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The most significant occurrence for 20th-century Lutheran composers was the recovery of the liturgical center of worship as envisioned in the Lutheran Confessions. The core of this movement was the adoption by Lutherans of the Common Service in 1888. As it appeared in subsequent worship books, the Common Service again gave the church the liturgical framework of its heritage. Composers were encouraged to work within the framework of the full eucharistic service. Traditional composition patterns could again be exercised. Coupled to this was the recovery of the office of cantor, epitomized by Johann Sebastian Bach. As contemporary Lutheran composers strove to integrate the role of instrumental, choral, vocal, and congregational music within the context of the Church’s liturgies, they fulfilled the demands of the office established by Luther’s own cohort, Johann Walter. Their compositions were shaped primarily by the liturgy itself. For example, the popularity of the generic Protestant anthem among Lutherans continued, but now it emerged in the liturgical focus with a greater emphasis on proclaiming the Word. Hugo Distler was a quintessential 20th-century cantor, whose work at St. Jacobi, Luebeck, drew on the finest of Lutheran tradition while writing in the distinct idiom of his time. His large and miniature works for organ, instruments, and choir have proved to be appropriate for worship while they have remained enduring concert pieces
Although their work embraced a variety of media and styles, they shared a common approach to the liturgy. The church’s mission late in the 20th century was far more open to indigenous and ethnic music than in earlier periods. This afforded opportunities for other composers. Gerhard Cartford brought the whole church an understanding of Hispanic Lutheran liturgical and musical resources through his work to establish a sung Hispanic Lutheran liturgy. James Capers, composer and pastor, attempted to demonstrate how African-American worship patterns and musical styles might serve the liturgy. Hugo Distler might well be described as the quintessential 20th-century cantor. His tenure at St. Jakobi Church, Luebeck, Germany, saw the revival of some of the finest music of German Lutheranism as he developed a new and distinct style of the time. His large, as well as his miniature works, employed numerous musical forms for organ, instruments, choir, and solo voice, and produced a lively corpus of both secular and sacred music. Many of his compositions were intended for the church’s liturgies. They proved to be enduring concert pieces as well. Ironically, Distler received little attention from the musical world at large until Larry Palmer’s publication after the composer’s death, Hugo Distler and His Church Music (Concordia, 1967).
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Numerous
others embraced these same principles for Lutheran worship, including: