1936 in music

This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1936.

Events

• January 4 – Billboard magazine publishes its first music hit parade
• March 28 – Inaugurational concert of the São Paulo City Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Ernst Mehlich
• April 19 – in Barcelona, Alban Berg's Violin Concerto is given its première, by Louis Krasner
• Nat King Cole's recording career begins.
• Benjamin Britten meets Peter Pears.
• Count Basie begins recording with his own band, which includes Lester Young.
• José Iturbi becomes conductor of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra.

Published popular music

• "At The Codfish Ball" w. Sidney D. Mitchell m. Lew Pollack. Introduced by Shirley Temple and Buddy Ebsen in the film Captain January
• "Au Revoir (But Not Goodbye)" w.m. Joe Gilbert
• "Awake in a Dream" w. Leo Robin m. Frederick Hollander. Introduced by Marlene Dietrich in the film Desire.
• "Bojangles Of Harlem" w. Dorothy Fields m. Jerome Kern. Introduced by Fred Astaire in the film Swing Time.
• "By Strauss" w. Ira Gershwin m. George Gershwin. Introduced by Gracie Barrie and Robert Shafter in the revue The Show is On
• "Christopher Columbus" w. Andy Razaf m. Leon Berry
• "Cloudy" m. Mary Lou Williams
• "Cool Water" w.m. Bob Nolan
• "Does Your Heart Beat For Me?" w. Mitchell Parish m. Russ Morgan
• "Down in the Depths (on the Ninetieth Floor)" w.m. Cole Porter. Introduced by Ethel Merman in the musical Red, Hot and Blue.
• "Easy To Love" w.m. Cole Porter. Introduced by James Stewart and reprised by Frances Langford in the film Born to Dance
• "Empty Saddles" w. J. Keirn Brennan m. Billy Hill
• "Everybody Swing" w. Sidney Clare m. Harry Akst
• "Fancy Meeting You" w. E. Y. Harburg m. Harold Arlen. Introduced by Dick Powell and Jeanne Madden in the film Stage Struck.
• "Farewell To Dreams" w. Gus Kahn m. Sigmund Romberg
• "A Fine Romance" w. Dorothy Fields m. Jerome Kern. Introduced by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in the film Swing Time.
• "Gee! But You're Swell" w. Charles Tobias m. Abel Baer
• "Get Thee Behind Me Satan" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Harriet Hilliard in the film Follow the Fleet
• "Glad To Be Unhappy" w. Lorenz Hart m. Richard Rodgers. Introduced by Doris Carson and David Morris in the musical On Your Toes
• "Gloomy Sunday" w. (Eng) Sam M. Lewis m. Rezső Seress
• "The Glory Of Love" w.m. Billy Hill
• "Goodnight, Irene" w.m. Huddie "Leadbelly" Ledbetter
• "Goodnight My Love" w. Harry Revel m. Mack Gordon
• "Goody Goody" w.m. Johnny Mercer & Matty Malneck
• "Has Anybody Seen Our Ship?" w.m. Noël Coward
• "He Ain't Got Rhythm" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Alice Faye in the film On the Avenue.
• "He Hasn't a Thing Except Me" w. Ira Gershwin m. Vernon Duke. Introduced by Fanny Brice in the revue Ziegfeld Follies of 1936.
• "I Can't Escape From You" w.m. Leo Robin & Richard A. Whiting. Introduced by Bing Crosby in the film Rhythm on the Range.
• "I Love To Sing-a" w. E. Y. Harburg m. Harold Arlen. Introduced by Al Jolson and Cab Calloway in the film The Singing Kid.
• "If I Should Lose You" w. Leo Robin m. Ralph Rainger. Introduced by Gladys Swarthout and John Boles in the film Rose of the Rancho.
• "I'm An Old Cow Hand" w.m. Johnny Mercer. Introduced by Bing Crosby in the film Rhythm on the Range.
• "I'm Putting All My Eggs in One Basket" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in the film Follow the Fleet.
• "In The Chapel In The Moonlight" w.m. Billy Hill
• "Is It True What They Say About Dixie?" w. Irving Caesar & Sammy Lerner
• "It's A Sin To Tell A Lie" w.m. Billy Mayhew
• "It's De-Lovely" w.m. Cole Porter. Introduced by Ethel Merman and Bob Hope in the musical Red, Hot and Blue
• "It's Got to Be Love" w. Lorenz Hart m. Richard Rodgers. Introduced by Ray Bolger and Doris Carson in the musical On Your Toes.
• "I've Got a Feelin' You're Foolin'" w. Arthur Freed m. Nacio Herb Brown
