
1981-05-23
Birth
Gwenno Saunders
Gwenno Saunders, Former Welsh dancer, now singer with The Pipettes was born
1983-05-23
Birth
Heidi Range
Heidi Range, English singer (Sugababes) was born
1920-05-23
Birth
Helen O'Connell
Helen O'Connell, Lima Ohio, singer (Green Eyes, Anapola) was born
1906-05-23
Birth
Hellmuth Christian Wolff
Hellmuth Christian Wolff, composer was born
1921-05-23
Birth
Humphrey Lyttelton
Humphrey Lyttelton, jazz musician/actor (It's Great to Be Young) was born
1936-05-23
Birth
Ingeborg Hallstein
Ingeborg Hallstein, German opera singer was born
1794-05-23
Birth
Isaak-Ignaz Moscheles
Isaak-Ignaz Moscheles, composer was born
1941-05-23
Birth
Jackson Hill
Jackson Hill, composer was born
1952-05-23
Birth
James Mankey
James Mankey, rocker (Concrete Blonde) was born
1974-05-23
Birth
Jewel Kilcher
Jewel Kilcher, Payson, Utah, American singer-songwriter (Pieces of You) was born
1957-05-23
Birth
Jimmy McShane
Jimmy McShane, Pop singer (Baltimora-Tarzan Boy) was born
1696-05-23
Birth
Johann Caspar Vogler
Johann Caspar Vogler, composer was born
1889-05-23
Birth
José Padilla
José Padilla, AlmerÃa, Spanish composer and pianist (La Violetera - City Lights, Ça c'est Paris - Moulin Rouge) was born
1951-05-23
Birth
Judy Rodman
Judy Rodman, Riverside California, country singer (Girls Ride Horses Too) was born
1914-05-23
Birth
Leo Lerman
Leo Lerman, actor/manager/critic (Dance Magazine) was born
1737-05-23
Birth
Louis Francois Chambray
Louis Francois Chambray, composer was born
1864-05-23
Birth
Louis Glass
Louis Glass, composer was born
1916-05-23
Birth
M Jean Francaix
M Jean Francaix, composer was born
1925-05-23
Birth
Mac Wiseman
Mac Wiseman, American musician was born
1982-05-23
Birth
Malene Mortensen
Malene Mortensen, Danish singer was born
1902-05-23
Birth
Mark Lothar
Mark Lothar, composer was born
1939-05-23
Birth
Michel Colombier
Michel Colombier, French composer and songwriter (d. 2004) was born
1945-05-23
Birth
Misty Morgan
Misty Morgan, country keyboardist (duo with Jack Blanchard) was born
1974-05-23
Birth
Mónica Naranjo
Mónica Naranjo, Spanish singer was born
1756-05-23
Birth
Nicolas-Joseph Hullmandel
Nicolas-Joseph Hullmandel, composer was born
1943-05-23
Birth
Norman Johnson
Norman Johnson, singer/songwriter was born
1928-05-23
Birth
Pauline Julien
Pauline Julien, French Canadian singer (d. 1998) was born
1843-05-23
Birth
Pedro Miguel Marques y Garcia
Pedro Miguel Marques y Garcia, composer was born
1944-05-23
Birth
Ramon "Tiki" Fulwood
Ramon "Tiki" Fulwood, US drummer (Funkadelic, Knee Deep) was born
1928-05-23
Birth
Rosemary Clooney
Rosemary Clooney, Kentucky, singer/paper towels spokeswoman (Coronet) was born
1919-05-23
Birth
Ruth Fernandez
Ruth Fernandez, Ponce, Puerto Rico, singer (When you Return), politician, (d. 2012) was born
1978-05-23
Birth
Scott Raynor
Scott Raynor, American drummer (formerly of blink-182) was born
1958-05-23
Birth
Shelly West
Shelly West, Cleve OH, country singer (Red Hot, West by West) was born
1871-05-23
Birth
Sigurd Lie
Sigurd Lie, composer was born
1644-05-23
Birth
Thomas Eisenhut
Thomas Eisenhut, composer was born
1799-05-23
Birth
Thomas Hood
Thomas Hood, English poet/composer (Song of the Shirt) was born
1914-05-23
Birth
Travis Kemp
Travis Kemp, dancer/teacher was born
1982-05-23
Birth
Tristan Prettyman
Tristan Prettyman, American musician was born
1940-05-23
Death
Andrej N Rimski-Korssakov
Andrej N Rimski-Korssakov, Russian musicologist/son of Nikolai, dies
1992-05-23
Death
Atahualpa Yupanqui
Atahualpa Yupanqui, Argentine singer/composer/poet/guitarist, dies
1834-05-23
Death
Charles Wesley
Charles Wesley, composer, dies at 76
1952-05-23
Death
Georg Alfred Schumann
Georg Alfred Schumann, composer, dies at 85
1926-05-23
Death
Hans Koessler
Hans Koessler, composer, dies at 73
1891-05-23
Death
Ignace Xavier Joseph Leybach
Ignace Xavier Joseph Leybach, composer, dies at 73
1304-05-23
Death
Jehan de Lescurel
Jehan de Lescurel, French poet and composer
1969-05-23
Death
Jimmy McHugh
Jimmy McHugh, composer (Can't Give You Anything But Love), dies at 74
1994-05-23
Death
Joe Pass
Joe Pass, US jazz guitarist (The Trio), dies at 65
1875-05-23
Death
Johann Wilhelm Mangold
Johann Wilhelm Mangold, composer, dies at 78
1987-05-23
Death
Karel Albert
Karel Albert, Flemish composer (Marieken van Nymeghen), dies at 86
1887-05-23
Death
Ludwig Mathias Lindeman
Ludwig Mathias Lindeman, composer, dies at 74
1968-05-23
Death
Merle Kendrick
Merle Kendrick, orchestra leader (Window on the World), dies at 72
1941-05-23
Death
Slavko Osterc
Slavko Osterc, composer, dies at 45
1991-05-23
Death
Wilhelm Kempff
Wilhelm Kempff, German pianist and composer (b. 1895)
1991-05-23
Death
William Sinnot
William Sinnot, Scottish pop musician (Shamen), dies at 30
1970-05-23
Event
Grateful Dead
Grateful Dead's 1st performance outside of US (England)
1921-05-23
Event
Noble Sissle
"Shuffle Along" 1st black musical comedy, opens in NYC
1968-05-23
Event
The Beatles
Beatles open 2nd Apple Boutique at 161 New Kings Road, London
1969-05-23
Event
The Who
Who release rock opera "Tommy"
1979-05-23
Event
Tom Petty
Rocker Tom Petty files chapter 11 bankruptcy
Artist details
Loading artist details...