Tyagaraja (4 May 1767 – 6 January 1847), also known as Tyāgayya, was a renowned composer of Carnatic music, a form of Indian classical music. He was prolific and highly influential in the development of India’s classical music tradition. Tyagaraja and his contemporaries, Shyama Shastri and Muthuswami Dikshitar, are regarded as the Trinity of Carnatic music. Tyagaraja composed thousands of devotional compositions, most in Telugu and in praise of Lord Rama, many of which remain popular today. Of special mention are five of his compositions called the Pancharatna Kritis (English: “five gems”), which are often sung in programs in his honour.

Tyagaraja saw the reigns of four kings of the Maratha dynasty — Tulaja II (1763–1787), Amarasimha (1787–1798), Serfoji II (1798–1832) and Sivaji II(1832–1855), although he served none of them.