Born in a family of percussionists, Tiruvarur Vaidyanathan was initiated into the divine art of mridangam at the age of 6. He had his early training under his grandfather Shri Thiruvarur Kunju Iyer and his uncle Shri Thiruvarur Nagarajan. His natural sense of rhythm and affinity with the instrument enabled him to perform in concerts even as he was learning.