• "I've Got You Under My Skin" w.m. Cole Porter. Introduced by Virginia Bruce in the film Born to Dance.
• "Keep a Twinkle In Your Eye" Johnny Mercer, Rube Bloom
• "Let Yourself Go" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Ginger Rogers in the film Follow the Fleet
• "Let's Call a Heart a Heart" w. Johnny Burke m. Arthur Johnston from the film Pennies From Heaven
• "Let's Face the Music and Dance" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Fred Astaire in the film Follow the Fleet.
• "Life Begins at Forty" Yellen, Shapiro
• "Little Old Lady" w. Stanley Adams m. Hoagy Carmichael
• "The Love Bug Will Bite You" w.m. Pinky Tomlin
• "Me and the Moon" w. Walter Hirsch m. Lou Handman
• "Moonburn" w. Edward Heyman m. Hoagy Carmichael. Introduced by Bing Crosby in the film Anything Goes
• "Moonlight and Shadows" w. Leo Robin m. Frederick Hollander. Introduced by Dorothy Lamour in the film The Jungle Princess
• "Music in May" w. Christopher Hassall m. Ivor Novello. Introduced by Dorothy Dickson in the musical Careless Rapture
• "Never Gonna Dance" w. Dorothy Fields m. Jerome Kern. Introduced by Fred Astaire in the film Swing Time
• "The Night Is Young and You're So Beautiful" w. Billy Rose & Irving Kahal m. Dana Suesse
• "On The Beach At Bali-Bali" w.m. Al Sherman, Jack Meskill & Abner Silver
• "The One Rose (That's Left In My Heart)" w.m. Del Lyon & Lani McIntyre
• "One, Two, Button Your Shoe" w. Johnny Burke m. Arthur Johnston
• "Oooh! Look-A There, Ain't She Pretty?" w. Clarence Todd m. Carmen Lombardo
• "Organ Grinder's Swing" w. Mitchell Parish & Irving Mills m. Will Hudson
• "Pennies from Heaven" w. Johnny Burke m. Arthur Johnston
• "Pick Yourself Up" w. Dorothy Fields m. Jerome Kern. Introduced by Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers in the film Swing Time
• "Play, Orchestra, Play" w.m. Noël Coward
• "Poinciana" w. (Sp) Manuel Lliso (Eng) Buddy Bernier m. Nat Simon
• "Poor Little Angeline" w.m. Will Grosz & Jimmy Kennedy
• "Rainbow on the River" w. Paul Francis Webster m. Louis Alter
• "Ridin' High" w.m. Cole Porter
• "San Francisco" w. Gus Kahn m. Bronislaw Kaper & Walter Jurmann
• "Sing Me A Swing Song" w. Stanley Adams m. Hoagy Carmichael
• "Sing, Sing, Sing" w.m. Louis Prima
• "Slaughter on Tenth Avenue" m. Richard Rodgers
• "There's A Bridle Hangin' On The Wall" w.m. Carson Robison
• "There's a Small Hotel" w. Lorenz Hart m. Richard Rodgers
• "To You, Sweetheart, Aloha" w.m. Harry Owens
• "Too Good for the Average Man" w. Lorenz Hart m. Richard Rodgers
• "The Touch Of Your Lips" w.m. Ray Noble
• "Waltz In Swingtime" w. Dorothy Fields m. Jerome Kern
• "The Way You Look Tonight" w. Dorothy Fields m. Jerome Kern. Introduced by Fred Astaire in the film Swing Time
• "We Saw The Sea" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Fred Astaire in the film Follow the Fleet
• "When a Lady Meets a Gentleman Down South" w.m. Michael Cleary, Jacques Krakeur & David Oppenheim
• "When Did You Leave Heaven?" w. Walter Bullock m. Richard A. Whiting
• "When I'm With You" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Revel. Introduced by Shirley Temple and Tony Martin in the film Poor Little Rich Girl.
• "When My Dreamboat Comes Home" w.m. Cliff Friend & Dave Franklin
• "The Window Cleaner" George Formby, Gifford, Cliffe
• "With My Shillelagh Under My Arm" w.m. Billy O'Brien & Raymond Wallace
• "With Plenty of Money and You" w. Al Dubin m. Harry Warren
• "Would You?" w. Arthur Freed m. Nacio Herb Brown
• "You (Gee But You're Wonderful)" w. Harold Adamson m. Walter Donaldson
• "You Can't Pull the Wool Over My Eyes" w.m. Milton Ager, Charles Newman & Murray Mencher
• "You Gotta S-M-I-L-E to Be H-A-P-P-Y" w.m. Mack Gordon & Harry Revel
• "You Turned the Tables on Me" w. Sidney D. Mitchell m. Louis Alter
• "You Were There" w.m. Noël Coward
• "(If You Can't Sing It) You'll Have to Swing It (Mr. Paganini)" w.m. Sam Coslow

