1608 in music

Events

• February 9 – The masque The Hue and Cry After Cupid, written by Ben Jonson and designed by Inigo Jones, is performed at Whitehall Palace. The masque features the music of Alfonso Ferrabosco the younger.
• June 4 – Claudio Monteverdi's latest work, Il ballo delle ingrate, is given its first performance in Mantua as part of the wedding celebrations for Francesco Gonzaga and Margaret of Savoy. In the same year, Monteverdi asks to be allowed to resign his post with the Gonzaga family.

Classical music

• ''none listed''

Publications

• Giovanni Francesco Anerio – Second book of madrigals for five and six voices
• Costanzo Antegnati – L'Antegnata, Op. 16, a collection of intabulated ricercars for the organ
• Adriano Banchieri – Festino nella sera del giovedi grasso avanti cena, Op. 18, a madrigal comedy
• Giulio Belli – Missae sacrae for four, five, six, and eight voices with continuo
• Antonio Cifra – Second book of madrigals for five voices
• Christoph Demantius – Conviviorum deliciae for six voices and instruments, a collection of dance music
• Juan Esquivel Barahona
• *First book of masses
• *Motecta festorum et dominicarum cum communi sanctorum for four, five, six, and eight voices
• Melchior Franck
• *Geistliche Gesäng und Melodeyen for five, six, and eight voices, mostly setting texts from the Song of Songs
• *Neue Musicalische Intraden for various instruments but especially violas, in six parts
• *Cantica gratulatoria for five voices, a wedding song
• *Der CXXI. Psalm for five voices, a setting of Psalm 121
• *Neues Echo for eight voices
• *Dialogus metricus for seven voices, a Christmas motet
• Girolamo Frescobaldi
• *Il primo libro de' madrigali
• *Primo libro delle fantasie
• Marco da Gagliano – Fifth book of madrigals for five voices
• Bartholomäus Gesius – Dictum ex Psalmo XXXIIII. De excubiis et custodia Angelorum for six voices, a wedding motet
• Gioseffo Guami – Second book of motets for choir and instruments
• Pierre Guédron – Airs de cours for four and five voices
• Cesario Gussago – Sonatas for four, six, and eight
• Hans Leo Hassler – Kirchengesäng for four voices, a collection of sacred songs
• Sigismondo d'India – First book of villanelle alla napolitana for three voices
• Robert Jones – Ultimum vale, with a triplicity of musicke...
• Claude Le Jeune
• *Second book of 50 psalms for three voices, published posthumously
• *Airs for three, four, five, and six voices, published posthumously
• *Second book of airs for three, four, five, and six voices, published posthumously
• Claudio Merulo – Third book of ricercari da cantare for four voices, published posthumously
• Pomponio Nenna – Seventh book of madrigals for five voices
• Asprilio Pacelli – Sacrae cantiones, book 1
• Franciscus Pappus – Sacrae cantiones, book 1
• Vincenzo Passerini – Second book of madrigals for five voices
• Orfeo Vecchi – Cantiones sacrae for five voices, published posthumously
• Thomas Weelkes – ''Ayeres Or Phantasticke Spirites for three voices''

Opera

• Claudio Monteverdi – L'Arianna
• Marco da Gagliano – ''La Dafne''

Births

• date unknown – Francisco Lopez Capillas, Mexican composer

Deaths

• October 26 – Philipp Nicolai, composer
• date unknown
• *Luca Bati, composer
• *Peter Lupo, court musician and composer, son of Ambrose Lupo
• *Simone Verovio, printer of music books