1591 in music

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Events

• Alonso Lobo, Spanish composer, is appointed maestro de capilla by Seville Cathedral.
• Ruggiero Giovannelli, Italian composer and successor to Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina at St. Peter's, acquires post at Collegio Germanico in Rome.
• Giulio Belli, Italian composer, is appointed maestro di cappella at cathedral in Carpi, Italy.
• Giovanni Bernardino Nanino, Italian composer of the Roman School, is appointed maestro di cappella at S Luigi dei Francesi in Rome.
• John Bull becomes organist for Elizabeth I at the Chapel Royal.
• Emilio de' Cavalieri serves as a papal spy, engaging in several secret vote-buying missions to Florence.

Publications

• Giammateo Asola
  • Second book of masses for five voices (Venice: Ricciardo Amadino)
  • 3 Masses for six voices (Venice: Ricciardo Amadino)
• John Baldwin completes My Ladye Nevells Booke, a manuscript anthology of keyboard music by William Byrd
• Paolo Bellasio – Madrigals for three, four, five, six, seven, and eight voices (Venice: Ricciardo Amadino)
• William Byrd, Catholic composer in England, publishes his , Book 2, for five and six voices (London: Thomas East for William Byrd)
• Giovanni Croce – for eight voices (Venice: Giacomo Vincenti), music for Compline, his first publication
• Scipione Dentice – First book of madrigals for five voices (Naples: Matteo Cancer)
• John Farmer – Divers and sundrie waies of two parts in one (London: Thomas East), a collection of vocal canons
• Stefano Felis
  • Third book of motets for five voices (Venice: Girolamo Scotto)
  • Sixth book of madrigals for five voices (Venice: Scipione Rizzo for Girolamo Scotto)
• Giovanni Giacomo Gastoldi – Balletti a5, published in Venice
• Gioseffo Guami – Fourth book of madrigals for five and six voices (Venice: Angelo Gardano)
• Adam Gumpelzhaimer
  • (Augsburg: Valentin Schönigk), a music theory textbook in Latin and German
  • for three voices (Augsburg: Valentin Schönigk)
• Hans Leo Hassler – for four, five, six, seven, eight, and more voices (Augsburg: Valentin Schönigk), a large collection of motets
• Marc'Antonio Ingegneri – First book of motets for six voices (Venice: Angelo Gardano)
• Luca Marenzio – Fifth book of madrigals for six voices (Venice: Angelo Gardano)
• Philippe de Monte – Sixth book of madrigals for six voices (Venice: Angelo Gardano)
• Johannes Nucius – for five and six voices (Prague: Georg Nigrinus)
• Pietro Paolo Paciotto has his first book of masses published in Venice by Alessandro Gardano
• Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, Italian composer, publishes a group of Magnificat settings, in Rome
• Andreas Pevernage – Fourth book of chansons for five voices (Antwerp: widow of Plantin & Jean Mourentorf)
• Giaches de Wert, Franco-Flemish composer, publishes his tenth book of madrigals

Births

• October 6 – Settimia Caccini, Italian composer and singer, younger daughter of Giulio Caccini and sister of Francesca Caccini (died 1638)
• date unknown
  • Joseph Solomon Delmedigo, Cretan music theorist, in Candia (Iraklion) (died 1655)
  • Robert Dowland, lutenist and composer (died 1641)

Deaths

• January 7 – Jacobus de Kerle, Netherlandish composer
• February 10 – Ambrose Lupo, court musician and composer to Tudor monarchs (date of birth unknown)
• May 23 – John Blitheman, organist and composer (born 1525)
• July 2 – Vincenzo Galilei, Italian composer, lutenist and music theorist, father of Galileo (born 1520)
• July 18 – Jacobus Gallus (Jakob Handl), German-Austrian composer (born 1550)
• July 30 – Andreas Pevernage, Flemish composer (born 1542/43)
• date unknown
  • Joan Brudieu, composer (born 1520)
  • William Mundy, composer of sacred music (born 1529)