Dr. Carl Flentge Schalk is a noted Lutheran

Lutheranism

Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...

 composer, author, and lecturer. Between 1965 and 2004 he taught church music at Concordia University Chicago

Concordia University Chicago

Concordia University Chicago is an American private, Lutheran liberal arts university located in the Illinois suburb of River Forest, 10 miles west of Chicago.-Description:...

. During this time he guided the development of the university's Master of Church Music degree, which has since graduated more than 140 students. Schalk was a member of the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship, which produced Lutheran Book of Worship

Lutheran Book of Worship

Lutheran Book of Worship is a worship book and hymnal used by several Lutheran denominations in North America. It is often referred to by its initials as the LBW, and in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America the LBW is sometimes called the "green book" as opposed to With One Voice, a...

 in 1978. He was also the editor of the journal Church Music from 1966 to 1980. Additionally, he is a member of the Music Advisory Committee of Concordia Publishing House

Concordia Publishing House

Concordia Publishing House , founded in 1869, is the official publishing arm of The Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod. Headquartered in St Louis, Missouri at 3558 S. Jefferson St. Louis, MO, CPH publishes the Synod's official magazine, The Lutheran Witness and the Synod's hymnals, including...

 and of the board of directors of Lutheran Music Program, the parent organization of the Lutheran Summer Music Academy and Festival.

Schalk graduated in 1952 from Concordia University Chicago (then known as Concordia Teachers College River Forest) with a B.S. in education and proceeded to earn a M.Mus from the Eastman School of Music

Eastman School of Music

The Eastman School of Music is a music conservatory located in Rochester, New York. The Eastman School is a professional school within the University of Rochester...

 and an M.A.R. from Concordia Seminary

Concordia Seminary

Concordia Seminary is located in Clayton, Missouri, an inner-ring suburb on the western border of St. Louis, Missouri. The institution's primary mission is to train pastors, deaconesses, missionaries, chaplains, and church leaders for the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod . The current president of...

 in Saint Louis.

Schalk is well-known for his numerous choral compositions as well as his hymn tune

Hymn tune

A hymn tune is the melody of a musical composition to which a hymn text is sung. Musically speaking, a hymn is generally understood to have four-part harmony, a fast harmonic rhythm , and no refrain or chorus....

s and carol

Carol (music)

A carol is a festive song, generally religious but not necessarily connected with church worship, and often with a dance-like or popular character....

s, which number over one hundred. He had ongoing collaborations with poets Jaroslav Vajda

Jaroslav Vajda

Jaroslav Vajda was an American hymnist.Vajda was born to a Lutheran pastor of Slovak descent. His father, Rev. John Vajda, was a pastor in East Chicago, Ind. at Holy Trinity Slovak Lutheran Church. This is where Jaroslav had his beginning learning from his father and his mother, Maria...

 and Herbert Brokering, producing tunes for several of their hymn texts. Schalk's hymn tunes may be found in modern Christian hymnals of various denominations. He is also the author of several books on Lutheran music and hymnody.