Some December evenings in this city are warm and moist, like rich plum cake. It will be on two such days that the annual Madras Christian College Alumni Concert will be held at the MCC School grounds, Chetpet, where different sets of choirs will perform on December 13 and 14 from 6pm.
Dr Ravi Santosham, vice-president of the MCC Alumni Association, says, “The concert was originally begun to bring the alumni together in December. It extended to an evening of carol singing. It caught on so well and members were from so many choirs that it ended up being a two-day concert. MRF pitches in to get the stage and the grounds ready. The concert is all set to roll with the reading of the MCC prayer by a distinguished member of the alumni. Over the years, we have had Grammy-nominated artiste Chandrika Tandon, her sister and former CEO, PepsiCo, Indra Nooyi, and IPS officer K Vijay Kumar read it.”
Billed as Chennai’s largest open-air carol concert, with a mammoth stage, a 10,000 watt sound system and a background of glowing Christmas trees, the non-ticketed programme is open to the public. In the early years, a fete was part of the evening but now the focus is on the season’s melodies.
