Tirumakudalu Chowdiah (Kannada: ಸಂಗೀತ ರತ್ನ ತಿರುಮಕೂಡಲು ಚೌಡಯ್ಯ) (1895 – 19 January 1967) was a violin maestro from India in the Carnatic classical tradition.

[1] He became a disciple of Mysore Royal Court musician, Ganavisharadha Bidaram Krishnappa in 1910 and underwent a very rigorous and disciplined training until 1918 in the gurukula system.

With Bidaram Krishnappa's encouragement, courage and mastery, Chowdiah, earned fame, affection and respect from all his great contemporaries.

It is said that the brilliant vocalist G. N. Balasubramaniam would request sabha secretaries, who wanted to arrange his concert, that they should talk to Chowdiah's first to make sure he is available to accompany on violin.

By devoted practice, application, grit and learning, Chowdiah rose to Himalayan heights in the world of Carnatic music.

He would enforce a sense of discipline that required the shishyas wake up early in the morning everyday and practice akara sadhana.

This kind of practice was the means of developing voice culture and the deep knowledge of swaras (i.e. notes), essential to gain vast vidwath.

He also introduced his disciples to almost all famous musicians of his times and he insisted that, they learn the many nuances of the art of music from them.

On his concert tours, he would always take select disciples and gave them additional opportunities to meet the giants of music, and interact with them.

Such was Chowdiah's reputation; he had captured the hearts and minds of both ordinary listeners and knowledgeable artists and connoisseurs of carnatic music.

Those were the days when there was no sound amplification equipment and it was rather difficult for listeners who sat in the back rows of music halls to hear him playing the violin.

But V Sethuramiah, Chowdiah's disciple, mostly used seven-stringed violin; and Sethuramaih's solo playing and accompaniment samples are available on the net.

[3] Chowdiah designed the seven-stringed violin to ensure that the accompanist could match the vocalist (the need for this was felt especially in the early and mid-20th century when no amplification devices were available).

Mr. K. Puttu Rao, a senior advocate of the city, was the secretary of Bidaram Krishnappa's Prasanna Seetha Rama Mandiram at that time, and he offered all the necessary support to set up the institution.

The students of this college were trained to appear for junior, senior, and proficiency examinations in flute, violin, veena and vocal music.

Chowdiah, the Principal often visited the college of music and would listen, observe, supervise and give suggestions to students and the administrators.

Those days there was a well known dramatist Hiranniah who, acted in the film and also helped Chowdiah with lyrics and scripts for songs in the movie "Vani".