Biggest hit songs

The following songs achieved the highest chart positions in the limited set of charts available for 1936.

#	Artist	Title	Year	Country	Chart Entries
1	Bing Crosby	Pennies From Heaven	1936		US Billboard 1 - 1936 (15 weeks), US BB 1 of 1936, Your Hit Parade 1 of 1936, Grammy Hall of Fame in 2004 (1936), POP 1 of 1936, Oscar in 1936 (film 'Pennies from Heaven') (Nominated), Music Imprint 8 of 1930s, nuTsie 23 of 1930s, Europe 32 of the 1930s (1936), RYM 41 of 1936, RIAA 129, Acclaimed 1222 (1936)
2	Fred Astaire	The Way You Look Tonight	1936		US Billboard 1 - 1936 (17 weeks), Oscar in 1936 (film 'Swing Time'), Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998 (1936), US BB 2 of 1936, Your Hit Parade 2 of 1936, POP 2 of 1936, Brazil 26 of 1937, nuTsie 38 of 1930s, RYM 40 of 1936, AFI 43, Europe 94 of the 1930s (1936), Song of 1936
3	Billie Holiday	Summertime	1936		Europe 1 of the 1930s (1936), RYM 2 of 1936, US Billboard 12 - 1936 (2 weeks), nuTsie 70 of 1930s, Scrobulate 84 of jazz
4	Benny Goodman	Goody Goody	1936		US Billboard 1 - 1936 (13 weeks), Your Hit Parade 5 of 1936, US BB 6 of 1936, POP 6 of 1936, Brazil 32 of 1936, nuTsie 71 of 1930s
5	Benny Goodman	Glory of Love	1936		US Billboard 1 - 1936 (15 weeks), Your Hit Parade 3 of 1936, US BB 10 of 1936, POP 10 of 1936, Brazil 67 of 1936, nuTsie 96 of 1930s

