Dan Schutte

Dan Schutte is an American composer of contemporary Catholic liturgical music, one of the most widely performed songwriters in Catholic worship since the 1970s. He rose to prominence as a member of the St. Louis Jesuits, a group of Jesuit composers who reshaped congregational singing after the Second Vatican Council by writing accessible, folk-influenced hymns meant to be sung by entire congregations rather than choirs alone.

His best-known work, «Here I Am, Lord», has become one of the most performed hymns in English-speaking Catholic and mainline Protestant churches worldwide, frequently used at ordinations and moments of vocational commitment. Other widely sung compositions include «Glory and Praise to Our God», «City of God», and «Blest Be the Lord», all built on simple, singable melodies paired with scripturally rooted lyrics, typically arranged for guitar, piano, and choir in a style that helped define the modern folk-liturgical sound of American Catholic parishes.

Schutte's music is characterized by warm, accessible melodies, direct scriptural imagery, and an emphasis on communal participation over performance. Decades after their composition, his hymns remain staples of Catholic and ecumenical worship, and he continues to be recognized as a foundational figure in the post-Vatican II liturgical music movement.