BIGSONG:
Daniel Laurent Schutte is an American composer of Catholic and contemporary Christian liturgical music, best known for composing the hymn “Here I Am, Lord” (1981, also known as “I, the Lord of Sea and Sky”) and approximately 160 other hymns and Mass settings.
Biography
Schutte was born in Neenah, Wisconsin, on December 28, 1947, grew up in Elm Grove, Wisconsin, and graduated from Marquette University High School before entering the Society of Jesus.
As a Jesuit seminarian, he was one of the founding members of the St. Louis Jesuits, composers who popularized a contemporary style of church music set to sacred texts sung in English due to the liturgical reforms initiated by the Second Vatican Council. Other members of the St. Louis Jesuits are Bob Dufford, Roc O’Connor, John Foley, and Tim Manion.
He released ten collections with the St. Louis Jesuits, including a 30th-anniversary collection in 2005. Their second recording, Earthen Vessels, sold over one million albums, and as a result, beginning with hymnals such as Glory and Praise, their music became standard repertoire in Catholic parishes in the English speaking world.
Schutte left the Society of Jesus in 1986.
Schutte continues as a prolific composer of liturgical music, releasing nine solo collections with OCP Publications. Many of his newer compositions found their way into permanent hymnals and missals. Schutte’s “Mass of Christ the Savior,” released in 2012, quickly became one of the most widely used Mass Settings throughout the English-speaking world.
Notable Christian artists, including Chris Christian, Amy Grant, and John Michael Talbot, have recorded his compositions. His music is credited in movie and television soundtracks, including Dark Waters, Yes, God, Yes, Everybody Loves Raymond, Will and Grace, and Mistresses.
In 2009, he wrote Walking the Sacred Path – Spiritual Exercises for Today, 2012, God With Us – A Prayer Book For Advent and Christmas and, 2014, From Ashes To Glory – A Prayer Book For Lent and Easter. With the outbreak of COVID-19, he developed a series of virtual spiritual retreats that gained a worldwide audience.
In addition to his Jesuit formation, Schutte holds two master of arts degrees, one in theology and one in liturgy, from The Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley. Schutte is also an alumnus of St. Louis University and Seattle University. He did graduate studies in music composition under the direction of Fr. Kevin Waters S.J. at Seattle University. He was a student of celebrated American painter and artist, Sr. Thomasita Fessler, OSF at Studio San Damiano. He has received four honorary doctoral degrees for his contribution to the life of the church. Two of the honorary doctorates are in humane letters, and two are in music.
Schutte presently is Composer-in-Residence at the University of San Francisco. He continues to compose new music and write about spirituality.
