About December Season 1999
December Season 1999 is a Carnatic vocal music album by Indian classical vocalist T. M. Krishna. Released in 1999 under the label Charsur Digital Workstation, the album captures a live performance from the December Music Season in Chennai, a prominent annual festival for Indian classical arts. The recording format is CD, and the release is classified as official.
The album features nine tracks, blending traditional kritis, ragam-tanam-pallavi segments, and viruttams (devotional verses). Krishna performs as the primary vocalist, accompanied by instrumental support typical of Carnatic concerts, including violin and mridangam, though specific accompanying artists are not documented in the available context. The repertoire spans compositions by notable composers such as Tyagaraja, Bhadrachala Ramadasu, and Papanasam Sivan, alongside improvisational pieces.
Notable tracks include Viriboni (a kriti in Bhairavi raga), Rama Nee Vaddu (a composition in Kharaharapriya raga), and Vazhi Maraittirukkude (a Tamil devotional song). The album also features Ramanatham Bhajeham, a kriti in Khamas raga, and Sabha Pathiku, a piece often associated with concert closures. A highlight is the Kedaragaula ragam-tanam-pallavi segment, showcasing Krishna’s improvisational skills in alapana (melodic elaboration) and neraval (rhythmic variations). The track Shantakaram - Viruttam - Govardhanagiri presents a devotional verse set to music, while Parulanamaata and Saraguna Paalimpa represent traditional kritis in Begada and Shanmukhapriya ragas, respectively.
The recording reflects the concert structure of the December Season, emphasizing both technical virtuosity and emotional depth in Carnatic music. The album’s production aligns with the era’s digital recording standards, though specific engineering details or reissue history remain undocumented. As an early commercial release in Krishna’s discography, it contributes to the preservation of live Carnatic performance traditions from the late 20th century.