Hymnwriters, translators and Concordia Seminary, St. Louis students are encouraged to attend the first-ever Prevallet Hymn Writing Workshop to be held Saturday, Feb. 5, on campus. This workshop is an opportunity for participants to learn from Rev. Stephen Starke, an expert in the hymn-writing field, about the mechanics and craft of writing hymn texts.

The Saturday morning workshop will be held from 8:30 a.m. to noon, with an optional lunch for an additional cost and an optional individual coaching session in the afternoon. The workshop will be held in the lower level of the Chapel of St. Timothy and St. Titus on campus, 801 Seminary Place, St. Louis, MO 63105. The registration deadline is Feb 2. Cost is $15 per person and free for Concordia Seminary students and their spouses. Registration includes a copy of The Anatomy of Hymnody by Austin C. Lovelace.

Starke has written more than 200 hymn texts that have been published through Concordia Publishing House. Nearly 30 of his texts are found in Lutheran Service Book, including “We Praise You and Acknowledge You,” “Water, Blood, and Spirit Crying” and “The Tree of Life.”

“We’re really excited for students and other participants to have the opportunity to learn from a real master like Rev. Starke about the mechanics and craft of writing hymn texts,” said Dean of Chapel and Associate Professor of Practical Theology Dr. Jon Vieker. “Our prayer is that this annual workshop might become a vehicle for the Lord to raise up the next generation of Lutheran hymnwriters among us. As one great hymnwriter put it: ‘Through the church the song goes on!’”

For more information, contact Vieker at 314-505-7570 or viekerj@csl.edu.

About Concordia Seminary

Concordia Seminary, St. Louis provides Gospel-centered graduate-level theological education for pastors, missionaries, deaconesses, scholars and other leaders in the name of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS). To learn more, visit csl.edu.