Top hit recordings

• "Alone" – Tommy Dorsey
• "A Fine Romance" – Fred Astaire, accompanied Nathaniel Shilkret Orchestra
• "Cross Road Blues" – Robert Johnson
• "Did I Remember" – Shep Fields
• "The Glory of Love" – Benny Goodman
• "Goody Goody" – Benny Goodman
• "I'll Sing You A Thousand Love Songs" – Eddy Duchin
• "I'm Putting All My Eggs in One Basket" – Fred Astaire
• "In the Chapel In the Moonlight" – Shep Fields & His Rippling Rhythm
• "Indian Love Call" – Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy, accompanied Nathaniel Shilkret Orchestra
• "Is It True What They Say about Dixie?" – Jimmy Dorsey
• "It's a Sin to Tell a Lie" – Fats Waller
• "Moon Over Miami" – Eddy Duchin
• "The Music Goes Round and Round" – Tommy Dorsey
• "Pennies from Heaven" – Bing Crosby
• "Star Dust" – Benny Goodman & His Orchestra
• "Sweet Home Chicago" – Robert Johnson
• "The Way You Look Tonight" – Fred Astaire, accompanied Nathaniel Shilkret Orchestra
• "The Martins And The Coys" – Ted Weems And His Orchestra
• "You Can't Pull The Wool Over My Eyes" – Ted Weems And His Orchestra With Perry Como

Classical music

• Grażyna Bacewicz – Trio for Oboe, Violin and Piano
• Samuel Barber –
  • Symphony No. 1, Op. 9
  • String Quartet, Op. 11
• Béla Bartók – Music for Strings, Percussion and Celesta
• Arnold Bax –
  • Threnody and Scherzo
  • String Quartet No. 3 in F major
• Ernest Bloch – Voice in the Wilderness
• Benjamin Britten – Three Divertimenti for String Quartet
• Carlos Chávez – Sinfonía india (Symphony No. 2)
• Henry Cowell – String Quartet No. 4, "United"
• David Diamond –
  • Violin Concerto No. 1
  • Concerto for String Quartet
• John Fernström – Clarinet Concerto
• Berthold Goldschmidt – String Quartet No. 2
• Paul Hindemith – Trauermusik (Funeral Music)
• Alan Hovhaness – Cello Concerto
• Aram Khachaturian – Piano Concerto
• Bohuslav Martinů – Concerto for Flute, Violin and Chamber Orchestra
• Olivier Messiaen - Poèmes Pour Mi, song cycle for piano and soprano
• Sergei Prokofiev –
  • Peter and the Wolf, for narrator and orchestra
  • Romeo and Juliet (ballet)
  • Russian Overture for orchestra
• Sergei Rachmaninoff – Symphony No. 3
• Albert Roussel – Concertino for Cello and Orchestra
• Edmund Rubbra –
  • Sinfonia Concertante
  • Symphony No. 1, Op. 44
• Arnold Schoenberg –
  • Violin Concerto, Op. 36 (1935–36)
  • String Quartet No. 4, Op. 37
• Roger Sessions – String Quartet No. 1
• Dmitri Shostakovich – Symphony No. 4 in C minor, Op. 43 (1935–1936)
• Edgard Varèse – Density 21.5
• Ralph Vaughan Williams – Dona Nobis Pacem
• Anton Webern – Variations for Piano (1935–1936)
• Percy Whitlock – Sonata for Organ in C minor

Opera

• Franco Alfano – Cyrano de Bergerac
  • George Enescu – Œdipe, op. 23, staged 13 March, Paris Opera
• Emmerich Kalman – Kaiserin Josephine
• Bohuslav Martinů – Divadlo za branou (The Suburban Theater)
• Gian Carlo Menotti – Amelia al Ballo

Musical theater

• Balalaika London production opened at the Adelphi Theatre on December 22 and ran for 570 performances.
• Careless Rapture (Ivor Novello) – London production opened at the Theatre Royal on September 11 and ran for 295 performances.
• New Faces Of 1936 Broadway revue opened at the Vanderbilt Theatre on May 19 and ran for 193 performances.
• On Your Toes Broadway production opened on April 11 at the Imperial Theatre and ran for 315 performances.
• Over She Goes (Music: Billy Mayerl Lyrics: Desmond Carter & Frank Eyton Book: Stanley Lupino) London production opened at the Saville Theatre on September 23 and ran for 248 performances
• Red, Hot And Blue Broadway production opened on October 29 at the Alvin Theatre and ran for 183 performances.
• The Show is On Broadway revue opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on December 25 and ran for 237 performances.
• Swing Along London production opened at the Gaiety Theatre on September 2 and ran for 311 performances
• This'll Make You Whistle London production opened at the Palace Theatre on September 15 and transferred to Daly's Theatre on January 21, 1937 for a total run of 190 performances. Starred Jack Buchanan and Elsie Randolph
• Tonight at 8:30 London production opened at the Phoenix Theatre on January 9 and ran for 157 performances.
• White Horse Inn Broadway production opened on October 1 at the Center Theatre and ran for 223 performances.

