PAUL WESTERMEYER is Professor of Church Music at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota, where, in addition to teaching, he serves as Cantor (Director of Music) for the Seminary community and administers the Master of Sacred Music program with St. Olaf College. Before moving to St. Paul, he taught for twenty‑two years at Elmhurst College near Chicago. He has served as the musician for churches in Ohio, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Illinois, and as a Lutheran pastor in Illinois. He has been the President of the Hymn Society in the United States and Canada, served for two terms as Editor of its journal, The Hymn, and in 2004 was made a Fellow. From 1991 until 1998 he was national Chaplain of the American Guild of Organists. He has also taught at Yale University’s Institute of Sacred Music.
A graduate of Elmhurst College, Lancaster Seminary, and Union Seminary's School of Sacred Music (New York), Dr. Westermeyer's doctorate was completed at the University of Chicago under Martin E. Marty. His dissertation, What Shall We Sing in a ForeignLand?, is a study of hymnody, church music, theology and worship among the German Reformed and Lutherans in 19th century Pennsylvania. His book, The Church Musician (Harper & Row, 1988, 2nd edition, Augsburg Fortress, 1997), describes the role of the church musician and weaves together interdisciplinary theological and musical themes which have been his life‑long interest. Many of his other publications relate to these same themes. With Tongues of Fire (Concordia, 1995) is an overview of twentieth century hymnody with a series of biographical sketches, interviews, and bibliographies of some of the finest hymn writers of our period. Let Justice Sing: Hymnody and Justice (Liturgical Press, 1998) analyzes hymnody for themes of justice, and Te Deum: The Church and Music (Augsburg Fortress, 1998) is a theological and musical survey of church music from the Old Testament to the present. His most recent book is a study of hymn tunes, called Let the People Sing: Hymn Tunes in Perspective (GIA, 2005).
Westermeyer and his wife Sally (Young) have four children, two daughters‑in‑law, a son-in-law, six grandsons, and two granddaughters.
