Dan is one of the founding members of a group of composers known as The St. Louis Jesuits. In 1974 Bob Dufford, John Foley, Tim Manion, Roc O'Connor and Dan Schutte published their first collection of music together, a compilation of fifty-seven songs under the title Neither Silver Nor Gold. In 2005 they reunited to celebrate their thirty year anniversary. They recorded together for the first time in twenty years a new collection of songs called Morning Light, The recording features twelve new songs for personal prayer and worship, songs of hope and inspiration.

It was during their time of study as young Jesuits in St. Louis that they met and were drawn together by their mutual love for music and liturgy.  This was during the early 190's when the Roman Catholic Church was experiencing a time of great renewal after the Second Vatican Council.  As the Church faced the challenge of making herself relevant in the lives of contemporary Catholics, so these young composers strove to create music tha would connect with the living faith experience of people at this time in history. They drew from their love of Gregorian chant and traditional hymnody and well as from the contemporary sounds of the present time.

In all, the St. Louis Jesuits recorded eight collections of music together. The influence of their music has reached far beyond the university and local church where they began. Their songs have been published in hymnals throughout the world, translated into numerous languages, and sung by generations of worshippers from many denominations. More importantly, their music has become the "soundtrack" of people's journey of faith. As young men they drew inspiration from the words and images of Scripture. This has made their music more universal in its appeal. St. Louis Jesuit Recordings.

Today these five men all live and work in different cities and pursue various careers. Several of them, including Dan, have continued to write music for people's prayer and published numerous solo collections. You can read a more detailed account of their history and enjoy many beautiful pages of photos in the anniversary book, The St. Louis Jesuits: Thirty Years.