Richard Walter Hillert

Richard Walter Hillert was an American Lutheran composer, teacher, church musician, editor, and scholar. Born in Granton, Wisconsin, in 1923, he studied at Concordia Teachers College in River Forest, Illinois, and later earned Master of Music and Doctor of Music degrees in composition from Northwestern University. Before entering full-time university teaching, he served Lutheran congregations as a teacher and director of music.

Hillert joined the faculty of Concordia University Chicago in 1959 and eventually became Distinguished Professor of Music. He taught composition for more than three decades and wrote extensively for worship, choir, organ, piano, chamber ensemble, and orchestra. He also served as an editor of Church Music and participated in major Lutheran liturgical projects through the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship.

His most widely known congregational work is FESTIVAL CANTICLE, associated with the Revelation-based Hymn of Praise used in Lutheran worship. Hillert also composed extensive settings for Holy Communion, daily prayer, psalmody, and choral liturgy. His career joined rigorous compositional craft with a sustained commitment to music designed for active congregational participation.