Musical films

• Anything Goes starring Bing Crosby and Ethel Merman
• Born To Dance released November 27 starring Eleanor Powell, Virginia Bruce, James Stewart, Frances Langford, Buddy Ebsen and the vocal group The Foursome.
• Cain and Mabel starring Marion Davies, Clark Gable and Allen Jenkins
• Can This Be Dixie? starring Jane Withers, Slim Summerville, Helen Wood and Thomas Beck. Directed by George Marshall
• Captain January starring Shirley Temple, Guy Kibbee and Slim Summerville. Directed by David Butler.
• Collegiate released January 22 starring Jack Oakie and Frances Langford and featuring songwriters Mack Gordon and Harry Revel.
• Dancing Pirate starring Charles Collins, Frank Morgan and Steffi Duna
• Everybody Dance starring Cicely Courtneidge
• Everything Is Rhythm starring Harry Roy and Princess Pearl (actress) and featuring Mabel Mercer
• Follow the Fleet starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers
• The Great Ziegfeld starring William Powell, Myrna Loy, Luise Rainer, Frank Morgan, Fanny Brice, Virginia Bruce and Ray Bolger.
• Hats Off starring Mae Clark and John Payne. Directed by Boris Petroff.
• Her Master's Voice starring Edward Everett Horton and Peggy Conklin
• King of Burlesque starring Alice Faye, Jack Oakie and Warner Baxter and featuring Fats Waller and Kenny Baker
• Pigskin Parade starring Stuart Erwin, Patsy Kelly, Jack Haley, Betty Grable, Dixie Dunbar and Judy Garland and featuring The Yacht Club Boys
• Poor Little Rich Girl released July 24 starring Shirley Temple, Alice Faye, Jack Haley and featuring Tony Martin.
• Public Nuisance No. 1 starring Frances Day.
• Rhythm on the Range released July 1 starring Bing Crosby and Frances Farmer.
• Rose-Marie starring Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy
• Show Boat starring Irene Dunne, Allan Jones, Helen Morgan, Paul Robeson and Hattie McDaniel
• Soft Lights and Sweet Music film revue featuring Ambrose & his Orchestra, Evelyn Dall, Turner Layton and Elisabeth Welch
• Stage Struck starring Dick Powell, Joan Blondell, Frank McHugh, Jeanne Madden and The Yacht Club Boys.
• Suzy starring Jean Harlow, Franchot Tone, Cary Grant and Inez Courtney
• Swing Time starring Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers
• Three Smart Girls
• Variety Parade

