1837 in music

Events

• March 31 – Franz Liszt and Sigismond Thalberg play a musical 'duel' at a charity event for refugees of the Italian war of independence at the home of Countess Belgiojoso.
• June 11 – Prussian Copyright Act protecting for the first time performances of concert music
• Pauline Viardot makes her concert debut at the age of sixteen.

Publications

• François-Joseph Fétis – ''Traité du chant en choeur''

Published popular music

• "Hark, Brothers, Hark", words and music by John Hill Hewitt
• "Woodman, Spare That Tree!", words by George Pope Morris, music by Henry Russell

Classical music

• Charles-Valentin Alkan – 3 Morceaux dans le genre pathétique, Op. 15
• Ludwig Berger – 15 Etudes, Op.33
• Charles-Auguste de Bériot – Violin Concerto No. 1, Op.16
• Hector Berlioz – Grande Messe des Morts
• Frédéric Chopin
• *Hexaméron: Variation No. 6
• *Nocturne in C minor, B. 108
• *Largo in E-flat major, B. 109
• *Impromptu No. 1, Op. 29
• *Scherzo No. 2, Op. 31
• *Piano Sonata No. 2, Op. 35, III
• Fanny Ellsler – 3 Airs de Ballet
• Adolf von Henselt
• *Romance, Op. 10
• *Variations de concert sur le motif de l'opéra 'L'elisir d'amore', Op. 1
• Franz Liszt
• *Grandes études, S. 137
• *Album d'un voyageur, S. 156
• *Hexaméron, S. 392
• *Soirées musicales de Rossini, S. 424
• *12 Lieder von Franz Schubert, S. 558
• Felix Mendelssohn
• *6 Gesänge, Op.34
• *Piano Concerto No. 2 in D minor, Op. 40
• *Psalm 42 for choir and orchestra, Op. 42
• *6 Lieder, Op. 50
• *String Quartet No. 4 in E minor
• Carl Gottlieb Reissiger
• *3 String Quartets, Op.111
• *4 Gesänge, Op.117
• Robert Schumann
• *Davidsbündlertänze, Op. 6
• *Études symphoniques, Op. 13
• Johann Strauss Sr. – Cachucha-Galopp, Op.97
• Sigismond Thalberg
• *12 Etudes, Op.26
• *Grand Fantasia on 'God save the Queen' and 'Rule Britannia', Op.27

Opera

• Daniel Auber – The Black Domino
• Gaetano Donizetti – Roberto Devereux
• Mikhail Glinka – Ruslan and Lyudmila
• Albert Lortzing – Zar und Zimmermann
• Gaspare Spontini – ''Agnes von Hohenstaufen''

Births

• January 2 – Mily Balakirev, Russian pianist, conductor and composer
• January 12 – Adolf Jensen, German pianist, composer and music teacher
• January 27 – Carlotta Ferrari, composer
• February 23 – Rosalía de Castro, lyricist
• March 12 – Alexandre Guilmant, organist
• March 15 – Célestine Galli-Marié, operatic mezzo-soprano, the original Carmen
• April 13 – Julius Weissenborn, German bassoonist, music teacher and composer
• April 18 – Armand Silvestre, librettist
• May 23 – Józef Wieniawski, pianist
• June 1 – Ferdinand Quentin Dulcken, English pianist and composer
• June 25 – Josef Werner, composer
• July 6 – Władysław Żeleński, composer
• July 30 – Signe Hebbe, operatic soprano
• August 24
• *Théodore Dubois, organist and composer
• *Adolf Wilbrandt, writer and lyricist
• September 19 – Adolf Gustaw Sonnenfeld, composer
• December 7 – Édouard Mangin, musician
• December 9 – Emile Waldteufel, pianist and composer
• December 24 – Cosima Wagner, daughter of Franz Liszt and wife of Richard Wagner
• December 30 – Ida Marie Lipsius, music writer
• date unknown
• *Fred Godfrey, English bandmaster and music arranger
• *Kate Santley, actress and singer
• *La Serneta, flamenco singer

Deaths

• January 23 – John Field, pianist and composer
• February 10 – Aleksandr Pushkin, Russian poet and librettist
• April 9 – Polly Cuninghame, ballet dancer
• May 5
• *Niccolò Antonio Zingarelli, composer
• *Salvatore Fighera, composer
• June 16 – Valentino Fioravanti, opera buffa composer
• July 28 – Joseph Schubert, violinist and composer
• August 6 – Johann Nepomuk Schelble, composer
• October 6 – Jean François Lesueur, composer
• October 11 – Samuel Wesley, organist and composer, son of hymn-writer Charles Wesley
• October 17 – Johann Nepomuk Hummel, composer
• October 28 – Jean-Blaise Martin, opera singer
• date unknown
• *Franz Joseph Antony, organist and choral composer
• *Jean Théodore Latour, composer for piano
• *Christina Rahm, opera singer