Severus Gastorius was a German cantor and church musician who Latinized his real name, "Bauchspieß". He was born in 1646 in Ottern (near Weimar). The son of a teacher, he studied in Jena where, in 1670, he became the substitute cantor for his step-father. After his step-father’s death in 1677, he became the cantor himself. The dates of his birth and death are unknown but he was buried on May 8th, 1682 in the cemetery of the Johanniskirche church in Jena. The melody of the song “Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan” is his best-known work.