Births

• January 2
  • Iván Erőd, Hungarian-Austrian composer and pianist
  • Roger Miller, country singer (d. 1992)
• January 12 – Raimonds Pauls, composer and piano player
• January 14 – Clarence Carter, soul singer
• January 23 – Cécile Ousset, pianist
• January 24
  • Doug Kershaw, fiddle player
  • Jack Scott, singer and songwriter
• February 6 – Donnie Brooks, singer (died 2007)
• February 9 – Stompin' Tom Connors, folk musician
• February 19 – Bob Engermann (The Lettermen)
• February 22 – Ernie K-Doe, R&B singer (died 2001)
• March 4 – Aribert Reimann, pianist and composer
• March 9 – Ladislav Kupkovič, composer
• March 17 – Ladislav Kupkovič, composer
• March 20 – Lee "Scratch" Perry, reggae artist
• March 26 – Fred Parris (The Five Satins)
• March 29 – Richard Rodney Bennett, composer and pianist
• April 10 – Bobby Smith (R&B singer) (The Spinners)
• April 17 – Pete Graves (The Moonglows)
• April 22 – Glen Campbell, folk singer (The Beach Boys)
• April 23 – Roy Orbison, singer-songwriter (died 1988)
• April 29
  • April Stevens, singer
  • Zubin Mehta, conductor
• May 2 – Engelbert Humperdinck, singer
• May 6 – Sylvia Vanderpool Robinson (Mickey & Sylvia)
• May 14 – Bobby Darin, singer (died 1973)
• May 25 – Tom T. Hall, country singer
• June 6 – Levi Stubbs, vocalist (The Four Tops) (d. 2008)
• June 19
  • Tommy DeVito (The Four Seasons)
  • Shirley Goodman (Shirley & Lee, Shirley & Company)
• June 20 – Billy Guy (The Coasters)
• June 22 – Kris Kristofferson, singer-songwriter and actor
• June 30 – Dave Van Ronk, folk singer (died 2002)
• July 10 – David Zinman, violinist and conductor
• July 13 – Vaza Azarasvili, Georgian composer
• July 30 – Buddy Guy, blues guitarist
• August 4 – Elsbeary Hobbs (The Drifters)
• August 7 – Charles Pope (The Tams)
• August 23 – Rudy Lewis (The Drifters)
• September 7 – Buddy Holly, singer and songwriter (died 1959)
• October 3
  • James Darren, actor and singer
  • Steve Reich, composer
• October 5 – George Jones Jr. (The Edsels)
• October 7 – Charles Dutoit, conductor
• October 24 – Bill Wyman (The Rolling Stones)
• November 11 – Jack Keller, songwriter
• November 14 – Antonio Gades, flamenco dancer
• November 18 – Don Cherry, jazz musician
• December 14 – Arve Tellefsen, violinist
• December 17 – Tommy Steele, singer
• date unknown – Dieter Klöcker, clarinetist ()

Deaths

• January 1 – Harry B. Smith, US songwriter, 75
• January 7 – Guy d'Hardelot, composer and pianist, 77
• January 22 – Louis Glass, composer, 71
• January 23 – Dame Clara Butt, operatic contralto (b. 1872)
• January 25? – Hermann Bischoff, composer (b. 1868)
• March 6 – Rubin Goldmark, pianist and composer (b. 1872)
• March 21 – Alexander Glazunov, composer (b. 1865)
• March 26 – Maximilian Maksakov, opera singer (b. 1869)
• April 7 – Marilyn Miller, US actress, dancer and singer
• April 18 – Ottorino Respighi, composer, 56
• April 24 – Bernard van Dieren, composer (b. 1887)
• May 5 - Eva von der Osten, operatic soprano, 54
• May 24 – Claudia Muzio, opera singer, 47
• May 25 – Ján Levoslav Bella, composer and conductor (b. 1843)
• June 27 – Mike Bernard, ragtime musician (b. 1881)
• August 15 – Sir Henry Lytton, Gilbert & Sullivan comic baritone (b. 1865)
• August 19 – Harry Plunket Greene, concert baritone (b. 1865)
• August 28 – Albert Périlhou, French composer, organist and pianist (b. 1846)
• September 5 – Béla Szabados, composer (b. 1867)
• October 11 – Antonio José, Spanish composer (b. 1902)
• October 22 – Anne Caldwell, librettist and lyricist (b. 1867)
• November 11 – Sir Edward German, composer, 74
• November 17 – Ernestine Schumann-Heink, contralto
• December 6 – Emil Adamič, composer (b. 1877)
• December 31 – Oreste Riva, composer (b. 1860)
• date unknown
  • Charlie Green, jazz trombonist (b. c. 1900)
  • Albert Gorter, German conductor and composer () (b. 1862)