1775 in music

Events

• February 23 – Première of Pierre Beaumarchais's play, The Barber of Seville, which will later provide material for more than one opera.
• Wilhelm Hauser becomes organist at the monastery of Lavaldieu and the teacher of Étienne Méhul.

Classical music

• Carl Friedrich Abel – 6 String Quartets, Op. 12
• John Alcock Jr. – 8 Easy Organ Voluntaries
• Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach
  • Symphony in D major, H.663
  • Symphony in F major, H.665
• Johann Christian Bach – Sinfonia concertante, W.C 34
• Wilhelm Friedemann Bach – Keyboard Sonata in G major, F.7
• Giovanni Battista Cirri – 6 String Quartets, Op. 13
• Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf – Concerto for Oboe in D major
• Tommaso Giordani – 6 Flute Trios, Op. 12
• Joseph Haydn
  • Baryton Trio in D major, Hob.XI:114
  • Il Ritorno di Tobia, Hob.XXI:1 (sacred oratorio)
  • Mass in B-flat major, Hob.XXII:7
• Joseph Martin Kraus – Requiem
• Georg Anton Kreusser – 6 Flute Quintets, Op. 10
• Franz Lamotte – Violin Concerto No. 2
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
  • Violin Concertos No. 3, No. 4 & No. 5
  • Symphony No.52 in C major, K.102/213c
  • Serenade in D major, K.204/213a
  • Church Sonata in B-flat major, K.212
  • Misericordias Domini, K.222/205a
• Friedrich Wilhelm Rust – Sonata in A major, CzaR 110
• Friedrich Schwindl – 6 Quartets, Op. 7
• Maddalena Laura Sirmen – 6 Duets, Op. 5
• Johann Matthias Sperger – Quartet in D major, for flute, viola, cello, and contrabass, M.C III:23a
• Carl Stamitz – 3 Quintets, Op. 11
• John Stanley – Six Concertos for the Organ, Harpsichord, or Forte Piano, with Accompanyments [sic] for Two Violins and a Bass, Op. 10 (London: Printed for the Author, and Sold by Mr Welcker)

Opera

• Johann André – Erwin und Elmire
• André Ernest Modeste Grétry – La fausse Magie
• Joseph Haydn – L'incontro improvviso, Hob.XXVIII:6
• Gaetano Latilla – Antigono
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
  • La finta giardiniera, K. 196 (premiered January 13)
  • Il re pastore, K. 208
• Josef Mysliveček – Il Demofoonte (second version, first premiered in 1769)
• Giovanni Paisiello
  • Socrate immaginario, R.1.48
  • Il gran Cid, R.1.49

Methods and theory writings

• Andrea Basili – Musica universale armonico pratica
• Marie-Dominique-Joseph Engramelle – La Tonotechnie
• Fedele Fenaroli – Regole musicali per i principianti di cembalo
• Johann Caspar Heck – Short and Fundamental Instructions for Learning Thorough Bass
• Jacob Schuback – Von der musikalischen Declamation

Births

• January 21 – Manuel del Pópulo Vicente García, singer and composer (d. 1832)
• March 24 – Muthuswami Dikshitar, poet and composer (d. 1835)
• May 1 – Sophia Dussek, composer and musician (died 1831)
• June 4 – Francesco Molino, guitarist and composer (d. 1847)
• June 13 – Antoni Radziwiłł, politician and musician (d. 1833)
• July 5 – William Crotch, composer (d. 1847)
• July 9 – Matthew Lewis, librettist and writer (died 1818)
• August 2 – José Ángel Lamas, composer (d. 1814)
• August 21 – Giuseppe Baini, composer and priest (died 1844)
• August 31 – François de Fossa, guitarist and composer (d. 1849)
• September 17 – Margrethe Schall, ballerina (d. 1852)
• October 6 – Johann Anton André, German composer (died 1842)
• October 15 – Bernhard Henrik Crusell, clarinettist and composer (d. 1838)
• October 21 – Giuseppe Baini, composer and music critic (d. 1844)
• October 30 – Catterino Cavos, organist, conductor and composer (d. 1840)
• December 6 – Nicolo Isouard, Maltese composer (died 1818)
• December 16 – François-Adrien Boïeldieu, composer (d. 1834)
• December 25 – Antun Sorkočević, writer, composer and diplomat (d. 1841)
• date unknown
  • Joseph Antonio Emidy, violinist and composer (d. 1835)
  • Andrea Nozzari, operatic tenor (d. 1832)
  • Giovanni Schmidt, Italian librettist (died c. 1839)

Deaths

• January 15 – Giovanni Battista Sammartini, organist and composer (b. c. 1700)
• May 1–4? — Francesco Barsanti, composer; recorder & oboe virtuoso (b. 1690)
• May 7 – Cornelius Heinrich Dretzel, organist and composer (b. 1697)
• May 9 – Vittoria Tesi, operatic contralto (b. 1700)
• June 11 – Egidio Duni, composer (b. 1708)
• July 26 – Alessandro Besozzi, oboist and composer (b. 1702)
• November 1 – Pierre-Joseph-Justin Bernard, librettist and writer (born 1708)
• November 7 – François Rebel, composer (b. 1701)
• December 9 – Pietro Gnocchi, composer (b. 1689)
• date unknown – Rosa Scarlatti, opera singer (b. 1727)