Lorraine Smith Brugh, 72, died January 25 in Peoria, Arizona. Born March 20, 1952, in Elmhurst, Illinois, she graduated from West Aurora High School in 1970, where she met her future husband, Gary Brugh; they were married June 16, 1973.
Lorrain
e Brugh retired in 2020 after 22 years at Valparaiso University, Valparaiso, Indiana, where she held the Frederick J. Kruse Endowed Chair in Church Music and served as university organist, director of chapel music, and adjunct professor of theology. She taught studio organ, church music classes, and music theory; planned and led campus worship; and conducted the Kantorei (chapel choir). From 2017 until 2019 she directed the university’s study abroad center in Cambridge, England.
Brugh graduated with Bachelor of Music (1973) and Master of Music (1974) degrees in organ performance from Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, studying with Karel Paukert and assisting Grigg Fountain in Millar Chapel. Receiving a Fulbright-Hays award, she studied with Gerd Zacher and Gisbert Schneider in Essen, Germany, in 1974 and 1975 and with Jean Langlais and Michel Chapuis in Paris, France, in 1978. Her further study in theology led to a Master of Theological Studies degree in 1994 from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, Evanston, and a PhD degree in religious studies (systematic theology) in 2018 from Northwestern and Garrett. Her dissertation topic was “Responsive contextualization: a liturgical theology for multicultural congregational worship.”
Prior to her years at Valparaiso University, Brugh directed music ministry at several Chicago-area congregations, including Resurrection Lutheran Church,Franklin Park; Faith Lutheran Church, Glen Ellyn; and Wilmette Lutheran Church, Wilmette, and was engaged in teaching or music leadership at Elmhurst College, College of DuPage, and Northwestern University. In retirement, she served as artist in residence at Pinnacle Presbyterian Church, Scottsdale, Arizona.
Along with her faculty responsibilities, Brugh directed Valparaiso University’s Institute of Liturgical Studies (2004–2020). She received the Institute’s 2022 Christus Rex award for her contributions to liturgical scholarship and renewal. The second recognition given annually by the Institute, the Brugh Emerging Leader award, is named in her honor. A rostered deacon (minister of word and service) in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), Brugh contributed to the ongoing renewal of its worship life. For the ELCA’s current principal worship book, Evangelical Lutheran Worship (ELW, 2006), she served on the music consultation that crafted principles for worship, on the liturgical music editorial team, and on the project’s overall steering team. Her contributions to the church’s liturgical resources include settings for Psalter for Worship (1996–1998); a chapter on Asian music for Leading the Church’s Song (1998); co-authoring with Gordon Lathrop The Sunday Assembly (2008), a guide to ELW resources; worship planning helps for the Sundays and Seasons resource series (1995–2025); and consultative roles with two ELCA worship supplements, With One Voice (1995) and All Creation Sings (2020). Brugh was a charter member and past president of the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians (ALCM), and she received ALCM’s Faithful Servant award in 2023. She served on the faculty of Lutheran Summer Music and Academy; was active in the American Guild of Organists, including chairing an AGO Pipe Organ Encounter at Valparaiso University in 2015; and was a member of the Liturgical Theology Seminar of the North American Academy of Liturgy. In the 2019 Fully Conscious, Fully Active: Essays in Honor of Gabe Huck (Liturgy Training Publications), Brugh contributed the chapter, “Where Do We Go from Here?”
In recent years, Brugh was a frequent contributing author to The Diapaso
n. Among her articles were interviews with Stephen Cleobury (June 2018, pages 20–23), John Rutter (December 2018, pages 19–23), Olivier Latry (June 2019, pages 16–18), Colin Walsh (August 2019, pages 20–21), and most recently (with Richard Webster) Karel Paukert (April 2024, pages 12–17).
Lorraine S. Brugh is survived by her husband Gary, their son Joshua (Shannon) Brugh of Seattle, Washington, and two grandchildren. A memorial service took place February 22 at Pinnacle Presbyterian Church, Scottsdale, with interment in the church’s memorial garden. A memorial service is planned to take place at the Chapel of the Resurrection, Valparaiso University, on April 5 at 11:00 a.m. The Institute of Liturgical Studies at Valparaiso University will also hold a memorial service during compline, April 28, 8:15 p.m., in the Chapel of the Resurrection. Memorial gifts may be directed to the Institute of Liturgical Studies at Valparaiso University (valpo.edu/institute-of-liturgical-studies) or to the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians (alcm.org).
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