Lucas Osiander the Elder

Lucas Osiander the Elder (15 December 1534, in Nuremberg – 17 September 1604, in Stuttgart) was a German pastor of the Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Württemberg and a composer of Lutheran church music.

He was involved in the preparation of the Lutheran Formula of Concord and, together with Jakob Heerbrand, published the first Latin translation.

Dismissed from this position in 1598, Osiander worked briefly as a preacher in Esslingen am Neckar, but returned to Adelberg after one year.

Equally well-versed in theology and music, Lucas Osiander initiated the first Württemberg hymnal of 1583 and set to music the main body of Reformation hymnody as a Cantional (collection of songs) in 1586 to give the lay community the opportunity to join in figural music (a type of polyphonic singing).

The text of the Lutheran hymn, Gott Vater, Herr, wir danken dir (Evangelisches Gesangbuch, Württemberg Regional Edition, Nr.