1571 in music

Events

• Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina becomes maestro di cappella at the Julian Chapel, St. Peter's, Rome
• Andrea Gabrieli writes the music for the festivities celebrating the victory of the Venetians over the Turks after the Battle of Lepanto.
• Orlande de Lassus visits France at the personal invitation of King Charles IX, who unsuccessfully attempts to employ him
• Tomás Luis de Victoria begins teaching at the Collegio Germanico in Rome
• Bálint Bakfark, Hungarian lutenist, moves to Padua, Italy

Publications

• Elias Ammerbach publishes the first printed German organ music, the tablature Orgel oder Instrument Tabulatur
• Orlande de Lassus publishes two books of music in Paris, including some of his most famous chansons
• Gioseffo Zarlino published Dimonstrationi harmoniche, which establishes the primacy of the major mode
• Philippe de Monte - published his Fourth book of madrigals
• Alexander Utendal - publishes his Sacrae cantiones

Births

• January 15 (baptized) – Henry Ainsworth, author of the Ainsworth Psalter, the only book of music brought by the Pilgrim settlers to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1620. (died 1622)
• February 15 (possibly) – Michael Praetorius, German organist, composer and music theorist (died 1621)
• May 17 – William White, English composer
• August 7 – Thomas Lupo, English composer of instrumental music (died 1627)
• December 27 – Johannes Kepler, astronomer and writer on music (died 1630)
• Dates unknown
  • Filipe de Magalhães, Portuguese composer
  • Leon Modena, Italian rabbi, cantor, scholar and writer on music
  • Martin Peerson (born ca. 1571 – ca. 1573; died 1650 or 1651), English composer, organist and virginalist
  • John Ward, English composer of madrigals

Deaths

• March 20 - Giovanni Animuccia, composer (born c.1520)
• June 7 – Francesco Corteccia, Italian composer and organist (born 1502)
• November 21 - Jan Blahoslav, Czech writer and composer (born 1523)
• date unknown
  • Francisco de Ceballos, organist and composer
  • Bernardino de Ribera (Sahagún), Spanish composer (born c.1499)