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April 20, 2023The Easter Vigil is the highest Mass of the year. It's when the Church celebrates the rising of Jesus Christ from the tomb. For parishioners at Saint Mary Catholic Church in Ponca City, and fellow parishioners at Saint Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Newkirk, it was an even more meaningful Mass, as it was the first Mass to feature a refurbished pipe organ, bringing beautiful sounds into the church for the first time in almost a year.
Brad Newcomb is the choir director and organist for the Saint Mary Catholic Church and remarked that it was a night he will always remember.
“Playing at the Easter Vigil was amazing,” Newcomb said. “When Father Carson (Krittenbrink) was blessing the organ, that was a moment I’ll never forget.”
After decades of praising God with the organ, it was time to upgrade the parish organ.
Saint Mary Catholic Church was constructed in the 1950s and used an electric organ for the first few decades, with the pipe organ having been installed in 1981.
“They had a Hammond organ for 26 years, and when it finally broke, they made the decision to get the pipe organ,” Newcomb said, adding that the organ cost at the time was about $35,000. “A new organ is about $2 million today,” Newcomb said.
The installment of a pipe organ was in keeping with Church teachings that the organ is the highest instrument to be used for worship.
“We wanted to be faithful to the teachings of the Church; we already had an organ, and it was important that the next generation could use it,” Newcomb said.
The organ had been declining for several years.
“In December 2019, the organ was already showing its age,” Newcomb said. “I told Father (Krittenbrink) there was work that needed to be done because it was starting to fail mechanically. All of the parts that need to move within the chest that hold the pipes up weren’t working.”
The 2022 Easter service alone was a difficult performance.
“The ‘straw that broke the camel’s back’ was Easter Sunday, 2022, when the pipes began playing by themselves,” Newcomb said.
The final performance of the organ, at least in its former state, was Pentecost Sunday, June 25, 2022.
The choir had a summer break and reconvened in September. The church soon started a fundraising campaign, and an anonymous donor covered all the other expenses for the refurbishment.
With choir loft closed due to construction, the church brought in an alternative organ, lovingly dubbed “Tiny Tim.” Other updates to the choir included robes for the choir members, and the members sitting at the front, with their backs turned to church attendees.
“We sat up front by the church chancel and weren’t able to do all the anthems we wanted because the organ couldn’t keep up,” Newcomb said.
Organ problems were quickly dealt with by workers.
“We have 24 ranks of pipes, five of which are new, and 13 ranks of digital voices,” Newcomb said. “The case is the original case from 1981, but all of the chests that are inside are brand new.”
There is also new intricate woodwork highlighting the pipes from behind. Other things stayed the same and have been retained for the choir.
“The horizontal trumpet en chamade is original, they just cleaned it up,” Newcomb said.
The performance for Easter was reportedly an amazing experience for those who sang in the choir.
Elizabeth Odom is a member of the Saint Mary Catholic Church choir and performed that Sunday morning.
“It was amazing to be able to unveil it at Easter morning,” Odom said. “It was so much better with the pipe organ.”
They aren’t alone with a love of the almost new organ, as many parishioners have also voiced their own love of the refurbished instrument.
“There are a lot of people who have said they loved it, and that it sounded more full than it ever did.” Newcomb said. “There is no experience quite like unveiling an organ in the biggest liturgy of the year.”
Everett Brazil, III is a freelance writer for the Sooner Catholic..
Photo: (top) Fr. Carson Krittenbrink blessed a refurbished pipe organ at St. Mary Catholic Church in Ponca City.
Photo: Brad Newcomb, choir director and organist for St. Mary Catholic Church in Ponca City. Photos Everett Brazil, III / Sooner Catholic..
