9 Musicians Who Died While Performing

Though this technically isn't a case of a musician dying "while" performing, the scope of its tragedy is too significant not to include. 

Ty Longley was the guitarist for 80s glam rockers Great White (popular for the song "Once Bitten, Twice Shy," and not much else). During a tour in 2003, which the band launched as an attempt to get over some infighting and regain the national spotlight, an incident occurred at their Rhode Island show that would garner them much media attention, but of the unwanted variety.

Seconds into Great White's opening song, the subtly ironic "Desert Moon," one of the band's crew members set off some extravagant pyrotechnics. The band was playing indoors, in a tiny space that had foam all over the walls to give off better acoustics. In a matter of minutes, the entire club was engulfed in flames, causing a mass stampede toward the exits. The incident wound up injuring 230 people and killing 100 more, including Ty Longley.