1611 in music

Events

• January 1 – Oberon, the Faery Prince, a masque written by Ben Jonson and designed by Inigo Jones, is performed at Whitehall Palace; it features music by Alfonso Ferrabosco the younger and Robert Johnson.
• February 3 – Love Freed from Ignorance and Folly, another Jonson/Jones masque, is performed at Whitehall, with music by Ferrabosco.

Publications

• Agostino Agazzari
• *Psalms and a Magnificat for five voices, Op. 13
• *Sertum roseum ex plantis Hiericho, Op. 14, a collection of sacred songs
• *Chorus psalmorum ac Magnificat... for eight voices, Op. 15
• Giovanni Francesco Anerio
• *Second book of motets
• *Litany
• *Recreatione armonica, madrigals for one and two voices
• Robert Ballard – a collection of arrangements for the lute.
• Valerio Bona
• *Li dilettevoli introiti della messa a doi chori brevi, facili, & ariosi, Op. 18
• *Masses and Vespers for four choirs, Op. 19
• Bernardino Borlasca – Second book of canzonettas for three voices
• William Byrd – Psalms, Songs, and Sonnets for three, four, five, and six parts
• Antonio Cifra – 7 Psalms for four voices, Op. 10
• Christoph Demantius – Threnodiae for six voices, funeral music to commemorate the death of Christian II, Elector of Saxony on June 23
• Christian Erbach – Sacrarum cantionum, third book, for four and five voices
• Giacomo Finetti
• *Psalmi ad vesperas in solemnitate sanctissimi corporis Christi for eight voices, Vespers psalms for Corpus Christi
• *Second book of motets for two voices
• Melchior Franck
• *Tricinia nova
• *Vincula Natalitia for five, six, and eight voices, birthday motets
• *Opusculum for four, five, six, and eight voices, a collection of motets
• *Fasciculus Quodlibeticus for four, five, six, and eight voices, a collection of quodlibets
• *Gratulationes Musicae for five voices, two wedding songs with psalm texts
• *Ein schöner Trostreicher Text auß dem 43. Capitel Esaiae for five voices, a birthday song with text from Isaiah 43
• Bartholomäus Gesius
• *Missae ad imitationem cantionum Orlandi, et aliorum probatissimorum musicorum for five voices
• *Echo maritalis for eight voices, a wedding motet
• Carlo Gesualdo
• *Fifth book of madrigals for five voices
• *Sixth book of madrigals for five voices
• *Responsoria et alia ad Officium Hebdomadae Sanctae spectantia, for six voices
• Sigismondo d'India – Second book of madrigals for five voices
• Giovanni Girolamo Kapsberger – Libro primo d'intavolatura di lauto
• Claudio Merulo – Third book of canzoni d’intavolatura d’organo, published posthumously
• Giovanni Bernardino Nanino – Second book of motets for one, two, three, four, and five voices with organ bass
• Jonas Germundi Palma — Een christeligh jula songh...
• Angelo Paoletti – Sacrae cantiones
• Claudio Pari – Il pastor fido, second book of madrigals for five voices
• Parthenia, a collection of keyboard music by John Bull, William Byrd, and Orlando Gibbons
• Serafino Patta — ''Sacra cantica...''

Popular music

• Thomas Ravenscroft – ''Melismata''

Opera

• Giulio Cesare Monteverdi – Il rapimento di Proserpina

Births

• June 22 – Pablo Bruna, blind organist and composer
• December – Leonora Baroni, singer, instrumentalist and composer
• date unknown – Thomas Brewer, composer who introduced the "glee"

Deaths

• July – Simon Lohet, organist and composer
• August 20 – Tomás Luis de Victoria, composer
• date unknown
• *Livia d'Arco, singer
• *Pierre-Francisque Caroubel, violinist and composer
• *Johannes Eccard, composer and conductor
• *Gioseffo Guami, organist, singer and composer